The Foundation of Muslim Rule in India: A History of the Establishment and Progress of the Turkish Sultanate of Delhi, 1206–1290 A.D. c8.85

c8.85

these years Iwaz must have acknowledged Iltutmish's suzerainty. The ascription, however, is doubtful; the word can also be read as Nagaur as is found in one of his 608 issues: Thomas: *Chronicles* p. 78, no. 59. For Bengal, the word Gour did not come into use until much later; in the chronicles, as well as in the coins, it is always referred to as Lakhnauti. The first undoubted mention of the Bengal mint is found on a *Tankah* of Raziyah which bears the name of Lakhnauti; Thomas: *Chronicles*, p. 107 no. 90. No other coin is known to bear Gour as a mint name. Besides, it is hardly probable that Iwaz should have acknowledged Iltutmish when the latter was hardly secure on the throne, and then, as is proved by his coins, to have declared his independence just when the Delhi monarch, freed from all other dangers, was known to be strong enough to enforce his suzerainty.