2019-01-25 Fri

The Persian term ‘Ladakh’ is transliterated from Tibetan word ‘La-dvags’ which means Land of high passes. It is located near the Western Himalayas in the valley of upper Indus River. In 1834 Ladakh was annexed to the Sikh Empire. Later, it was transferred to Gulab Singh, to be ruled under suzerainty as a princely state.

One cannot get the evidence of Ladakh coinage in flow due to many missing periods and there were Ladakh coins with Hijri dates. The next change was due to the conquest of Ladakh by Gulab Singh and the Dogra army in 1835 AD.

This Silver Ja’u of Ladakh state was issued by Raja Gulab Singh. The obverse of a coin depicts the rulers' name in Nagari inscription while the reverse of a coin illustrate ‘Katar’ mint mark.

Todywalla Auctions sold this coin for INR 17,000 in an auction held on 8th December 2013.

Image Source: Todywalla Auctions