Sikh Empire VS1894 rupee KM-51
This specimen was lot 2710 in Steve Album Auction 51 (Santa Rosa, CA, January 2025), where it sold for $156. The catalog description[1] noted, "SIKH EMPIRE: AR rupee, Kashmir, VS1894, star after the word "guru", VF-XF." The Sikhs were a religious sect formed in the fifteenth century and lived peacefully under the Mughals until the emperor Jahangir deemed them a threat in the early seventeenth century. Mughal attacks militarized the religion and eventually the Sikhs defeated the Mughals and established an empire in the Punjab, which survived until conquered by the British in 1849. This type is listed for VS 1893-1898 and is scarce.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specifications: 10.7-11.3 g, silver, this specimen 10.97 g.
Catalog reference: KM-51, Herrli-06.46.04.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Album, Stephen, Joseph Lang, Paul Montz, Michael Barry and Norman Douglas Nicol, Auction 51, featuring the Howard Daniel III Collection of Asian Coins, the Almer H. Orr III Collection of World Coins and the Joe Sedillot Collection of German Coins, Santa Rosa, CA: Stephen Album Rare Coins, Inc., 2024.
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