I picked up this coin from a friend. He dabbles in coins but we could not find any information on this coin anywhere. It looks to be arabic or middle eastern but it looks like it is in very good shape but very old. I believe it is silver and it weighs almost 1/4 ounce. Let me know what you guys think. Tdec1000
Tdec1000,it is from one of the Indian Princely States - Hyderabad,being the most likely one.Giladzuc will translate this for you. Aidan.
It is correctly idedentified as Hyderabad coin. The weight suggests that it's a one rupee coin. The name on the coin is written as "Nizam-al-Mulk, Asaf Jah". Also, there is a persian letter 'M' written above 'Mulk' which indicates that this coin was issued by ruling nizam "Mir Mahbub Ali Khan II". Also the last line has date (only last 3 digits) AH1294 which roughly translates to AD 1877. Thanks for sharing this nice old Indian coin. Regards, Ballabh Garg
If I Read It Properly , The Mint Is Haidarabad There are 2 places in that name : Haidarabad (Krause spelles Hyderabad) in India , and "HAIDARABAD SIND" now in Pakistan.
Hyderabadi coin. Ballabh,this Hyderabadi coin is definitely a British Commonwealth issue.Afew years back,a late friend of mine had a silver coin dated AH1316 (1898) that he was trying to identify.I said to him,"This looks like it comes from one of the Indian Princely States.As to which one,I'm not sure".It later turned out that I was indeed correct - a Hyderabadi silver 1/8 Rupee (2 Annas).It ended up in one of the very last Wellington Coin Club coin auctions,at which I bought a number of coins,including this particular one.It is now in my collection. Aidan.
The retail price of this rupee is somewhere in between $10-$15. Though I have seen some US dealer's price list in which these were sold for around $25-$40. Again based on their condition and if a complete date, mint name and ruler name is visible on the coin. Regards, Ballabh Garg
The coin in question is from Hyderabad in India. This was the biggest and most prosperous Indian Princely state in that region. You have read the mint name correctly as Haidarabad and that's how it is written on coin. The pronunciation of "Haidarabad" and "Hyderabad" is same when speaking in Urdu or Persian style. However, during "British Raj", the state name was written as "Haidarabad" while the state capital was referred as "Hyderabad city" in all official documents. Few years after Nizam signed "Instrument of Accession", the state name was changed to "Andhra Pradesh" but the name of capital city remains same, i.e "Hyderabad". Regards Ballabh Garg
For most of Indian princely states, rupee is the most common coin and is widely collected. The fractional denomination like half rupee, quarter rupee and 2 annas are scarce and not that easy to find (in dealers stock). I recall I was visiting Hyderabad in 1994 and met several local dealers enquiring about fractional denomination coins without much success. I was able to get only few specimen for my collection. Part of my collection is still in India but I have some coins here with me which I can scan and post if you are interested in seeing them. Regards Ballabh Garg
Hyderabad's name. Ballabh,the correct spelling of the State's name was 'Hyderabad' during the period of the British Raj.Hyderabad was the only one of the Indian Princely States that attempted to declare itself to be a fully independent monarchy within the British Commonwealth.The Hyderabadi Rupee remained in circulation until 1953,when it was withdrawn & replaced by the Rupee of the Republic of India. Here's an article; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabad_State .
And who decides the correct spelling of state name? The coin minted in 1877 sure reads "Haidarabad". Regards Ballabh Garg
This fact is also visible on the coin posted in this thread. For Indian Princely states, it was common practice to recognize the king/queen of Delhi on one side of coin and the local ruler name on other side (Kutch, Alwar, Bikanir and many other states are example of this practice). On one side, you will read the name of ruling king/queen from Delhi, like coin issued "in name of Shah Alam II" or "in name of Victoria, mighty queen" etc. However, the coin posted above is in name of "Nizam-al-mulk, Asaf Jah". Asaf Jah was the founder of Nizam dynasty. So, why a nizam in 1877 will mint a coin with his great grandfather's name when the practice was to put queen of Delhi's (i.e. Victoria) name there? He and his ancestors had clearly declared their independence from Delhi and is clearly communicated via these coins. Regards Ballabh Garg
Ballabh,I forgot to mention that the Khanate of Kalat & Jammu & Kashmir also attempted to become independent monarchies within the British Commonwealth upon the partition of India into the Dominions of India & Pakistan,but Hyderabad was the only coin & banknote issuing state to attempt to become independent. It is true that 'Haidarabad' was the pronounciation of the state's name in Urdu,but 'Hyderabad' is what it has always been pronounced in English. The Indian Princely States weren't colonies,however,they were internally independent.They were not allowed to conduct international relations,given their status as protected states under British suzerainty. Here's an article explaining the concept of suzerainty; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzerainty . Aidan.
