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The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v2.c17.s2: II. Sātavāhana Coinage

The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v2.c17.s2

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II. Sātavāhana Coinage

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Among the ruling families of the Deccan, no other house has left us so varied and numerous a coinage as the Sātavāhana dynasty. The Sātavāhanas issued coins usually in lead and copper. They minted no gold coins and their silver coins are very rare.

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The Sātavāhana coinage occurs in great quantity and usually it shows no foreign influence. But it also shows hardly any artistic merit or originality. Busts of the issuers do not appear on copper and lead coins. Silver coins were issued only by four rulers, Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi, Vāsisṭhiputra Sātakarṇi, Vāsisṭhiputra Puḷumāvi, and Gautamīputra Yajña-śrī-Sātakarṇi, and only eight specimens of these have been found so far. Some of them show good portraits and are not without some skill in design. The representations of the lion, the horse, the bow and arrow, the elephant, the homo sign, &c., which figure among Sātavāhana motifs, are usually very crude and inartistic. Some of the coins bear legends, but usually they are either too fragmentary or too short to help in the reconstruction of history. The Sātavāhanas did not borrow the practice of their northern neighbours, the Western Kshatrapas, of introducing the name of the father of the issuer. Thus it is often difficult to identify the ruler concerned, since there were in many cases several kings of the same name, such as Kaṇha, Sātakarṇi, Pulomā, Svātikarṇa, &c. There are also various kings of the dynasty, for example Simuka, Pūrṇotsaṅga Lambodara, Hāla, and Maṇḍalaka, who are not represented in the coinage; on the other hand there are some kings like Kumbha Sātakarṇi, Śaka Sātakarṇi, and Karṇa Sātakarṇi, who are known from the coinage alone and are unknown to the Purāṇas and the inscriptions. It is no doubt often true that the Purāṇas, inscriptions, and coins help to some extent in reconstructing the history of the dynasty, but sometimes the data which they afford merely serve to introduce uncertainty, since in several cases there is no mutual agreement.

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We propose to describe only the important types of coins issued by the rulers of the dynasty.

Early Sātavāhana Rulers

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The question as to which king initiated the Sātavāhana coinage cannot yet be satisfactorily answered. The third king of the dynasty, according to the Paurāṇic list, was Sātakarṇi, and he was a powerful ruler known as the lord of the entire Deccan. It is usually assumed that the copper and lead coins which bear the legend *Siri Sāta* or *Sātakarṇi* or *Sātakarṇa* were issued by him. The palaeographical evidence of these coin legends suggests that they were minted some time during the period 150 to 50 B.C.

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The Paurāṇic list, however, shows that there were several kings of the dynasty who bore the name of Sātakarṇi. The sixth ruler had this same name and it is possible to argue that kings like Meghasvāti, Svāti, Skandasvāti, and Svātikarṇa, the 9th, the 10th, the 11th, and the 14th in the Pauranic list, may also have abbreviated their names into Sāti or Sāta and issued some of the coins bearing the legends Sāta or Sāti.

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During the last decade three coins of a king named Sātavāhana have come to light; one of these was found at Kondapur and the other two were probably obtained in the former Hyderabad State. Professor V. V. Mirashi holds that the king Sātavāhana who issued these coins was the founder of the dynasty and ruled earlier than the king Sāta or Sātakarṇi of the coins mentioned earlier. The Paurāṇic list of kings in fact does not mention Sātavāhana as the founder of the dynasty, but inscriptions describe it as the Sātavāhana-kula,¹ suggesting that it was brought into prominence first by Sātavāhana. It is quite possible that Sātavāhana was an earlier or immediate predecessor of Simuka, the first king, and he might have issued these coins which bear his name. The fact that his coins are found so far only in the Hyderabad territory, while those of Sāta or Sātakarṇi are found in Western India, Malwa and Tripuri, would seem to show that the latter was a later prince, who ruled the empire after it had expanded beyond the Vindhyas. Sātavāhana was an earlier ruler and might have been the founder of the house. A son of queen Nāganikā, who was the wife of the third king of the dynasty, was also named Sātavāhana, and might perhaps have been called after an earlier and more glorious ancestor.

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¹ *EI*, viii, 93.

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Unless, however, more decisive evidence should become available, the above theory cannot be accepted. If king Sātavāhana of the new coins was indeed a predecessor of Simuka, one wonders why coins of Simuka and his brother Kṛṣṇa should also not have been found. Secondly, it is quite possible that king Sātavāhana of the coins in question might have been one of the sons of Nāganikā, whose name actually occurs in the Nanaghat inscriptions. Pūrṇotsaṅga, who is mentioned in the Purāṇas as the successor of the first Sātakarṇi, might have been his *biruda*. Until we get further evidence, we cannot solve this problem.

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We shall now proceed to describe the chief types of Sātavāhana, Sāta, Sāti, and Sātikarṇa.

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Coins of Sātavāhana

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*Elephant type*

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Copper; square; 0·80 in.; 110 grains; Malwa; *JNSI*, vii, 1. *Obv.* Elephant with trunk upraised; legend, diagonally across the coin, *Raño sari Sadavaha[na]* *Rev.* Ujjain symbol and some other minor symbols. Pl. LXII, 5.

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Lead; oval; 1×0·35 in.; 98·9 grains; from Kondapur; *JNSI*, xi, 5. *Obv.* Elephant, facing right, with trunk hanging down; legend, *Siri Sadavaha[na]*. *Rev.* Big Ujjain symbol, with a circle between two orbs. Pl. LXII, 6.

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Coins of Sāta

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*Elephant type*

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Lead; round; 1·5 in.; 101 grains; Malwa; *BMCAK*, p. 1, pl. i, 1. *Obv.* Elephant standing to right; below, River with fish; above, the legend *Raño siri Satasa*. *Rev.* Blurred (not illustrated). Pl. LXII, 7.

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*Homo type*

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Potin; round; 0·8 in.; 86 grains; Western India; *BMCAK*, p. 1, pl. i, 2. *Obv.* Man standing facing l.; Ujjain symbol; legend, *Raño siri Satasa*. *Rev.* Elephant standing to right; above, Tree within railing; in front, Three-arched Hill; below, River. Pl. LXII, 8.

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*JNSI*, iv, pl. ii, 4-6, publishes three other Elephant type coins of Siri Sāta from the Allahabad Municipal Museum. Their provenance is unknown.

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Coins of Sāti

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Homo type

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Lead; round; 1.01 in.; 218.7 grains; from Tripuri; *JNSI*, xiii, 35, pl. ii, 13. *Obv.* Homo sign on left; Ujjain symbol in centre; legend, XI to VIII, *Raño siri Satasa*. *Rev.* From left to right, Three-arched Hill; Tree within railing; River with fish placed vertically; and again Three-arched Hill. (Not illustrated.)

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Coins of Sātakana or Satakani

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Elephant type

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Copper; round; 0.9 in.; 211.8 grains; provenance unknown; *JNSI*, iv, 27, pl. ii, 7. *Obv.* Elephant with trunk upraised walking to left; Svastika above it; circular legend, *Sātakani*. *Rev.* Faint traces of tree in railing.

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Square potin coins with Elephant with trunk upraised on the obv. and Tree within railing and Ujjain symbol on the reverse, found in Western India, have the legend . . *kanisa*. They may have been issued by this ruler. See *BMCAK*, p. 3, pl. i, 9.

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Lion type

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Potin; square; 0.75 in.; 83 grains; Bhagwanlal collection; *BMCAK*, pl. i, 9. *Obv.* Lion springing to r. Svastika above; legend reversed [*Raño*] *Sātakanisa*. *Rev.* Within square border of dots, Ujjain symbol surmounted by Nandipada; Tree within railing.

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Homo type

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Copper; round; 0.92 in.; 109.3 grains; from Tripuri; *JNSI*, xiii, 36, pl. ii, 14. *Obv.* Homo sign on left; Ujjain symbol in centre; legend from VII to X, *Raño siri Satakanisa*. *Rev.* Three-arched Hill, a vertical line, probably indicating a Tree; Tree within railing; Three-arched Hill.

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Bull type

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Lead; round; 0.9 in.; 282 grains; Hyderabad region; *JNSI*, viii, 18, pl. ii A, 1. *Obv.* Humped Bull in the centre with a blurred triangle-headed standard in front; legend above the Bull, *Raño sara Satakanasa*. *Rev.* Tree within railing; Triangle-headed banner; Svastika, &c.

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The Bull type bears a striking resemblance to the Bull type of Sadakaṇi Kaḷalāya (Pl. LXIV, 8). The arrangement on the obverse of the Bull and the legend are both strikingly similar, though the Bull faces to the left on the coin of Kaḷalāya and to the right on the coin of Sātakarṇi. The tree with large leaves on the reverse of both coins is similar, though other symbols are different. These coin types show that the rulers named were not far removed from each other in time, and indeed it is most probable that Sadakaṇi Kaḷalāya was actually the father-in-law of Sātakarṇi.

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The coins of Sātakarṇi found in Gujarāt and published in *JNSI*, xii, 26, would appear to be the issue of some later ruler such as Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi or Yajña-śrī-Sātakarṇi.

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Coins of Apilaka and Meghasvāti

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According to the Paurāṇic list of kings there were thirteen rulers between Sātakarṇi II and Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi, but we have discovered the coins of only two of them, Apilaka and Meghasvāti. Of these Apilaka is represented only by a single coin found in the Bilaspur district of Madhya Pradesh. The Purāṇas do not attach any affix to the name of Apilaka; the coin on the other hand supplies the affix Śiva-siri. This fact, however, does not justify us in assuming that these names belong to two different rulers. Copper coins do not as a rule travel long distances; the discovery of the coin of Apilaka in the Bilaspur district is probably a proof that the Sātavāhana kingdom was fairly extensive even during this period, of which we have no other records. We shall now describe this unique coin.

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Copper; round; 1 in.; 65 grains; Bilaspur district; *JASB*, 1927, 94N. *Obv.* Elephant walking to right; an indistinct symbol above, circular legend, *Raṇo Siva-sirisāpilakasa*. *Rev.* Blank (not illustrated). Pl. LXII, 11.

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It is possible that the square lead coin having a Bull or Horse on the obverse with the reverse obliterated (*BMCAK*, p. 28) may have been a coin of Meghasvāti, the successor of Apilaka according to the Purāṇas. The legible part of the legend reads *ghasada*, and this may stand for [Me]ghasada or Meghasvāti.

Later Sātavāhanas

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Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi, who reasserted the Sātavāhana power, naturally issued a large number of coins. His coinage is mostly in potin and his most popular type shows an Elephant with trunk upraised with the legend above on the obverse (Pl. LXII, 12) and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse.¹ Out of 1,160 coins of this type in the Tarhala hoard, on which the legend was legible, 525 belonged to Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi. Though the legend on these coins is only *Sātakaṇisa*, their attribution to Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi is fairly certain; for the same hoard contained other coins with the full legend *Raṇo siri Yaña Sātakaṇisa*.

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¹ *BMCAK*, No. 171; the weight of this coin is 36.3 grains.

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Potin coins found in Western India with an Elephant on the obverse and a Tree with large leaves on the reverse seem to have faint traces of the legend *Raṇo siri Sātakaṇisa* on them (*BMCAK*, p. 17). They were most probably issued by Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi.

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Some lead and potin coins have been found in southern Gujarat at Karavan and Kamrej, which have traces of the indistinct legend, *Raṇo siri Sātakaṇisa*. Very probably these coins were struck by Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi.

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karṇi after his conquest of Nahapāna. These pieces have either an Elephant or a Lion on one side and the Ujjain symbol or a Tree within a railing on the other (*JNSI*, xii, 28-29).

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When Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi crushed the power of Nahapāna and annexed his kingdom, he took the rather unusual step of recalling the silver currency of his vanquished foe and stamping it with his own symbols, bust, and legend. A hoard of about 13,250 such counterstruck silver coins was discovered at Jogalthembi near Nasik in 1906. On the original hemidrachms of Nahapāna the obverse had a bust of the king with a corrupt Greek legend Ranniw IAHAPATAC NAHAPANAC (giving a transliteration of the Indian legend); and the reverse had Thunderbolt, Arrow, and Pellet with legends both in Brāhmī and Kharoshṭhī *Rājño Kṣaharātasa Nahapanasa* and *Raña Chhaharatasa Nahapanasa* respectively (Pl. LXII, 13). Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi counterstruck one side with Chaitya and its own legend and other with the Ujjain symbol. We describe and illustrate below two such coins.

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Silver; round; 0·65 in.; 35·6 grains; *BMCAK*, no. 255 *Obv.* Chaitya superimposed over the bust of Nahapāna; Brāhmī legend, beginning at XII, *Raño Gotami* . . . . *ri Satakanisa*; traces of Greek legend. *Rev.* Ujjain symbol struck over the reverse of Nahapāna’s coin, leaving traces of Brāhmī and Kharoshṭhī legends, *Raño Khaharatasa Nahapanasa*. Pl. LXII, 14.

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Silver; round; 0·65 in.; 31·2 grains; *BMCAK*, no. 257. *Obv.* Chaitya superimposed over the reverse of Nahapāna-type; Brāhmī legend, beginning at XI, *Raño Gotamiputara*; traces of Brāhmī *Nahapanasa* and Kharoshṭhī *hapanasa* of the original legend are also visible. *Rev.* Ujjain symbol counterstruck over the face of Nahapāna; faint traces of corrupt Greek legend. Pl. LXII, 15.

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When Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi found a silver currency so profusely in circulation in the new provinces annexed by him, did he himself then proceed to issue his own independent silver coinage? It is by no means improbable that he did so, and in fact a unique silver coin was published by the present writer, which has on it an incomplete legend containing the word *Gotami*. But Gautamīputra was also the matronymic of a later ruler named Yajñaśrī, and since the legend on the piece in question is incomplete, it is difficult to say whether it contained or did not contain the name Yajña-śrī. Gautamīputra Yajñaśrī’s silver coinage, however, has usually a bust on the obverse and is therefore of a different type; it is thus not improbable that the present coin may indeed have been struck by Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi. We describe the coin below.

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Silver; round; 0·7 in.; 30 grains; from Ujjayini; *JNSI*, viii, 111. *Obv.* Six-arched Hill with dot in each orb on a platform; Brāhmī legend commencing from the top of the hill, *Raño Gotami*. *Rev.* Ujjain symbol with a pellet in each orb. Pl. LXII, 16.

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Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvi

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Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi's son and successor Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvi has left us a fairly large number of coins. The Tarhala hoard of 1,160 legible pieces contained 175 coins of this king and the Chanda hoard of 183 coins had 24 pieces issued by him. They are of the Elephant and Chaitya type, the legend being Puḷumavi(sa) (Pl. LXIII, 1). This type has already been referred to. The type of round lead coins, which he had issued for Āndhra-deśa, had a Three-arched Hill above a wavy line with the legend Raño Vasiṭhīputasa siri Puḷumavisa on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse (Pl. LXIII, 2-3). The weights of these coins vary from 78 to 85 grains. The Ship-mast type, once attributed to this ruler (BMCAK, p. 22), has now been shown to be an issue of Yajñaśrī Sātakarṇi; see p. 796.

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A silver coin of this ruler was found in the river-bed at Bhelsa in 1949. We describe it below; its size has been magnified in the Plate.

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Silver; round; 0.65 in. in diameter; 28 grains; JNSI, xiv, 1. *Obv.* Bust of king to right; circular legend around beginning at I [*Vasithi*] *putasa sara* . . . *Rev.* In the middle, Ujjain symbol and six-arched Chaitya; legend, fragmentary and blurred, but *siri Puḷu* clear from VIII to XI. Pl. LXIII, 4 (enlarged).

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The nose of the king is aquiline and the portrait shows grim determination in the face.

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Śivaśrī

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According to the Purāṇas, Puḷumāvi was succeeded by Śivaśrī and we may reasonably identify this ruler with Vāsiṣṭhīputra Śiva-śrī of the lead coins found in Āndhra-deśa. On his coins, which weigh about 90 grains, the obverse shows a Three-arched Hill and River with the legend Raño Vasisṭhīputra Śiva-sirisa, and the reverse has an ornamental Ujjain symbol (Pl. LXIII, 5).¹ Rapson read at the end of the legend the word *Sātakaṇisa*, but it is not visible on any coin known to us. Vāsiṣṭhīputra Śiva-śrī was probably a brother of Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvi and might have ruled as a sub-king in Āndhra-deśa.

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¹ BMCAK, 29.

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Śivaskanda Sātakarṇi

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Śivaśrī was succeeded, according to the Purāṇas, by Śivaskanda Sātakarṇi, and we may reasonably identify this prince with King Vāsiṣṭhīputra Śrī-Chandra Sātī or Sri Chandra Sāti known from coins found in Āndhra-deśa. He also was probably a brother of Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvi ruling over a small fief in Āndhra-deśa. On one of his coins we have a Three-arched Hill and the Ujjain symbol and on the other a Horse to the right and the Ujjain symbol.

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Vāsiṣṭhīputra Sātakarṇi

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It will be convenient here to discuss a silver coin of Vāsiṣṭhīputra Sātakarṇi published by the present writer in *JNSI*, xi, 59. Very probably he was a brother of Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvi who succeeded him as supreme overlord. I had once thought that he might be identical with Śiva-śri-Sātakarṇi, whose coins we have discussed above, but we cannot be sure about this point. We shall now describe his unique silver coin.

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Silver; round; 0.6 in.; 28 grains; Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay, *JNSI*, xi, 59, pl. ii. 5.

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*Obv.* Bust of the king to right; circular legend beginning at I *Raño Vasishṭhiputasa*.

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*Rev.* Ujjain symbol; Six-arched Hill, River, &c.; legend starting at XII, *Ara* . . . . . . *na Haṭakaṇisha*.

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The reverse legend is probably identical with that on the obverse, but is in a different script and dialect. Pl. LXIII, 6.

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Vāsiṣṭhīputra Sātakarṇi was the son-in-law of Rudradāman and seems to have been the first Sātavāhana king to imitate the bust type coinage of the Western Kshatrapas.

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Yajña-śri-Sātakarṇi

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In the Paurāṇic list Yajña-śri-Sātakarṇi succeeds Śiva-Skanda Sātakarṇi, and we can therefore confidently identify him with the Gautamīputra Yajña-śri-Sātakarṇi of the coins. There was a revival of the Sātavāhana power during his reign and it is reflected in his coinage. He issued several types of coins and they have been found over a large area.

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In the Andhra country, lead coins of this ruler are found in large numbers. One type is that of the Three-arched or Six-arched Hill above a river on the obverse with the legend giving the king's name, occasionally along with some symbols. The reverse has the Ujjain symbol (Pl. LXIII, 7).¹ These coins are in different denominations, as suggested by their varying weights, such as 244, 72, 40, 20 grains. The full legend on this type is *Raño Gotamīputasa siri Yaña Sātakanisa* (Pl. LXIII, 7-8).

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¹ Pl. LXIII, 7 is *BMCAK*, 140 and Pl. LXIII, 18 is *BMCAK*, 139. Their weights are 83.5 and 71 grains respectively.

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Another type in lead (?) struck by this ruler in the *Andhra-deśa* has a Horse on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse. Sometimes there is a crescent above the Horse; sometimes the Horse faces left, and sometimes to the right (Pl. LXIII, 9). The legend is intended to be *Raño Gotamiputa (Yaña) Satākanisa*.

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A third lead type minted in the *Andhra-deśa* shows an Elephant, facing right, with the trunk hanging down on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse (Pl. LXIII, 10).

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Yajña-śri issued a fairly large number of potin coins of the Vidarbha type, showing an Elephant with the trunk upraised on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse (Pl. LXIV, 1-2).¹ The Chanda hoard of 183 coins contained 42 pieces of Yajña-śrī and the Tarhala hoard of 1,125 legible coins had 248 pieces of this ruler. The legend is siri Yaña Sata and the average weight is 41 grains.

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¹ *BMCAK*, 166, 165.

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The lead coins of the type with a Ship with two masts were ascribed for a long time to Vāsiṣṭhīputra Puḷumāvī, though it was admitted that the reading of the name of this king was by no means certain. Fresh coins since discovered show that the issuer of these coins was in fact Yajña-śrī-Sātakarṇi. We describe the type below; the photograph in the plate is an enlarged one. Lead; 0-8 in.; 125-7 grains; *JNSI*, iii, 43. *Obv.* Ship with two masts; legend *Raṇa Sāmisa siri Yaña Satakaṇisa*. *Rev.* Ujjain symbol. Pl. LXIV, 3.

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One of these coins was found in the Coromandel coast area and the other in the Guntur district.

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Yajña-śrī-Sātakarṇi issued silver coins imitating the Kshatrapa type. Originally only three such coins were known, which one came from Sopara near Bombay and the second from Amreli in Kathiwar; the findspot of the third is unknown. Subsequently a fourth coin was discovered at Besnagar by Dr. D. R. Bhandarkar and a fifth one was afterwards acquired near Tripuri by Dr. Katare.

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We shall describe this important type: Silver; round; 0-6 in.; weight not known; Sopara, *BMCAK*, vii E. 1. *Obv.* Bust of king to right; legend in ordinary Brāhmī characters, *Raño Gotamīputasa siri-Yaña Sātakaṇisa*. *Rev.* Ujjain symbol surmounted with a crescent; Six-arched crescented Hill to right; River below. Sun above. Legend in a different script and dialect, [...] *Gotamiputasha hiru Yaña Hatakaṇisha*. Pl. LXIV, 4.

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The reverse legend was read by R. G. Bhandarkar (B.G., I, ii, p. 153) as *Gotamiputa Kumara Yaña Sātakaṇi Chaturapaṇasa*, ‘of Chaturapaṇa Yajña Sātakaṇi, prince of Gotamiputra’, the reverse legend giving the name of the prince viceroy Chaturapaṇa and the obverse one of the ruling king Yajña-śrī. Bhagwanlal Indraji read it [*Chatarapaṇasa*] *Gotamiputasha kumaru Yaña Hātakaṇi*. He thought that the legend showed that Yajña-śrī was the son of Chaturapaṇa. D. R. Bhandarkar’s reading was *Gotamiputa Kshahara Yaña Hāta(kaṇi)*. He connected Kshaharu with Chhahara occurring in the Taxila plate of Patika.²

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² *ASIAR*, 1913-14, p. 217.

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It may be pointed out that the lacuna on the coin is not sufficient to accommodate a word of five Nāgarī letters such as Chaturapaṇa. Only three letters could have been engraved and these were probably *Araka* (*Aryaka*, honourable). The word *kumaru* does not exist; in the reverse legend the three characters read *shaharu*. The reverse legend is identical with that on the obverse except that it uses *araka* instead of *raño*, and *hiru* instead of *siri*, and *Hatakaisnha* instead of *Satakanisa*.

v2.c17.s2.t2.43

Vijaya and Chandaśrī Sātakarṇi

v2.c17.s2.t2.44

According to the Purāṇas, Yajñaśrī was succeeded by Vijaya and the latter by Chandaśrī Sātakarṇi. Coins of both these kings were discovered in the Tarhala hoard; they show the Elephant with trunk upraised on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse. The name of Vijaya appears without any change in the coin legend; the Sanskrit original of Chandaśrī was probably Skandaśrī. Coin No. 179 in *BMCAK*, though attributed to Rudra Sātakarṇi, is probably an issue of this ruler. The first character in the legend is off the flan and so does not appear.

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The last king of the Paurāṇic list is Puḷumāvi III. Probably the coins of the Tarhala hoard giving the name Pulahamavi were struck by this ruler.

Coins of Kings not mentioned in the Purāṇas

v2.c17.s2.t3.1

Several kings of the Paurāṇic list are not represented in the coinage shown above. The reverse is also true; some kings of the coins are not represented in the Paurāṇic list or inscriptions. Kumbha Sātakarṇi, Śaka Sātakarṇi, and Karṇa Sātakarṇi of the Tarhala hoard¹ belong to this category. The last-mentioned king is probably identical with king Kaṇha Sātakarṇi of the *BMCAK*, no. 180.

v2.c17.s2.t3.2

¹ *JNSI*, II, 90-91.

v2.c17.s2.t3.3

Kosikiputra Sātakarṇi is another king unknown to the Purāṇas but represented in the coinage. The solitary piece of his, known so far, is of the Chanda hoard type, showing an Elephant with the trunk upraised on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse (*JNSI*, VIII, 116). The actual legend is *Kosikiputa Sa*, which is to be completed as *Kosikiputa Sātakaṇisa*. It is possible to argue that the issuer may not have been a Sātavāhana ruler, the legend being really *Kosikiputasa*, and the proper name being altogether wanting. But the type shows that the issuer was indeed a Sātavāhana ruler and so the last letter *sa* would seem to be the initial character of the word Sātakaṇi.

v2.c17.s2.t3.4

A very big lead coin² 1.55 in. in diameter and weighing 559.5 grains was found in the Godavari district, with one side plain and the other side showing a lion and an incomplete inscription, *Raño* . . . . *varasa* (Pl. LXIV, 5). The name . . . . *vara* does not occur in the Paurāṇic list of Andhra kings.

v2.c17.s2.t3.5

² *BMCAK*, 4.

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As was the case with most of the ancient empires, the Sātavāhanas controlled a number of feudatory princes, and some of these were permitted to issue coins. One such feudatory family ruled at Kolhapur and is known from the coins of three of its rulers, namely (1) Vāsisṭhīputra Viḷivāyakura, (2)

v2.c17.s2.t3.7

Māḍhariputra Śivalakura (Pl. LXIV, 6), and (3) Gotamīputra Viḷivāyakura (Pl. LXIV, 7). No. 3 among the above rulers restrikes the coins of No. 2; and No. 2 those of No. 1. It is therefore clear that the above kings ruled in the order stated above.

v2.c17.s2.t3.8

These coins have usually a Ten-arched Hill, Tree, and River on the obverse and a Bow and Arrow on the reverse, with the circular legend, *Raño Gotamīputasa Viḷivāyakurasa*, &c. (Pl. LXIV, 6–7).¹ Coins were issued both in copper (Pl. LXIV, 6) and lead (Pl. LXIV, 7). It was once supposed that these kings were Sātavāhana rulers and different attempts were accordingly made to identify them with the kings of the Paurāṇic list. Smith identified Gautamīputra Viḷivāyakura with the great Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi, Māḍhariputra Śivalakura with Śivasvāti, and Vāsiṣṭhīputra Viḷivāyakura with Chakora Sātakarṇi, the predecessor of Śivasvāti.

v2.c17.s2.t3.9

¹ Pl. LXIV, 6 is *BMCAK*, 31 and weighs 60 grains; Pl. LXIV, 7 is *BMCAK*, 30 and weighs 164·6 grains.

v2.c17.s2.t3.10

We cannot enter into the details of this controversy. It is essential to point out that the mere matronymics like Gautamīputra and Māḍhariputra cannot make these rulers Sātavāhanas; for example, Gautamīputra and Vāsiṣṭhīputra appear as epithets of the Magha kings Śivamagha and Bhīmasena; a Mahārathi chief at Karli has the matronymic Vāsiṣṭhīputra. The rulers who struck the Kolhapur coins need not therefore be identified as Sātavāhanas merely because they are described as Gautamīputra and Vāsiṣṭhīputra. Ptolemy states that Polemaios of Paithan and Baleokuros of Hippokura were contemporaries. It is clear that Polemaios is the Greek form of Puḷumāvi and that Baleokuros is Viḷivāyakura. These were two different though contemporary kings. It is therefore very likely that the Viḷivāyakura and Śivalakura of the Kolhapur coins were members of some local feudatory ruling family.

v2.c17.s2.t3.11

Another feudatory family attached to the Sātavāhana empire ruled in the Chitaldurg district of Mysore. It issued large lead coins having a Bull on one side and a Tree within a railing and a Three-arched Hill on the other (Pl. LXIV, 8).² Only one king is known from the legends of this coinage, viz. Kaḷalāya-mahārathi. The type of his pieces has a close resemblance to one of the types issued by King Sātakarṇi and described above (p. 791).

v2.c17.s2.t3.12

² Pl. LXIV, 8 is *BMCAK*, VIII. 233 and weighs 211·5 grains; Pl. LXIV, 9 is *BMCAK*, VIII. G.P. 2 and weighs 210·4 grains; and Pl. LXIV, 10 is *BMCAK*, VIII. 236 and weighs 250 grains. Photographs are to size.

v2.c17.s2.t3.13

Another feudatory family was ruling at this time in the North Canara district. The lead coins of two of its kings have so far come to light, Chūṭukulānanda and Muḍānanda (Pl. LXIV, 9–10). The type is an Eight-arched Hill on one side and a Tree within a railing and double trident on the other.

v2.c17.s2.t3.14

The legend on Pl. LXIV, 9 is *Raño Chuṭukulānandasa* and that on Pl. LXIV, 10 is *Raño Muḷānandasa*.³

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POST-SĀTAVĀHANA COINAGE

Introduction

v2.c17.s2.t4.1

Little is known so far about the post-Sātavāhana coinage of the Deccan. The coins available for study are few in number, and those among them which are inscribed are very much fewer. Types do not help us very much. The Varāha, Padma, and Bull types persisted for many centuries. The Varāha type, for instance, was no doubt first introduced by the Chālukyas, but it was continued by later dynasties as late as the time of Vijayanagar; thus we cannot assign all coins of this type to the Chālukya dynasty. The term Varāha became in the course of time a common synonym for gold currency in general. Pieces of this type must once have been issued in large quantities, but the Varāha coins now available for study are not many. It has been suggested that a fabulous number of them must have been included in the booty carried to Delhi from South India by Malik Kāfūr, leaving very few behind in their province of origin. This explanation does not carry conviction. U.P. was also occupied by the Muslims and yet quite a large number of gold Gupta coins have been found in that State.

v2.c17.s2.t4.2

There was hardly any silver coinage in Southern India. Nārada no doubt does say, as pointed out above, that silver *kārshāpaṇas* were common in the south, but the archaeological evidence does not support his assertion. Silver bullion or coins are rarely mentioned in connexion with the booty collected by Malik Kāfūr in the Deccan. The dynasties of the Deccan dealt with in this volume rarely issued silver currency. Copper currency of the Deccan of this period is also very scarce.

(1) Early Gold Coins

v2.c17.s2.t5.1

Smooth and minute spherules with tiny marks consisting of four dots on the obverse and none on the reverse appear to be among the earliest extant gold coins of the Deccan. Their weight is about 52 grains and their diameter about 0·45 in.; they are obviously of the Kalanju denomination, so popular in Southern India. These spherules were known as *gullige* or little balls in old Canarese and several of them were found in the Sunda Pargana of Dharwar district in 1828.¹ There are more than 25 of these in the Hyderabad Museum.² Two spherules are illustrated on Pl. LXV, 1 and 2.

v2.c17.s2.t5.2

¹ Elliot, *Coins of South India*, p. 53; pl. i, 2.

v2.c17.s2.t5.3

² ARHAD, 1925, p. 17.

v2.c17.s2.t5.4

A second early type is that of the *padma-ṭaṅkas*: they are flat and round. They have a lotus in the centre, which gives them their name, and four punched marks on the obverse; of these two are the letters *śri*, the third is a conch, and the fourth is usually a bow (Pl. LXV, 3).³ In one variety of this type we have scroll work stamped from a die on the reverse, and among the punches on the obverse there are two retrospectant lions (Pl. LXV, 19).¹ These coins, which are usually found in Banavasi, are generally attributed to the Kadambas, but the attribution is by no means certain. Their diameter is 1 in. and their weight about 60 grains.

v2.c17.s2.t5.5

³ Elliot, pl. i, 7–8.

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¹ Elliot, pl. ii, 67.

v2.c17.s2.t5.7

The gold *fanams* having a Bull surmounted by the Sun and the Moon on the obverse and a large Sun on the reverse have been attributed to the early Pallavas, since they are found on the Coromandel coast.² This view is probable but not yet proved.

v2.c17.s2.t5.8

² Ibid., pl. i, 31-36.

v2.c17.s2.t5.9

Some tiny gold coins were found in the Maski excavations, with an Elephant on one side and a Lion on the other. Their attribution is difficult to determine, and the more so as they have not yet been adequately published.³

v2.c17.s2.t5.10

³ *ARHAD*, 1939, p. 18.

(2) The Ikṣvāku coinage

v2.c17.s2.t6.1

At Nāgārjunikonda, in the excavations of 1955-6, some lead coins of two Ikṣvāku kings, Vīrapuruṣadatta and Śāntamūla, were found; they imitate one of the types of the Sātavāhanas, showing an Elephant with trunk upraised on one side and the Ujjain symbol on the other. The fragmentary legend is above the Elephant.⁴

v2.c17.s2.t6.2

⁴ *Indian Archaeology*, 1955-6, p. 26.

(3) The Vākāṭaka coinage

v2.c17.s2.t7.1

The Vākāṭakas rose to power soon after the downfall of the Sātavāhanas and were soon ruling over a large part of the former dominion of that dynasty. They must have been familiar with the Sātavāhana coinage, but apparently they did not make any attempt to issue a currency of their own. We have so far found no coins of the dynasty, nor are they referred to in its records.

(4) The Śālaṅkāyana coinage

v2.c17.s2.t8.1

The Śālaṅkāyanas ruled in Āndhra-*deśa* during the fourth and the fifth centuries. A copper coin of Chandravarman has recently come to light. It has a Bull on the obverse and the legend *Śrī-Chandrava(rman)*, giving the king's name, on the reverse.⁵ Its size is 0.7 in. and weight 94 grains.

v2.c17.s2.t8.2

⁵ *Bhandarkar Commemoration Volume*, pp. 213-16.

v2.c17.s2.t8.3

The Bull was the *lāñchhana* of the Śālaṅkāyanas and the palaeography of the coin legend belongs to the fifth century. The coin therefore may have been an issue of the Śālaṅkāyanas. The issuer Chandravarman was probably a grandson of Hastivarman, the opponent of Samudragupta.

(5) The coinage of the Chālukyas of Bādāmi

v2.c17.s2.t9.1

The Chālukyas, who held sway over the Deccan for several centuries, had accepted the *lāñchhana* of the boar, and there can be no doubt that they initiated the coin type which had the Boar on its obverse. Their currency with this symbol must have been very common, since Varāha soon became a common word applied to gold coins in general. Not many specimens of this type, however, have been handed down to our age.

v2.c17.s2.t9.2

We have no inscribed Varāha coins which can be ascribed to any of the rulers of the Chālukya house of Bādāmi. Dr. M. H. Krishna did indeed attribute some uninscribed coins to Pulakeśin II, but the attribution is very doubtful.¹

v2.c17.s2.t9.3

¹ ARMAD, 1933, p. 98.

v2.c17.s2.t9.4

Some uninscribed gold coins² have been discovered in the Southern Maratha Country and the Bellary district, which have in the centre a Boar surrounded by punched symbols such as a *Śankha* (conch), a *Chakra* (wheel), a Bow, two *Śris* (Pl. LXV, 5). The reverse has some indented lines. There are other coins also found in the same area, having a Boar with trappings on one side and a Floral design (Pl. LXV, 6) or the Sun on the other (Pl. LXV, 7). The weight of these coins varies from 55 to 58 grains and they might possibly have been struck by some rulers of the House of the Chālukyas of Badāmi.³

v2.c17.s2.t9.5

² Elliot, pl. i. 19; 22.

v2.c17.s2.t9.6

³ Ibid., pl. i. 21-23.

(6) The coinage of the Rāṣṭrakūṭas

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The Rāṣṭrakūṭa dynasty was a mighty power; for some time it ruled all the territory from the Vindhyas to Rameshwar. On some occasions its armies even penetrated into the Gangetic plain and crossed swords with the forces of northern dynasties like the Pālas and the Pratīhāras. Its princes were lovers of art; they built magnificent temples adorned with beautiful sculptures. But it would seem that they were not interested in coinage. At any rate no coins have so far been found, inscribed or uninscribed, which can be definitely attributed to any ruler of the dynasty. Certain silver hemidrachms from Nasik district having a bust of the Kṣatrapa type on the obverse and a Bull on the reverse with the circular legend *Parama-māheśvara-Mātāpitṛi-pādānudhyāta-s’ri-Kṛiṣṇarājasya*⁴ were once attributed to one of the three Rāṣṭrakūṭa emperors named Kṛiṣṇa. But these have now been shown to have been the issues of the Kalachūri ruler of that name, who flourished during *c.* A.D. 550-75.

v2.c17.s2.t10.2

⁴ V. V. Mirashi, CII, vol. iv, pp. clxxx-clxxxi.

v2.c17.s2.t10.3

*Dramma*, *suvarṇa*, *gadyāṇaka*, *kalañju*, and *kāsu* are the five coin denominations mentioned in Rāṣṭrakūṭa records. Of these the last two were not current in the Deccan, but in Southern India. The Cambay plates of Govinda IV mention a gift of 1,400 villages yielding a revenue of seven lakhs of *suvarṇas*;⁵ the average revenue of a village was thus 500 *suvarṇas*. Whether the Rāṣṭrakūṭa administration issued any gold coins, and whether, like the *suvarṇas* of Northern India of the earlier period, they had a standard weight of eighty *rattis* or 144 grains, we do not know. It is quite possible that the sum of seven lakhs of *suvarṇas*, which was the revenue of 1,400 villages, represented the approximate gold value of the land revenue in kind collected from these villages. In that case, *suvarṇa* would have been a conventional coin of account. The *gadyāṇaka* was equal to two *kalañjaus* and weighed about 100 grains. No specimens of this coin issued by the Rāṣṭrakūṭas have yet been found. Dr. M. H. Krishna attributed four gold coins of a weight standard of about 60 grains to the Rāṣṭrakūṭas.¹ These have an elaborate floral design on one side and four lions punched round a tank with lotuses on the other. But as the coins bear no legend, this attribution can only be conjectural.

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⁵ EI, vii, 26.

v2.c17.s2.t10.5

¹ ARMAD, 1933, p. 99

v2.c17.s2.t10.6

One Kanheri Rāṣṭrakūṭa inscription refers to a golden *dramma* and distinguishes it from ordinary *drammas* mentioned earlier.² These ordinary *drammas* were probably silver pieces. The Uruli hoard of Gadhaiya coins discovered in the Poona district belongs to the eighth or the ninth century. Punch-marked types were copied mechanically in the earlier period, and it is not impossible that the Rāṣṭrakūṭa administration might have merely reproduced the Gadhaiya silver type in this unimaginative way, as was done by the Śilāhāra king Chhittarāja. It is, however, also possible that the Uruli hoard may have been the earnings or loot of some Rāṣṭrakūṭa captain participating in the northern campaigns of Govinda III or Indra III. The question whether the Rāṣṭrakūṭas issued any gold or silver currency cannot yet be answered.

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² IA, xiii, 153.

(7) The coinage of the later Cāḷukyas of Kalyāṇi

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Among the pieces struck by the later Cāḷukyas of Kalyāṇi we have gold coins of Jayasiṁha Jagadekamalla (1019-40), Someśvara I Trailokyamalla (1068-76), and Tailapa III (1150, 1182).³ It is quite likely that other rulers of this dynasty issued coins, but if so, they have not so far been found. Dr. M. H. Krishna tentatively suggested that some of the coins with the legend *para* may have been the issues of Tailapa II, but when we remember that the title Parameśvara was common both in the Rāṣṭrakūṭa and the Cāḷukya dynasties, his suggestion must remain merely an unproved conjecture for lack of supporting evidence.

v2.c17.s2.t11.2

³ ARMAD, 1933, p. 88.

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Dr. Krishna also attributed certain coins to Vikramāditya VI and others to Someśvara III, but these attributions are also doubtful.⁴

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⁴ Ibid., 1933, p. 162.

v2.c17.s2.t11.5

The coins of Jayasiṁha Jagadekamalla occur in two types. In one type we have five Lions punched by five different punches, large Spear-head, and the letters *ya, ja*, obviously standing for Jayasiṁha. In the other type there is a temple in the centre with a domed tower and a *Chakra* above it. Between the pillars of the temple is the Kannaḍa legend in two lines: (1) *Śri ja ga de*; (2) *ka ma lla* (Pl. LXV, 8). There are nine punches round the temple. The reverse is blank. The diameter of this coin is 1 in. and weight 69 grains.⁵

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⁵ Ibid., 1938, Pl. XXI, 7.

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Someśvara I Trailokyamalla issued coins in two types. On one there are five Lions and *Tre, lo, ma, lla*, punched by separate punches. On the other¹ there is a spearhead with a dot in the centre and four dots to its right standing perhaps for a lotus, and the Nāgarī legend around it (Pl. LXV, 9).

v2.c17.s2.t11.8

¹ Ibid., XXI, 9. The diameter of this coin is 1 in. and weight is unknown.

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In the treasury of the former state of Bhor there were some gold *padma-ṭaṅkas* on a few of which the legend *Śrī-Lashuma* is legible. It has been suggested that these coins might have been issued by Lakṣmīdevī, the chief queen of Vikramāditya VI.² Coins minted by queens are otherwise so far unknown in the Deccan. These coins seem to be *padma-ṭaṅkas* of the Rāmaṭaṅka variety, bearing the names and figures of some of the Rāmāyaṇa heroes.

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² JNSI, iii, 53.

(8) The Kaḷachūri coinage

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The later Cāḷukyas were superseded by Kaḷachūri Bijjala by about the middle of the twelfth century. After the murder of this king in 1167, he was in turn succeeded by his son Soma or Rāya Murāri. A few rare gold coins have been found in the Satara district, weighing on the average about 55 grains, and having on the obverse a dancing figure facing to the right and on the reverse a legend in three lines in old Canarese characters, of which the second line reads Murāri (Pl. LXV, 10). This coin type had been attributed to the Kaḷachūri ruler Soma or Murāri,³ and the attribution is quite probable.

v2.c17.s2.t12.2

³ Elliot, *Coins of South India*, p. 152; pl. iii. 87.

(9) The coinage of the Eastern Cāḷukyas of Veṅgi

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The Eastern Cāḷukya dynasty was founded by Kubja Viṣṇuvardhana, the brother of Pulakeśin II, in 618 and maintained its sway continuously for about 450 years. There were 40 kings in the dynasty, but we possess inscribed coins of barely half a dozen of these.

v2.c17.s2.t13.2

Kubja Viṣṇuvardhana had the *biruda* of Viṣhamasiddhi and it is usual to attribute gold coins with the legend Viṣhamasiddhi to him. This attribution is probable, but not certain, for this same *biruda* was later adopted by some of his successors.

v2.c17.s2.t13.3

Viṣhamasiddhi's coins are in two types. On one there is a Lion in the centre and the legend *Viṣhamasiddhi* above it in early Cāḷukya characters. The reverse has a sceptre. The metal is brass, the coin being 0.65 in. in diameter.

v2.c17.s2.t13.4

The second type is similar to the first, but its reverse has a double Trident within a border of rays, surmounted by a Crescent and flanked by two Lamps (Pl. LXV, 11).⁴ A hoard of these coins was found in Daulatābād in the Nalgonda district of Hyderabad. It weighed in all 4,920 tolas and therefore must have consisted of more than 12,000 coins. These coins are not silver; they are an alloy of 71 per cent. copper and 21 per cent. tin, with iron and zinc in negligible quantites. The average weight is 50 grains.

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⁴ ARMAD, 1941, p. 108, xx. 1.

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Among the later rulers of the Eastern Chālukya dynasty some are known to have issued coins. The first among these to have done so is king Śaktivarman Chālukya-chandra (A.D. 1000-11), whose coins have been known for a long time from the hoards found in the islands of Ramree and Cheduba situated off the coast of Burma and Siam. These coins were probably taken to these places either by pilgrims or by traders. Coins of this ruler have been found more recently at Masulipattan in the Krishna district.¹ His coins are in gold; there is a Boar in the centre with an Umbrella above and a Chouri on either side and the name of the king *Śrī-Chalukyachandrasa* inscribed all round, each character being separately punched. The diameter of these coins is 1.4 in. and the weight about 66 grains (Pl. LXV. 12).

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¹ IA, xix, 79.

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The kings Rājarāja (A.D. 1018-60) and Rājendra Kulottuṅga (A.D. 1070-1120) also issued coins with the same type. They are rather big, being 1.6 in. in diameter and about 66 grains in weight. They are cup-shaped. A coin of Rājarāja is illustrated on Pl. LXV, 13. Its obverse is like LXV, 12 and around the edge there are six punch-marks with one Telugu-Kannaḍa letter in each, *Śrī Ra ja rā ja sa*.

(10) The coinage of the Yādavas

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The coins of the Imperial Yādava dynasty were once attributed to the Kadambas, but subsequent discoveries have shown that they were issued by the Imperial Yādavas; this is rendered absolutely certain by the legends inscribed on them, which give the names of all the rulers from Siṅghaṇa onwards, with the exception of Ammaṇa, whose rule lasted only for a few months. These coins are punched on one side only, their reverse being blank, and thus they have become cup-shaped. Their weight is about 57 grains and the diameter measures 0.6 in. The obverse bears a lotus in the centre and four marks punched in four corners. At each end of one diagonal there is the letter *Śrī* in Telugu-Kannaḍa script. At one end of the other diagonal is found the king's name in the Devanāgarī script and at the other end usually a Conch or a Bow or a Sword. *Padmaṭaṅkas* issued by Siṅghaṇa, Mahādeva, Kṛiṣhṇa, and Rāmadeva have been found. The Hyderabad Museum possesses more than 150 of them, which originally belonged to the State Treasury. The hoard discovered at Rachpatan in the Krishna district in 1922 contained 43 coins with the legends Siṅghaṇa, Kaṇhara, Mahādeva, and Rāmadeva.² Three *padmaṭaṅkas* of Siṅghaṇa were found buried in a field in the Kharsia circle of the former Raigarh State together with a coin of Nasiruddīn Mahmūd (1246-66). This find would seem to show that the Yādava sphere of influence included southern Kośala during the reign of Siṅghaṇa.

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² JASB, N.S., 1925, pp. 6-10.

v2.c17.s2.t14.3

The name Siṅghaṇa is also spelt as Seghaṇa, that of Kṛiṣhṇa as Kāṇhapa or Kaṇhara, that of Mahādeva as Mahadeva and that of Rāmadeva as Śrī Rāma. Pl. LXV illustrates the coins of Siṃhaṇa (14-15), Kṛṣṇa (16), Mahādeva (17), and Rāmadeva (18) respectively. Their weight is about 58 grains.

(11) The coinage of the Śilāhāras

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Certain feudatory families of the Deccan also minted scanty coinages during our period. Among these are the Śilāhāras of Western India. King Chhittarāja of the Thana branch of this family issued silver coins of the Gadhāiya type with the bust of the king on the obverse and his own name in two lines, *Śri-Chhittarāja-deva*, on the reverse. A hoard of his coins was discovered below a gutter in Thana (Bombay State).

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Two inscribed gold coins came to light during the excavations at Kolhapur in the year 1946. Their weight is 22.5 grains and they have symbols on both sides. On the obverse there is a trident with a hand, whose forks enclose the Sun and the Moon. The reverse shows the figure of a standing Garuḍa facing right, with legs bent, carrying a flowing banner in his left hand and a serpent in his right.¹

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¹ JNSI, xiv, 15, pl. iv, 14.

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The Śilāhāras had Garuḍa as their *lāñchhana*, and thus the reverse motif of these coins and their findspot would seem to indicate that they might have been issued by the Śilāhāras. As, however, they do not bear any legend, it is difficult to ascribe them to any particular ruler.

(12) The coinage of the Kadambas

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Gold coins of several Kadamba rulers have come to light. On the obverse they have usually a Lion in the centre, with its leg upraised; the reverse has a legend in four or five lines giving the name of the king, who is usually described as the recipient of the favour of Saptakoṭiśa. We illustrate here a gold coin of Jayakeśin II of the first variety (Pl. LXV, 20).

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Gold: circular, 1.² in.; weight unknown; Elliot, Pl. II, 71.

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*Obv.* Within dotted border, Lion looking to front; before it in Nāgarī letters, *Pramoda*, apparently giving the name of the cyclic year of issue.

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*Rev.* Within dotted border, Nāgarī legend in five lines:

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(1) *Śrisaptako*, (2) *Ṭisalabdhavaravi*, (3) *Jayakeśi*, (4) *deva-Mallava*, (5) *ramāri*.

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On another variety the central figure is that of Gajasimha and the reverse legend is *Śri-Malage-Bhairva*. These coins usually weigh between 60 and 65 grams.

(13) The coinage of the Kākatīyas

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The question of the Kākatīya coinage is veiled in obscurity. Early scholars like Elliot had attributed the coins having a Bull between two candelabra to the Kākatīyas, on the ground that their copper plates have a similar emblem.² But this assumption is now shown to have been mistaken.

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² Elliot, iii, 93-95.

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The crest of the dynasty was a Boar. The Kākatīyas were, however, devotees of Śiva and there is therefore nothing improbable in the theory that they adopted the Bull as the main motif on their coinage. But this motif is in fact fairly common in South Indian coinage in general, and its presence therefore does not by itself furnish sufficient justification for ascribing the coins to the Kākatīyas. Recent writers on the subject like Mr. Gopalachari have argued that we have no coins which can be definitely ascribed to the Kākatīyas. The *fanams* ascribed to the dynasty have a modern look and appear to be actually coins struck by the Nāyakas of Madura.

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A few coins have been found, bearing fragmentary legends, which have been attributed to various Kākatīya rulers. Certain pieces were found in the Southern Konkan bearing the motif of the Lion. They have legends in Telugu characters; on some coins it is *Balaya-Śri* and on others *Rudra* written in a circle. These latter coins are commonly attributed to the Kākatīya ruler Rudra.¹ This attribution may well seem probable in view of the fact that the legend is written in Telugu characters; but it is not easy to explain how the coins of a king ruling in Warangal come to be found in the south of the Konkan. We must not forget, however, that gold coins often travel long distances. A copper coin, now lost, is stated to have had the device of the Bull and a fragmentary legend, *Srimat . . . ka . . kakati . . Pratapa-ra . . ya*.² This piece was attributed to King Pratāpa-Rudra of the Kākatīya dynasty. But the legend seems to be unusually long, and as the coin is no longer in existence, we cannot be sure whether its legend has been correctly reported.

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¹ *JBBRAS*, ii, 63.

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² Elliot, p. 85.

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In a treasure-trove found at Kavaiyadavalli³ in the Nellore district, a solitary coin was found weighing 56.25 grains. There was a Lion on its obverse and a fragmentary legend [*Ka*]ti-gana in Telugu characters. The attribution of this coin to King Gaṇapati is a possible suggestion, but at present it lacks confirmation.

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In the hoard referred to above, three cup-shaped gold coins were found, having apparently had a Lion in the centre and a fragmentary legend, which, when pieced together, seemed to read *rayasamu*. Ambaḍadeva, who had usurped the throne after the death of Rudrambā, bore the title *Rāyasa-hasramalla*. It is suggested that the legend *rayasamu* may be a contraction of Rāyasa-hasramalla and that these coins might have been struck by him.³ But the reading of the legend is by no means certain and therefore we cannot be sure of the attribution.

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³ *J. Andhra His. Soc.* i, 137.

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