495

Bombay Presidency, Bombay Presidency, Mumbai mint, silver rupee, struck in the names of King William

Currency:INR Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:NA Estimated At:100,000.00 - 120,000.00 INR
Bombay Presidency, Bombay Presidency, Mumbai mint, silver rupee, struck in the names of King William
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Bombay Presidency, Mumbai mint, silver rupee, struck in the names of King William and Queen Mary (1689-1694 AD) in the Mughal style, RY 5, PR 27, Stevens EIC 1.26, 11.53g. Obv: Farsi legend Sikka zad dauran king Uilyam ein Kween Meree ("Coin struck during the reign of King William and Queen Mary"). Rev: Farsi legend Sanah Julus 5 Angrez Shaheen Zarb Munbai (“Struck at Mumbai in the auspicious year 5 of the English rulers”).

Very fine, Very rare.

The British East India Company at Bombay operated its own mint since 1672, but found trade very difficult as their coins with English designs were not readily accepted by the local businessmen. They could not officially strike coins in the name of the Mughal emperor, as they were technically not his subjects. To remedy this situation, they resorted to strike coins in the names the British sovereigns but resembling Mughal coins in every other respect such as the use of Farsi script.

The coins were brought to the notice of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb soon and he was very annoyed at their sight. He sent Khafi Khan, a nobleman who would later become famous also as a Mughal chronicler, to Bombay and threatened the British with dire consequences if the coins were not withdrawn immediately. The British complied with the Emperor's demand under the threat of an impending military action. The coins were all withdrawn and melted down in 1696. The issue was thus very short-lived. Coins of this type were unknown until 1960, when P L Gupta located a few specimens in the collection of the Prince of Wales Museum (now CSMVS) in Bombay. He published them along with historical context as outlined by Khafi Khan.