2016-09-30 Fri

‘Swastika’ is considered as an auspicious symbol which is found on coins not only of ancient India but also on the coins of Europe. It is considered as a sign of good luck or charm; many ancient Hindu rulers had issued coins with a ‘Swastika’ sign on coin.

Ghiyath Shah of Malwa Sultanate is considered to be one of the first Muslim rulers issued a coin with ‘Swastika’.

It is a Gold Tanka coin which weighs around 11 gm. The obverse of the coin has the inscription “Al-wathiq bi’l malik al-multaji abul fath Ghiyath Shah” while the reverse of the coin is inscribed as “bin Mahmud Shah Al-Khalji Al-Sultan Khallada Mulkahu”.

Other malwa rulers like Mahmud Shah II, Muhammad Shah II, Mahmud Shah III of Gujarat, Muhammad bin Muzaffar, Baz Bahadur also minted coins with Swastik, sometimes retrograde. Such coins are found in all the metals.