Awadh AH 1234(5) mohur Fr-1009
This specimen was lot 1359 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2022), where it sold for $12,000. The catalog description[1] noted, "INDIA. Awadh. Ashrafi, AH 1234 Year 5. Muhammadabad Banaras Mint. Ghazi ud-Din Haidar. NGC MS-65. Entirely as-struck, this amazing Gem displays well-executed detail in the designs and scintillating unblemished luster in the fields. A miracle coin, this is unsurprisingly the single finest graded of the issue at NGC." This type was also struck at Lucknow, the capital. Friedberg lists this coin as a mohur, the gold version of the rupee. The distinction between mohur and ashrafi seems arbitrary, as both coins are the same weight. Both are listed for this state.
Per Wikipedia, "Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah (Hindi: ग़ाज़िउद्दीन हैदर शाह Urdu:غازی الدیں حیدر شاہ) (b. c. 1769 – d. 19 October 1827) was the last nawab wazir of Oudh from 11 July 1814 to 19 October 1818 and first King of Oudh (Oudh State) from 19 October 1818 to 19 October 1827." Ghazi ud-Din Haidar promoted himself from nawab to king with British connivance, setting aside the nominal suzerainty of the Mogul emperor. Later, a succession dispute resulted in British intervention and overlordship. Resentment of this and other acts led to the Indian Mutiny of 1857, which was centered at Awadh's capital Lucknow.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: gold, 10.7-11.4 g.
Catalog reference: Fr-1009; KM-170.1.
- 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]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The 2022 NYINC Sale: World and Ancient Coins, featuring the Mark and Lottie Salton Collection and the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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