Awadh AH 1229(26) ashrafi Fr-1028
This specimen was lot 34866 in Heritage sale 3094 (Chicago, August 2021), where it sold for $9,600. The catalog description[1] noted, "India: Awadh. Brijis Qadr gold Ashrafi AH 1229 Year 26 (1813/1814)-Dated (1857) MS66 NGC, Muhammadabad Banaras mint, Struck in the name of Shah Alam II with frozen date during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Of far superior quality to either the David Fore or William Spengler specimens, and one of just two certified by NGC, the other ranking three points lower at an MS63. Slightly granular over the reverse (obverse as holdered), with thick die polish lines cloaking the obverse surfaces." This is listed as a mohur in Friedberg. It was struck in the name of the long deceased Mughal emperor Shah Alam II altho actually issued on the eve of or during the Mutiny. Birjis Qadr, as a leader of that rebellion against British hegemony, soon found himself deposed and exiled to Nepal. He died in Calcutta in 1893, aged 47, allegedly poisoned.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 10.7-11.4 g, gold.
Catalog reference: Fr-1028, KM 390.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, ANA WFOM World & Ancient Coins Platinum Night Signature Auction #3094, featuring the Cape Coral Collection, the WTR Collection and the Monaco Collection, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2021.
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