2017-08-08 Tue

‘Panchala’ is very well known to us because of the great epic Mahabharata.After the disintegration of the Mauryan Empire, many new kingdoms emerged. One such powerful kingdom which rose in North India was Panchala. They had their own coinage from around 150 BCE to 125 CE. The Copper coins are characterized by three peculiar symbols arranged in a horizontal row and bearing the name of the ruler below. The obverse depicts the deity which is connected to the respective rulers.

For instance, Agnimitra’s coins depict Agni (the god of fire). Agni deva is shown with flaming hair. Similarly, Indramitra’s coin shows a standing deity, Indra. Also, sometimes the deity is replaced by a symbol representing its attribute. For example, trident and battle axe are seen on the coins of Rudragupta showing the attribution of Lord Shiva.

The last ruler of Panchala kingdom is supposed to be the Achyuta. His coins have spoke wheel and legend ‘Achyu’.

Explore Panchala coins in more detail here.