Mughal Empire AH 1164/4 rupee KM-446.4
This specimen was lot 76013 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, September 2025), where it sold for $288. The catalog description[1] noted, "INDIA. Mughal Empire. Rupee, AH 1164 Year 4 (1750/51). Allahabad Mint. Ahmad Shah Bahadur. PCGS MS-64." This type was struck at approximately forty mints. As Mughal authority decayed, the sultan was unable to prevent mints from springing up in outlying provinces. The Allahabad mint struck this type during years 1-5 and is accounted a common mint.
Wikipedia notes, "Ahmad Shah Bahadur, also known as Mirza Ahmad Shah or Mujahid-ud-Din Ahmad Shah Ghazi (23 December 1725 – 1 January 1775) was born to Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah. He succeeded his father to the throne as the 13th Mughal Emperor in 1748 at the age of 22. When Ahmed Shah Bahadur came to power, the Mughal Empire was collapsing. Furthermore, his administrative weaknesses eventually led to the rise of the usurping Feroze Jung III. He was emperor in title for six years, but left all affairs of state to rivalling factions. He was deposed by the Vizier Feroze Jung III and later blinded along with his mother. He spent the remaining years of his life in prison and died of natural causes in January 1775."
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 11.0-11.6 g, silver.
Catalog reference: KM-446.4.
- Album, Stephen, Checklist of Islamic Coins, 3rd Ed., Santa Rosa, Stephen Album Rare Coins, 2011.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, September 2025 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, including Selections from the Richard Margolis Collection and Selections from the L.E. Bruun Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2025.
Link to: