2018-04-17 Tue

Arcot is situated on the east coast of India between Madras and Calcutta. Arcot is said to be derived from Tamil word ‘Aarukaadu’. Tamil word ‘Aaru’ means ‘river’ and ‘kaadu’ means forest, hence the word ‘Aarukadu’ means a forest of fig trees.

The Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb appointed a Nawab as the governor for the provinces of north and south Arcot in Tamil Nadu. Thirteen years after Aurangzeb’s death, the Nawab claimed to be an independent ruler and founded the dynasty of the Nawab of Arcot.

Depicted here is the copper Cash of the Arcot with legend ‘Ain Kas Alamgir’ engraved on its obverse and reverse bear legend ‘Nawab Shahi’. This coin was sold for INR 3,000 by the Classical Numismatic Gallery.

Image Source: Classical Numismatic Gallery