Symbolism and the State Authority: Reflections from the Art on Indo-Islamic Coins

http://ihr.sagepub.com/Indian Historical Review

http://ihr.sagepub.com/content/40/1/17The online version of this article can be found at:

DOI: 10.1177/0376983613475863

2013 40: 17Indian Historical ReviewSyed Ejaz Hussain

CoinsSymbolism and the State Authority: Reflections from the Art on Indo-Islamic

Published by:

http://www.sagepublications.com

On behalf of:

Indian Council of Historical Research

can be found at:Indian Historical ReviewAdditional services and information for

http://ihr.sagepub.com/cgi/alertsEmail Alerts:

http://ihr.sagepub.com/subscriptionsSubscriptions:

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.navReprints:

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.navPermissions:

http://ihr.sagepub.com/content/40/1/17.refs.htmlCitations:

What is This?

- May 9, 2013Version of Record >>

at CALCUTTA UNIVERSITY on June 10, 2013ihr.sagepub.comDownloaded from

http://ihr.sagepub.com/

http://ihr.sagepub.com/content/40/1/17

http://www.sagepublications.com

http://www.ichrindia.org/

http://ihr.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts

http://ihr.sagepub.com/subscriptions

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav

http://ihr.sagepub.com/content/40/1/17.refs.html

http://ihr.sagepub.com/content/40/1/17.full.pdf

http://online.sagepub.com/site/sphelp/vorhelp.xhtml


Symbolism and the State Authority: Reflections from the Art on Indo-Islamic Coins*†

Syed Ejaz HussainDepartment of HistoryVisva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, India

AbstractSymbols and rituals with regard to the legitimacy and manifestations of state authority have been the subject of debate in historical writings in recent decades. But most of the works on the subject discuss the legitimacy and authority in the context of vis-ible symbols of power and rituals. So far as symbolism is concerned, it is both visible and invisible. Awrang, chatr, durbash, ‘alam, etc., were the visible symbols of power. But there were some invisible symbols of power hidden in sophisticated Islamic art. Islamic art in various forms and features in the early modern world told something that was sometimes not easily recognised in visible symbols of power.

It is argued that one of the chief purposes the coinage served during the medieval period was its use as a medium of communication to the subjects by the ruling author-ity. Coins spoke to the people in two ways—through the language of inscription as well as through the language of art. The rulers used both these languages to legitimise and glorify their authority and power in order to create a sensory image in the mind of their subjects to win their faith and make them obey. The ruler also liked to perpetu-ate his achievements and munificence in the memory of his subjects. Inscriptions on coins carried political overtones and messages while a variety of symbols, decorative motifs and designs engraved on the body of the coins not only tell of the aesthetic tastes of the ruler and the contemporary society but they radiated certain calculated move and political expression.1 The present article makes an attempt to unravel the political rhetoric reflected through the invisible language of art and decorative designs found on the Indo-Islamic coins, particularly of the sultanate period.

Article

Indian Historical Review40(1) 17–40

© 2013 ICHRSAGE Publications

Los Angeles, London,New Delhi, Singapore,

Washington DCDOI: 10.1177/0376983613475863

http://ihr.sagepub.com

*The paper was presented at the International Numismatic Congress held in Glasgow in 2009 and was funded by the ICHR. A preliminary draft of this paper based on a purely aesthetic appreciation of Bengal Sultans’ coins was presented at the Bengal Art Conference, Dhaka, in 2007.† All the images featuring in this article belong to the personal photographic collection of the author built up over the years. The author is especially grateful to the Department of Coins and Medals, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge as well as the British Museum, London for providing some of the photographs when the author visited these museums.1 Hussain, ‘Kings and Coins: Money as the State Media in the Indian Sultanates’, pp. 56–57.



18 Syed Ejaz Hussain

Indian Historical Review, 40, 1 (2013): 17–40

The author has consulted both published and unpublished coins preserved in public repositories and private collections in India and abroad. Both contemporary and modern works have been extensively used to analyse the numismatic evidence and reach a conclusion. However, the suggestions expressed herewith are purely hypo-thetical, even speculation. The arguments put forward are for provoking a discussion and sharing with those working with similar themes.

KeywordsSymbols, legitimacy, political rhetoric, numismatic art, sultanate period

Symbolism in early modern state polity shaped the notion of legitimacy of the state authority. Symbolism carried a multitude of complexities and ambiguities. Awrang/takht or throne, chatr/aftabgir or parasol, durbash or mace, lawa’/‘alam or standards, khutba or recitation of sultan’s name in Friday sermon, sikka or striking coinage, paibos or kissing of the sultan’s feet, khakbos/zaminbos or lying prostrate on the ground before the sultan, tuki/chabutra or raised platform, naqqarah or kettledrum, kaukaba or shining ball, kurnish or saluting while bending down, shahnashin/jharoka or view-ing through small balcony, bestowing a khil’at or robe of honour, nazr/pishkash or accepting/giving precious/rich presents, tula-daan or weighing against coins/grains and several others were visible symbols or royal privileges along with a number of other rituals which were unmistakably practiced with some modification and change as a whole or a part of them by the rulers in India, Persia and Central Asia during the early modern world.2

2 Minhaj, pp. 7, 13, 35–37, 133, 142, 147–48, 157–58, 161, 191–92, 198–99; Barani, p. 26; Ashraf, Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan, pp. 65–80; Hardy, ‘The Growth of Authority Over a Conquered Political Elite: The Early Delhi Sultanate as Possible Case Study’, p. 237; Wink, Al-Hind: Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Vol. II, p. 187; however none of the above cited authors refer to the institution of jharokha. Babur refers to an interesting term shah-nishin which he witnessed at Herat. A.S. Beveridge has rather erroneously identified this as jharokha-i-darsan (see Beveridge, Babur Nama [Memoirs of Babur], p. 302). Beveridge’s footnote possibly led R. Nath to identify shah-nishin with jharokha-darsan. The generic term shah-nishin was used for ‘the seat of the king’, i.e., a gallery or balcony projecting from the palace, where the king showed himself to his people; a balcony, gallery, portico or similar projection; a costly carpet (see Steingass, A Comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary, Indian edu, p. 728, sv. shah-nishin). Wheeler M. Thackston’s translation of The Baburnama, Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor, p. 234 leaves no space for such an erroneous identification. Instead, he had the opportunity to compare the original Chagatay Turkish text with the sixteenth century Persian translation and noted that shahnishin was ‘a dias, or bench often with three raised sides’ (p. 454), which is displayed in the accompanying illustration on p. 235. Babur’s description of shah-nishins and their location in ‘a sweet little abode’, a smallish two-storeyed house in the middle of a smallish garden constituting the Tarab–Khana (Joy House) do not suit the purpose for which the institution of jharokha darshan was conceived and introduced later by Akbar. The subsequent descriptions attest to the singular and exclusive nature of the jharokha, H. Beveridge (tr.) The Akbarnama, Bib. Ind., Calcutta, nd., Indian edu, Delhi, p. 656; of Alexander Rogers (tr.) and Henry Beveridge, ed. The Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri or Memoirs of Jahangir, pp. 205, 242, 266; Thackston, The Jahangirnama, Memoirs of Jahangir, Emperor of India, pp. 15, 127, 145, 161, 167, 197, 219–20, 228–29, 231, 244, 264, 267, 337, see also Mukhia, The Mughals of India, pp. 72–112.



Symbolism and the State Authority 19


A number of writings in context of the complexities and relevance of these symbols and rituals, particularly with regard to their political manifestations, have come down to us in recent decades. Max Weber (1865–1920), the renowned German historian and social scientist was perhaps the first who delved deep into the cultural sociology and posited that ‘human conduct be conditioned to obedience towards those masters who claim to be the bearers of legitimate power’. In his view, political power, that is, ‘sul-tanist despotism’ can endure not simply by using ‘brute force’ but by framing some devices to coerce the faith and obedience of the subjects by free will.3 Kingship and Authority in South Asia, edited by J.F. Richards in 1978, is the chief work on the theme. It includes nine research papers of which the first five are related to ancient India and the rest are devoted to Sultanate–Mughal period. Symbols of power, rituals and a king’s authority in pre-Muslim north India have been discussed in two essays titled ‘The Conundrum of the King’s Authority’ by J.C. Heesterman and ‘Ritual, Authority, and Cyclic Time in Hindu Kingship’ by Ronald Inden. Burton Stein in his essay ‘All the King’s Mana: Perspectives on Kingship in Medieval South India’ has discussed the heroic, moral and ritual kingship traditions current under the Chola, Hoysala and Pandya kingdoms in south India. Explaining the political behaviour of kings under Indo-Persian tradition, Peter Hardy in his paper titled ‘The Growth of Authority Over a Conquered Political Elite: The Early Delhi Sultanate as Possible Case Study’ has stressed on the notion of service, the application of the wilayat or ‘vested authority’ as well as expression and assertion of authority by using various metaphors and symbols under the early sultanate rulers. J.F. Richards in his essay titled ‘The Formulation of Imperial Authority under Akbar and Jahangir’ has discussed the public image, dynas-tic ideology, imperial discipleship, new imperial identities based on various symbolic acts and rituals under Akbar and Jahangir.4 J.F. Richards, in another paper ‘Norms of Comportment among Imperial Mughal Officers’, explained that the Mughals shared values and codes of behaviour with their application and transfer which created, shaped and transmitted a public image of the rulers.5 Hermann Kulke’s edited work, The State in India: 1000–1700, carried two essays on early medieval India, one by Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya titled ‘Political Processes and the Structure of Polity in Early Medieval India’ and the other by Hermann Kulke titled ‘The Early and the Imperial Kingdom: A Processural Model of Integrative State Formation in Early Medieval India’. Structural issues and political processes intertwined with symbols, rituals and metaphors used in various forms during the early medieval India or pre-sultanate period have been taken up by the two authors from two different angles. Chattopadhyaya has emphasised on structure and process while Kulke has stressed on the interplay of integrative forces. The volume contains two essays on Mughal India by Athar Ali and Stephen P. Blake respectively. Athar Ali in his essay ‘Towards an Interpretation of the Mughal Rule’ has examined the political structure and institutions of the Mughal India that was deeply indigenous than sultanate rule. Stephen P. Blake, on the other hand has investigated into

3 Weber, ‘Politics as a Vocation’, p. 80. 4 Richard, Kingship and Authority in South Asia, pp. 13–40, 41–91, 133–88, 216–41, 285–326.5 Richard, ‘Norms of Comportment among Imperial Mughal Officers’, pp. 255–89.





the facets of the Mughal culture and civilisation in its entirety and characterised it to be a patrimonial–bureaucratic empire, a theme originally initiated by Max Weber6 (It is notable that some of these essays were published earlier in historical journals but here they reappear in revised shape). Critopher P. Holand’s essay ‘Akbar and the Mughal State: The Quest for Legitimization in Hindustan’ is also significant in this genre of literature.7 Hakan T. Karateke in his article titled ‘Legitimizing the Ottoman Sultanate: A Framework for Historical Analysis’ has expressed the view that ‘…the Ottoman state was not much different from other Islamic or non-Islamic pre-modern monarchies in its legitimating process’ and it devised similar strategies to keep the subjects content.8 In a recent work State and Locality in Mughal India: Power Relations in Western India, c. 1572–1730, Farhat Hasan has attempted to shift our attention towards complexity of interplay between the Mughal Empire and the local social forces that projects ‘the negotiated character of the state power.’9 Very recently, Balkrishna Shivram and Ruby Maloni have also written on the legitimacy, symbolism and ceremonial elements in the Mughal state.10 Most of the above writings whether on the structural nature or political processes involving symbolism or ritualism are either devoted to the early medieval (pre-sultanate) or Mughal period; not on sultanate India.

Not much has been explored about the structural institutions and political processes during the sultanate period. Issues relating symbolism, rituals and ceremonial elements are very less talked about. Some faint light on this line of investigation may be gleaned from the works of Ishwar Topa, K.M. Ashraf and R.P. Tripathi.11 Irfan Habib’s essays ‘Formation of the Sultanate Ruling Class of the Thirteenth Century’ and ‘Barani’s Theory of the History of the Delhi Sultanate’12 though written from different angles—the former discusses the nature and composition of nobility of the early sultanate era, the latter concentrates on Barani’s views of writing history—they indirectly give an insight to the structure of nobility and monarch’s legitimacy. Andre Wink in his semi-nal work Al-Hind: Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Vol. II devoted a portion of his discussion on the formation of the Indo-Islamic state but his emphasis remained on nomadic nature of migration of the Turkish slaves in the thirteenth century and called it ‘random patrimonialism’. He has, however, referred to the symbols of royal authority, which ‘were widely shared by among the Turkish mamluks’.13 In The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History, Peter Jackson has concentrated on political forma-tions and military conquests during the thirteenth century. Sunil Kumar, in his work

6 Kulke, The State in India: 1000–1700, pp. 195–232, 233–62, 263–77, 278–303.7 Holand, ‘Akbar and the Mughal State: The Quest for Legitimization in Hindustan’, pp. 1–36.8 Karateke, ‘Legitimizing the Ottoman Sultanate: A Framework for Historical Analysis’, p. 39.9 Hasan, State and Locality in Mughal India: Power Relations in Western India, c.1572–1730, p. 127.10 Maloni, ‘Propaganda and Legitimacy of Regime: Akbar and Abul Fazl’, pp. 300–22; Shivram, ‘The Authority of the Padshahs in Sixteenth-Century Mughal India’, pp. 11–38.11 Ashraf, Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan; Topa, Politics in Pre-Mughal Times; Tripathi, Some Aspects of Muslim Administration.12 Habib, ‘Barani’s Theory of the History of the Delhi Sultanate’, pp. 99–115; Habib, ‘Formation of the Sultanate Ruling Class of the Thirteenth Century’, pp. 1–21.13 Wink, Al-Hind: Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Vol. II, pp. 182–88.





based on doctoral dissertation, The Emergence of the Delhi Sultanate: 1192–1286 has discussed the foundation of the new regime under the slaves, constitution and role of nobility, ‘ulama and the forces of internal conflicts and challenges in the formative period of the Delhi sultanate. Symbolism which played a significant role in bringing political consolidation and stability has not been addressed by these authors. A sig-nificant work in this line of research is The Languages of Political Islam in India by Muzaffar Alam.14 We would refer to this work at appropriate places below. In a recent essay ‘Legitimizing Delhi Sultanate: The Role of Ceremonials and Symbolism’, Rattan Lal Hangloo made an attempt to examine the dynamism and nature of polity under the Delhi Sultanate on the basis of various complex royal symbolism and ceremonies.15

All the works that discuss the subject of legitimacy and authority cited above have taken visible symbols of power and rituals. So far as symbolism is concerned, it is both visible and invisible. Awrang, chatr, durbash, ‘alam, khutba, sikka, paibos, khakbos, zaminbos, tuki, chabutra, naqqarah, kurnish, jharoka, khil’at, nazr, nisar, tula-dan, etc., are the visible symbols of power. There were some invisible symbols of power hidden in sophisticated Islamic art. Islamic art in various forms and features in the early modern world told something that was sometimes not easily recognised in visible symbols of power. One prominent instance of such a symbol were the tughra signa-tures under the Ottomans. Commenting on the Ottomon Sultan’s royal symbol Hakan said:

The sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing calligraphy of a tughra was so complex and styl-ized that not even a literate person could easily decipher the words on it. Nevertheless, even illiterate people could recognize that it was the imperial signature. For a society in which literacy was not prevalent, the tughra was more useful than a dictator plaque. Inscriptions mean nothing to someone who cannot read it; if one wants to deliver information to him or her, signs and symbols must take the place of words.16

Symbolism in Islamic ArtArt is the manifestation of human imagination. It is influenced and shaped by feelings and experiences a man burgeons in his real life. Art not only reflects the aesthetic dimension of a man individually and a society collectively, but it tells something more about the people and the society that produced it. In its sensory language the art dis-plays a truth that is often beyond the control of a cognisant intellect.

Art in general and Islamic art in particular, is commonly believed to be spiritual. Signs, symbols, decorative patterns, whether geometric, floral or abstract in form and expression, found in prayer rugs, carpets, garden plans, book binding or in edifices like tombs, mosques, minarets, domes, mihrab or arches and minbars or pulpits, enshrined

14 Alam, The Languages of Political Islam in India; Jackson, The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History; Kumar, The Emergence of the Delhi Sultanate: 1192–1286.15 Hangloo, ‘Legitimising Delhi Sultanate: The Role of Ceremonials and Symbolism’, pp. 116–36.16 Karateke, ‘Legitimizing the Ottoman Sultanate’, p. 39.





a message that may have appeared spiritual or relating something divine to an average onlooker. But at the same time these symbols, designs and artistic patterns carried cer-tain other meaning and message which may be treated as secular, non-religious or even political. This is chiefly due to the reason that Islamic art in pre-modern world did not maintain a watertight distinction between the sacred and the profane, the spiritual and the mundane, or the divine and the temporal.17 Functionalism in Islamic art was thus varied in purpose and objective.

The meaning and message of a particular piece of art was, in fact, left to the inter-pretation and appreciation of individuals. In spite of this, the essence of spirituality never waned. This fact played a greater role in widely dissemination and adoption of the Islamic art in pre-modern societies irrespective of regional, tribal or political variations, differences and affiliations. Another factor for universal adoption of Islamic art was free travel and migration of settlement opportunity to the enterprising artists who, in spite of geographical, political or social boundaries and barriers, were free to move from one place, country or empire to the other not only in search of fortune and favour but to exchange and share their experience and expertise with the artists of other places, regions or the state.18 These were perhaps the reasons that despite regional or territorial variations and differences there were some fundamental elements of unity in Islamic art like those of Cordoba, Delhi, Persia and Turkey. Persia was conquered in 644 during the time of Caliph ‘Umar, Al-Andulus in 711 by Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid I, while Constantinople came under Muslim possession in 717–18 under Umayyad Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. In India, Delhi was captured in 1192 under the command of Muhammad bin Sam, while Bengal was conquered in 1205 by Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji and finally the Mughal rule was established in 1526. But there are no fundamen-tal distinctions in the basic form and pattern of art of these places and countries in spite of a great hiatus of time and space.

Chief elements and symbolism of Islamic art adopted and prevalent in almost entire medieval Islamic world served the purpose of ‘lingua franca’ particularly in context of state and polity, power and authority. Art was mute but it spoke a common language, communicated a common message and invaded the imagination of ordinary man in common fashion. K.K. Aziz has pointed out that Islamic art was the fruit of the mar-riage between technique (al-fann) and wisdom (al-hikma). In artistic creation hikma or wisdom does not reflect only beauty or aesthetic accomplishment; albeit it reflects hidden meaning and philosophy behind an art object.19 Fann is known as hunar in Persian and hunër in Turkish, meaning craft or skill.20 Every element or feature in the form of art stands for something meaningful in context of the state or state authority during pre-modern Islamic world. Paintings, book illuminating, carpet weaving and even architectural designs and decorations were greatly an individual’s expression. In these art forms an artist had full freedom to use his utmost imaginative intelligence

17 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. I, pp. 450–59.18 Ibid., Vol. I, pp. 14–18, 31–32.19 Ibid., Vol. I, p. 7. 20 Blair and Bloom, ‘Art and Architecture: Themes and Variations’, p. 216.





which gave an art object a purely decorative value. But the emergence of Islamic States (Umayyads—661–750, Abbasids—750–946 and 1170–1258)21 brought about a new texture to Islamic art. But this new art with a variety of regional, territorial or national identity never broke itself from the root or fundamentals of Islamic art. Of all the Islamic visual arts, the most widely appreciated and talked about is the calligraphy in its various forms and varieties. But the only art that has not yet been paid adequate attention is the numismatic art found on almost all series of coins relating to pre-modern Islamic societies.

Numismatic ArtCoins in larger context laid the economic foundations of a medieval state and society. But coins silently played a rather greater role in the realm of power and politics. The most telling image produced of a ruler was on the body of coins. This role of the coin has not yet been explored.

Coins are one of the significant models of Islamic art. Coin production involved a combined and coordinated workmanship between art and craft. In fact there was no great distinction between art and craft in Muslim society. The issue of a coin or a series of coins was certainly an economic measure, but at the same time these coins expressed the political rhetoric or imperial aspirations often conveyed through the leg-ends carried on the body of the coins and often also communicated through the hidden meaning in the form of mute artistic designs, symbols and patterns found on the coins. Coinage was largely a state-controlled production. Shape, design and aesthetic decora-tion on the coins were not solely for the sake of embellishing the body of the coins to look beautiful and catchy; they carried state’s objective and ideology. They satisfied individual rulers’ political aspirations, designs and plans. Muhammad bin Tughluq’s token coins carried an appeal from the monarch to the subject to accept it, Mughal ruler Akbar struck coins with the Ilahi era and the legend Allahu Akbar for a special purpose and Jahangir issued beautiful zodiac coins.22 Other objects of art rarely had the capac-ity to address or communicate to the whole society or a large chunk or majority of its citizens. The coins, on the other hand, had a conscious drive on the part of their issuers, that is, rulers, to address or communicate to the whole citizens or a majority of them, not only within his own boundary of rule but even beyond his boundary wherever a coin reached by way of circulation, exchange or a gift. It is notable here that we are not going to take up the devices like Lakshmi found on the Ghorid coins of India, the bull and horseman type generally called Dehliwals or horseman type of coins or any other symbols which are seen and comfortably interpreted by historians, scholars and numis-matists. Such a discussion would lead us to a different direction and conclusion.

Aesthetic expression on the Indo-Islamic coins got inspiration from the Indo-Islamic theory of art. Since the ruler in the Indo-Islamic climate was treated as a shadow of God

21 Donner, ‘The Formation of the Islamic State’, pp. 283–96.22 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 56–58; Hodivala, Historical Studies in Mughal Numismatics, pp.10–40, 81–92, 71–72.





or a benevolent father who looked over his subjects like his progeny and was supposed to treat them with ‘adl or justice. The subject, on the other hand, was desired to submit to the ruler completely in the manner he obeyed the Supreme Creator. The Quranic tenet ‘…atiullah wa atiurrasul wa ulul amr minkum’ (obey, Allah and obey the Prophet [Muhammad], and those who are in authority among you. 4:59) guided the temporal rulers for the purposes. That was why Muhammd bin Tughluq, the famous ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, on his coins inscribed the tenet ‘man ata’e al-sultan faqad ata’e al-Rahman’, that is, one who obeys the king, obeys the Supreme Benevolent.23 Another relevant factor in this connection was the intertwining of the Church and the State dur-ing the medieval period. Ann K.S. Lambton has remarked, ‘The Sasanian maxim that din (religion) and dawlat (temporal power) were twins, which had been taken over by Islam, was accepted by al-Ghazali: if religion was the base, dawlat (temporal power) was its guardian and charged with its preservation’.24 Forms and functions of art on the Indo-Muslim coins appear to have served this purpose.

The Notion of Wilful AmbiguityWilful ambiguity assumed one of the prominent characteristics of Islamic art right from the Abbasid period. The symbols or theme of art in Islam is generally left to the common viewers, and not to the clergy, to interpret at will. This type of art is based on the theory of abstraction and representation.25 At first glance the design seems to be abstract but on a closer observation it might be interpreted in meaningful ways. Coins in the early modern world were embellished with elegant decoration and they stood as one of the significant models of wilful ambiguity in Islamic art. If not melted they lasted the longest and were seen by the widest audience. Like architecture they preserved the personal fantasies of the individual monarchs.

Art is found in a variety of forms and patterns in the coins. The most prominent and significant of the decorative art in the coins was the enclosure pattern. Almost all the Islamic coins like those of the Arabs, Persians, Ottomans or Indo-Islamic, irre-spective of regional, territorial or national boundaries, carried an enclosure pattern on both the obverse and the reverse. These enclosure patterns are geometric in form and shapes such as circles, double circles, scalloped circles, dotted circles, squares, double squares, six-pointed stars, eight-pointed stars, web patterns and floral themes, etc. These enclosure patterns based on geometric designs and shapes represented a symbolic language or symbolism which has the ‘capacity to express simultaneously a number of meanings’.26

It is worth noting here that the anonymous work A‘mâl wa ashkâl, and Kitâb fîmâ yahtâju ilayhi al-sâni‘ min a‘mâl al-handasa of Abu’l-Wafâ’ al-Bûzjânî are the only

23 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 56–57.24 Lambton, State and Government in Medieval Islam, p. 108. 25 Blair and Bloom, ‘Art and Architecture: Themes and Variations’, p. 262.26 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 832; Eliade and Kitagawa, The History of Religions: Essays in Methodology, p. 98; Langer, Problems of Art: Ten Philosophical Lectures, pp. 131–33.





works which have directly addressed artisans, builders and craftsmen. Abu al-Wafa’ al-Buzjani (940–998 AD), the celebrated mathematician–astronomer of the Baghdad school, had developed close connections with administrators, secretaries, land survey-ors, merchants, architects, artisans and calligraphers whose special needs he addressed in several practice-oriented manuals and in theoretical and practical mathematics courses during his more than two decades of political experience in Buyid Baghdad. It was during his time that many geometrical patterns in art became famous and were subsequently exported from one Islamic state to the other by Islamic artists, craftsmen and artisans.27 But in most of the art patterns and particularly numismatic art a wilful ambiguity was maintained.

The Theory of Immediate PerceptionThe theory of immediate perception was developed by the famous Western philosopher Friedrich Creuzer (1771–1858). Creuzer worked on the Greek notion of symbolism and developed a new conception of symbolism that he called ‘immediate perception’.28 Immediate perception denotes, in fact, a flash of idea, image or notion that permeates from an art piece or art object when it is looked upon by an average observer. Immediate perception radiated from symbolism of art grips the human senses for a flash of moment and forms an image in the mind of the observer. This image might be spiritual or temporal depending upon the context. Since coin production was generally a state-controlled mechanism, the art carried on the body of a coin radiated the whims and aspirations of the state and its sovereign power, that is, the king or monarch in the pre-modern world, and involved the theory of immediate perception.

Circle as the Metaphor of PowerA circle is considered the most simple and noble shape in the theory of symbolism. In geometry it is regarded as the most perfect shape. A circle has three dimensions—the dot, the circle and the sphere. The dot is the central point or markez that helps to draw a perfect circle or dairah that maintains equal distance from every point. The dot that is generally invisible occupies perfection in centrality. The circle surrounds the dot and maintains a relative relationship with the sphere and dot. In the scheme of creation and spirituality, the circle is treated to stand for the universe and the dot or central point of the circle is regarded as God Himself while man is placed in the sphere. Without the dot it is not possible to draw a perfect circle. A dot with perfect centrality stands as the most powerful. Without a dot a complete circle is not imaginable. The dot that is the nucleus is generally not visible but without which the universe could not be imagined to form.

27 The first ms. is preserved in Istanbul while the other Persian ms. is preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris (ms. Persan 169); Necipoglu, The Topkapi Scroll—Geometry and Ornament in Islamic Architecture: Topkapi Palace Museum Library MS H., 1956, pp. 92–93, 131–32, 139, 156–60, 170, 189. 28 Creuzer, Symbolik und Mythologie der alten Volker, p. 20; also quoted by Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 837.





29 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 880. 30 Barani, Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi, p. 25.31 Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values: The World of Islam, pp. 63, 70, 77, 78, 115, 123, 145, 273, 279, 335–45, 379–81; Moin and Balshekhar, ‘Art and Artistic Design on Medieval Indian Coins’, pp. 310–24.32 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 772.33 Al-Ghazali, Nasihat-ul muluk, p. 100; Lambton, State and Government in Medieval Islam, p. 123; Alvi, Advice of the Art of Governance, pp. 45–47.34 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 775; Hussain, ‘Meaning and Message of Art on Bengal Sultans’ Coinage’, pp. 26–27.

It is after the creation of the universe that one can imagine a sphere where man and all other creations are placed. This spiritual expression of the circle changed in meaning and connotation with the rise of Islamic states. K.K. Aziz has said:

In passing through the ages, the great emblem of the centre and the sphere has singularly changed in meaning. Now it no longer is exclusively applicable to God, but also to man. It is man, who equally with God, discovers himself to be centre and infinite sphere.29

In the metaphor of power the dot may have stood for the sovereign power, the circle the universe [in fact the boundary of the state] and the sphere where was placed the subject. The early Islamic coins carried this theme. In fact this symbolic representation got currency from the setting up of Islamic states and empires. The first Umayyad ruler struck his coins with circle. This theme became a fashion for almost all the rulers dur-ing the medieval period. Iltutmish and Balban styled themselves in the fashion of the other Islamic rulers and their contemporaries. Barani writes, ‘ānkih Sultan Ghiyas-ud Din Balban ber takht nashined raunaque amūr saltanat ba’d naql Sultan Shams-ud Din ke hamsar salatīn misr wa mawazi badshahān Iraq wa Khurasan wa Khwarizm būd’30 (that when Sultan Ghiyas-ud Din Balban came to the throne the splendour of the affairs of the governance [was brought back] after Sultan Shams-ud Din who was equal to the kings of Eygpt and Iraq, Khurasan and Khwarizm). Majority of the rulers in India during the Sultanate–Mughal period struck their coins which carried the legends on obverse or reverse or sometimes both sides surrounded by a circle (Figure 1).31

The circle is also ‘the expression of justice because of its equality in all directions in finite domain. It is accessible to all from every direction as justice should be’.32 The king should also be accessible to all. Al-Ghazali noted, ‘The king was also to be acces-sible. This would prevent officials committing tyranny against the subjects and the subjects committing tyranny against each other’.33 The dome in Islamic architecture represented a circle that symbolised both the earth and the sky. The circle also stood for eternity and creation. What begins returns to its end, that is known as the philosophy of azal and abad which suggests that man ultimately returns to his creator.

In coins sometimes the Arabic Kalima is surrounded by a circle and sometimes the king’s name. In both the cases, the theory of eternity and universality appears reflected. It may also be noted that the centre of a circle is more important than its sphere. To come to the centre is to move from the exterior to the interior, from ritual to reality or from the finite to the infinite.34





Abbasid CaliphAl-Mutawakkil (847–61)

Dirham, 247/861

Delhi SultanateBalban (1266–87 AD)

Delhi mint, Gold Tanka

Mughal IndiaHumayun (1530–40 & 1555 AD)

Silver Shahrukhi from Bengal

Rasulids of YemenAl-Muzaffar Yusuf (1250–95)

Dirham, 661/1263, Aden

Ghazni SultanateMahmud (998–1030)Dirham, 418/1027

Mahmudpur [Lahore]

Figure 1: Circle on Coins

The central circle was one of the themes of the circle pattern enclosure that was used universally from the Umayyad time to the Delhi Sultanate and even later. The name of the king was generally given in the central circle which denoted its significance in con-text of the power of the ruling authority. In the coins of the Ummayad Caliphate (Anon, c. 700), Muhammad Shah Khwarizm (1200–20), Ghiyasuddin Balban (1266–87) of Delhi and other rulers the name of the king is given in central circle.35 It means that the sultan was the markaz or centre of all power and activities. Tabaqat-i Nasiri has informed that Hazrat Delhi which was the capital of Hindustan became markaz-i

35 Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, pp. 61–62, 152, 154, 165, 173, 198, 201, 267, 274–75, 278, 338, 342, 361, 368–69, 379.





da’irah-i Islam, that is, the centre of the circle of Islam where the people of different sorts visited from the various parts of the Islamic world.36 Among the coins of Balban, Ala-ud Din Khalji and other rulers under Delhi Sultanate and provincial Sultanates, a good number of coins have been found with the pattern of central circle (Figure 2).37

Some coins contain an enclosure of double or triple circles. Double circles some-times symbolised the upper and lower worlds or heaven and earth. Often they were also regarded as the left or matter and the right or spirit.38 In most of the coins, the mint name and date are inscribed in circular form in between the two circles by which one may conjecture that this theme gives some sense of perpetuity in control of the area where the coin was minted and broadly the kingdom which the ruler possessed and governed. For instance, the coins of the Umayyad Caliphate, Suleiman (715–17 AD) bear three circles on the obverse and the name of the Caliphate on the reverse surrounded by a circle while the mint name Wasit and the date are in Arabic words and surrounded by an outer circle. The gold coin of Muhammad bin Tughluq (1325–51) from the Delhi mint with date in Arabic words followed almost the same pattern (Figure 3).39

Figure 2: Central Circle Theme

Ummayad CaliphateAnon (c. 700 AD)

Dirham

Delhi SultanateBalban

Copper Jital

Bengal SultanateGhiyasuddin Mahmud (1532–8)

Silver Tanka

Khwariz SutlanateMd. Shah (1200–20 AD)

Dirham

36 Siddiqui, Perso-Arabic Sources of Information on Life and Conditions in the Sultanate of Delhi, pp. 28, 33; Siraj, Tabaqat-i Nasiri, p. 166; Wink, Al-Hind: Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Vol. II, p. 218.37 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 33, 39, 43, 48, 195, 253–56, 258, 346–47, 467–70.38 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 775.39 Farid, ‘The Markings on the coins of the Sultans of Bengal’, pp. 32–33; Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, p. 51; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, p. 60.





Umayyad CaliphateSuleiman (715–17 AD)

Dirham, Wasit mint, 97/715

Delhi SultanateMuhammad bin Tughluq (725–752 AD)

Gold Tanka, Delhi mint, 727/1326

Figure 3: Double or Triple Circles

Square–Circle Pattern and the Physical WorldThe square pattern is another significant design found on Indo-Islamic coins. Square or quadruple is a basic form and in the realm of physical world it is supposed to represent the solidity of the four elements of the physical world, that is, fire, air, water and earth. These elements symbolise energy and power. From this point of view, a square may be said to have stood for man’s physical quality. On the other hand, the circle was treated to stand for man’s spiritual quality. In coins a square is in most cases surrounded by a circle. Here the square, perhaps, stood for the kingdom and circle for the universe. The Kalima within a square symbolised the unity of God well manifested in the entire king-dom. When the king’s name was inscribed in a square, it was perhaps intended to give the message that the majesty, glory and power of the ruling authority encompassed the entire kingdom. When the square is surrounded by a circle it presents a conjunction of two basic forms and gives symbolic beauty and value. A square also symbolised the body while the circle stood for the soul. When the two meet, it makes a union of body and soul.40 But in coins, when two basic forms met, perhaps the square symbolised the kingdom while circle meant the universe. A large number of Islamic and Indo-Islamic coins are found using this pattern (Figure 4).41

Star as the Symbol of Perfection, Guidance and GloryOn some coins there is the form of a six-rayed star. In fact the six-rayed or six-pointed star is formed by superimposing two complete triangles—one in the upright position and the other in the upside–down position. A triangle in the cosmological sense stands for the sun–earth–moon relationship.42 When a six-pointed star is formed by superim-posing two triangles it becomes a symbol of perfection. A six-rayed star was greatly favoured by the Islamic artists. In the Quran, there is a chapter called Surat al-Najm

40 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 777–79, 884–91.41 Hussain, ‘Meaning and Message of Art on Bengal Sultans’ Coinage’, pp. 28–29; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, pp. 101–11, 201, 207, 249–50, 333–52, 354–55.42 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, p. 739.





Aydin Dynasty

Delhi Sultanate

Isa bin Muhammad(1348–1402)

Dirham, Akcheh Mint

Amir Timur (1370–1404)Silver Tanka, Herat

Alauddin Khalji (1296–1316)Silver Tanka, Delhi

Muhammad Shah Ghazi (1552–5)Silver rupee, Arakan, 962/1554–5

Bengal Sultanate

Timurid Dynasty

Figure 4: Square Pattern

(or the chapter of the Star). The six-rayed star was also treated as a symbol of alcohol in alchemy and also of fire and water. Stars also showed the path at night in ancient days. On coins the six-pointed star perhaps stood for perfection of rule and glory. A six-pointed star is also called Solomon’s seal.43 Since the Prophet Solomon was a temporal king whose power and majesty was legendry; the six-pointed star on coins perhaps resembled similar power and majesty for the ruler who struck such coins (Figure 5).44 Iltutmish has been called shahab or bright star of the caliphate on some of the coins.

On the other hand, the hexagon has its own inherent symbolism. In Islamic tradi-tion it is said, as is known from the Quran, that it took six days to create the universe which is treated one of the best manifestations of the Supreme Authority. In Persian, the hexagon denotes shah jahat or six directions, namely, north, south, east, west, up and down.45 The hexagonal shape of coins illustrated this meaning in context of the temporal authority of the Sultan and his kingdom. The hexagonal pattern of a coin thus reflects the power and glory of the king. The hexagonal coins of Tugha Timur (1338–51)

43 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 874–76.44 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 174–75; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, pp. 184, 198, 224, 249.45 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 754–56.





Ayyubid DynastyAl-Zahir Ghazi (1186–1216)Dirham, Aleppo, 610/1213–4

Seal of Prophet Solomonon a stone arch of a 3–4th century

from synagogue in the Galilee, northern Israel

Bengal SultanateSikandar Shah (1357–89)

Silver Tanka, Satgaon, 784/1382–3

Figure 5: Six-pointed Star

46 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 193, 255; Hussain, The Bengal Sultanate: Politics, Economy and Coins, p. 356; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, p. 258; Sinha, ‘Coins Hoards, Currency Pattern and Trade: Bengal Sultanate (AD 1205–1576)’, p. 316. 47 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 763, 770, 885.48 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, p. 173; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, pp. 184, 224, 249.49 Treadwell, Buyid Coinage: A Die Corpus (322–445 A. H.), p. 211 (Plate no. 152).

of Ilkhanids of Persia and Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah (1415–16 and 1418–33) as well as Ghiyas-ud Din Mahmud (1532–38) of Bengal46 support our conjecture (Figure 6).

Octagonal PatternThe octagon, in Islamic art, symbolised spiritual regeneration. In mosques octagonal domes or cupolas have been used frequently. It is also said that an octagon is a reflec-tion of ‘arsh or the Divine throne which is supported by eight angles.47 In coins, the octagonal pattern perhaps reflected the glory and perpetuity for the king and his kingdom. The octagonal pattern has been used in some coins of Bengal Sultan Sikandar Shah (1357–90). 48 Buyid Amir Fakhrud Daulah (976–98) of Persia also used it in his coins. In fact their coins are octagonal in shape (Figure 7).49





Figure 6: Hexagonal Pattern

Ilkhanid Mongols of PersiaTughan Timur (1337–53)

Dirham

Bengal SultanateA’zam Shah (1390–1410)

Silver Tanka

Bengal SultanateJalal-ud Din Muhammad (1415–16 & 1418–33)

Silver Tanka

Bengal SultanateSikandar Shah (1357–90)

Silver Tanka

Buyid Amir of Jibal (Persia)Fakhr-ud Daulah (366–87/976–98)

Dinar with silver baseMint Al-Muhammadiya, 380/990–1

Figure 7: Octagonal Pattern

Multiple Circles as the Symbol of Perfect CompletenessMultiple circles (seven or five) stood as the symbol of perfect completeness. The digit seven is variously used in Greek and Islamic philosophies. Haft kishwar or haft aqlim (seven regions of the world or the whole world), haft-akhtar or haft a’ina (seven plan-ets), haft darya (seven seas) in Persian and sab’a samawat (seven skies) and as-saba’in (seven heavens) in Arabic are some famous idioms used in Islamic lore. It is said that seven means perfect completeness because it is composed of the first even and the first odd number (three and four being the first real numbers). It is said that man himself is





an epitome of seven (4 = body and 3 = soul). Seven is thus the symbol of perfect order.50 In the coin it may be conjectured that seven circles permeated the sense of complete-ness, order and stability of the king and his power. A unique coin of Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah IV (1434–59) of Bengal’s later Ilyas Shahi dynasty has a pattern of seven circles on the reverse.51 Four of the seven circles contain the legend ‘Nasir Shah’ while three have ‘Shah’. The central circle with a chain of circles around it presented the image of the Pir–murid or master–disciple relationship. The king appeared to be the pir or mas-ter, while nobles as murid or disciples whose loyalty was supposed to be ingrained for the person of the king.52 Mahmud Gorgan (1388–98) of the Timurid dynasty, however, used five circles with one central segment in his coins (Figure 8).53 Later on the concept of Pir–murid became stronger at the time of Akbar. J.F. Richards has called it imperial discipleship.54 But we do not find any of Akbar’s coins based on this theme. However, ‘by a series of symbolic acts, Akbar built upon his personal appeal to establish an image or metaphor of the Emperor’s person as an embodiment of the Empire’.55 For instance, his coins bearing the mint-names Mu’askar-i Iqbal (Camping ground of good fortune) and Dar-ul khilafah (Seat of the Caliphate) struck outside capital where the Emperor visited for military or other purposes, and the structure, height, colour combination and organisation of his canvas-made temporary tent-camps exactly resembling both in func-tion and appearance to his royal palace of Fatehpur Sikri created a metaphoric image for the Emperor even when he was away from his palace and capital.56

Timurid DynastyMahmud Gorgan (1388–98)

Dirham, Samarqand

Bengal SultanateMahmud Shah (1434–59)

Silver TankaDar-ul zarb, 854 (1450)

Figure 8: Multi-circle Device

50 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 755–62. 51 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, p. 208.52 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. I, pp. 456–57; Rizvi, ‘Munajat (Invocation of God) of Shaykh Abu’l Fazl Allami (1551–1602)’, p. 138. 53 Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, p. 277.54 Richards, ‘The Formulation of Imperial Authority under Akbar and Jahangir’, pp. 261, 267–71.55 Richards, ‘The Formulation of Imperial Authority under Akbar and Jahangir’, p. 253.56 Gupta, ‘Mint-Towns of Akbar’, pp. 155–58; Richards, ‘The Formulation of Imperial Authority under Akbar and Jahangir’, pp. 258–59.





Surya: The Symbol of Power, Majesty and ProsperityThe Sun occupies the central position in the world of cosmology. It symbolises power, majesty and prosperity. It is treated as a great manifestation of the Supreme Power. The Sun is also regarded as the ruler of the universe and the planets which encircle it are taken as its children. The sun is also treated in Buddhist and Brahmin philosophies as the eye of the world.57 In Ayyubid and Mamluk art the monarch was treated as the sun and the prince as a star.58 Jalaluddin Fath Shah (1481–88) of the Bengal sultanate issued a coin with a Surya pattern.59 In the coin of Fath Shah the pattern of the Surya may well be understood to have disseminated the message of the power and glory of the ruling king; his heroic and courageous force, and creative and guiding ability. Al-Nasir Muhammad (1495–99) of the Cairo Mamluk dynasty also used a Surya-type symbol which is also sometimes identified as a water-wheel. During the Mughal period, Humayun believed that he was the centre of the human world, just as the sun or aftab was the centre of the universe (Figure 9).60

Mamluks of QahirahAl-Nasir Muhammad (1495–9)

Copper Falus

Bengal SultanateFath Shah (1481–8)

Silver Tanka

Figure 9: Surya Type

57 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. II, pp. 859–60.58 Allen, ‘“My Father is a Sun and I am the Star”, Fatimid Symbols in Ayyubid and Mamluk Metalwork’, pp. 25–48.59 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, p. 208.60 Beveridge, Akbarnama of Abul Fazl, p. 65; Tripathi, Some Aspects of Muslim Administration, p. 136.

Concept of Repetition and SymmetryRepetition and symmetry are a significant philosophy in the Islamic art. Repetitional representation sometimes in repetitive pairs and sometimes in multiplicity or unlimited number of the unitary element permeates the sense of perpetuity. It is found in architec-ture, painting, carpet designs and book illumination or bordering of pages of a book or any other art. Perpetuity or a never ending motif is one of the fundamental characteristics





of the Islamic philosophy of tauheed or the unity of God. This theme remained dominant during the time of classical Islam. However, with the rise of powerful Muslim kingdoms the concept of repetition and perpetuity began to be interpreted in the context of power and authority of the temporal rulers. The connotation of the theme thus changed without losing its essential meaning in Islamic philosophy.

The concept of repetition and symmetry found representation in the Islamic art through the motif of arabesques. Called tauriq (foliation) in Arabic the arabesque is a style of decoration characterised by interlacing curvilinear motifs and plant forms. Though complicated, it was a form of well-organised art in which an artist used his free will to alter or join motifs and symbols in a manner to make them fit his purpose. Such motifs and repetitive presentation of art is frequently found on Islamic and Indo-Islamic coins (Figure 10).

Figure 10: Interlacing Arabesque (Muttasil)

Later Abbasid Caliphate of BaghdadAl-Musta’sim (1242–58)

Dirham, Irbil mint

Bengal SultanateNusrat Shah (1519–31)

Silver Tanka, Husainabad Mint

Concept of Muttasil and MunfasilArabesques are broadly of two kinds: muttasil or connected and munfasil or discon-nected. In fact, both the muttasil and munfasil or conjoint and disjoint patterns of ara-besques are intertwined; the only difference is that the former goes steadily without any break while the latter goes unsteadily or ‘it is loosely interwoven with those other units around it in such a way to produce a large pattern of which each small unit is but a single element’.61 It is difficult for a viewer to identify a starting or ending point in conjunct arabesques, while in disjoint arabesques one may be able to do so. Both types of arabesques represent the expression of an infinite pattern that is one of the basic tenets of not only Islam but Hinduism and other religious traditions too.

The concept of repetition and symmetry is well reflected in the numismatic art. A good number of coins carry the Kalima or Khalifa or both or any other Islamic creed on one side of the coin, while on the other side the name of the king is depicted with

61 Aziz, The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vol. I, p. 406.





his regal titles and patronymic. On some of such coins ubiquitic forms of arabesques have been used liberally. Arabesques have been found in varied forms on the coins of the Bengal Sultans from the later Ilyas Shahi period. On some coins both muttasil (conjoint) and munfasil (disjoint) forms of arabesques have been found on the same piece of coin, though such examples are rare. In most of the coins the muttasil form has been used with the inscription of the Islamic creed, but there are exceptions too (Figure 11).62

62 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 206–207, 218, 222–28, 234, 245–51; Hussain, ‘Meaning and Message of Art on Bengal Sultans’ Coinage’, pp. 32–34; Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, pp. 106–11, 152, 165, 172, 179–80, 185–95, 202–12, 216–18, 248–62, 272–80.

Figure 11: Disjoint Pattern (Munfasil)

Timur (1370–1404)Hirat Mint, Silver Tanka

Bengal SultanateGhiyas-ud Din Mahmud (1533–38)Silver Tanka, Muhammadabad, 933

Tughra PatternOne of the inexhaustible forms and rhythms of Arabic calligraphy is the tughra that is considered most beautiful but intricate. Synonymous with Persian nishan the term tughra is regarded as of purely Turkish origin. Elongated vertical shafts of the Arabic letters alif, kāf, lām, tā and zā in symmetrical order and clustering of horizontal letters at the bottom are the two common characteristics of tughra calligraphy. It was liberally used for imperial monograms, seals and signatures by the Ottoman rulers. It was also used in Mamluk Egypt, and finally it travelled to India during the sultanate period. In the Ottoman Empire there was an official called Tughrakash whose duty was to draw various forms and themes in the tughra pattern. The oldest known Ottoman tughra belonged to Urkhan 1 (1324–59). The official use of the tughra ceased in Turkey in 1922 when the last Turkish Sultan was dethroned.

The Tughra has been a peculiar visual art. It represented a symbol of spirituality and power. In Arabic calligraphy in general and in the tughra style in particular, certain let-ters have their individual personality and significance. The letter alif, the origin of the Arabic alphabet, is the first letter of Allah, the Supreme Name of God in Islam. ‘…by its very verticality [it] symbolizes the Divine Majesty and the Transcendent Principle from





63 Nasr, Islamic Art and Spirituality, p. 30.64 Ibid., pp. 28, 30.65 Mitchiner, Oriental Coins and Their Values, p. 205.66 Goron and Goenka, The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, pp. 192–96, 199, 210–12, 344–48.

which everything originates’.63 The intertwining of the horizontal and vertical forms of letters symbolise the theory of ‘permanence and change that characterize creation itself’. Since the horizontal letters in tughra move one after the other in a rippling fash-ion as happens in weaving, they stand for change, whereas the symmetrical movement of the vertical shafts correspond to the permanence or the ‘immutable essences’ in the scheme of Divine Creation. Elaborating the talisman power of the Arabic letters Seyyed Hossein Nasr has stressed, ‘Since the verses of the Quran are powers or talismans, the letters and words which make possible the visualization of the Quranic verses also play role of a talisman and display powers of their own’.64 This belief appears to have permeated in non-Quranic Arabic forms too. The elongated vertical shafts in tughra dominated the whole scheme a calligrapher attempted to reveal through his visual rep-resentation. This dimension is so powerful that the horizontals which are clustered in narrow space at the bottom are often overshadowed. The first coin in tughra style was struck by the Ottoman ruler Amir Sulaiman (1403–10)65. In India, the Tughra pattern of coins of the Bengal and Jaunpur sultans are prominent (Figure 12).66

Figure 12: Tughra Pattern

Jaunpur SultanateIbrahim Shah (1401–40)

Gold Dinar

Bengal SultanateJalal-ud Din Muhammad

(818–19 & 821–37)Silver Tanka

ConclusionNumismatic art thus preserved the personal fantasies of the individual ruler. It helps to understand and reconstruct the shape of the past. If not melted, numismatic art, unlike architecture or other manifestation of art, lasted for the longest period of time and was observed by the widest audience. Embellished with symbols, designs and other forms of decoration they not only stood as elegant examples of the artistic landscape of Islam; they represented confessional affiliations and at the same time they spoke about the





very purposes for which they were struck as the kings and monarchs communicated through the hidden language of art purposely engraved on the body of the respective series of coins. The entire process from conception to presentation was an exercise that was closely guarded and guided under the state authority; both sultanate and Mughal. The entire process performed by an artist was in fact a service to the master ruler and not to art because the coin was first a manifestation of the power and authority; it was the embodiment of beauty second. The forms of art practiced in different areas, territo-ries and kingdoms were fundamentally similar to each other. They bound these areas and rulers philosophically and intellectually through art. These similar patterns of art forms found on the various series of Islamic and Indo-Islamic coins played the role of isobars and theoretically united them through these art forms. The Indo-Islamic rulers of India both of Sultanate and Mughal attempted to identify themselves with the larger Islamic world of Arabia, Persia and Central Asia. Through these art forms on the coins the kings and monarchs were seen, felt and caused a majestic image in the mind of their subjects without seen and interacted with them. This invisible symbolism spoke politi-cal vocabulary and left an image which indirectly may have worked in creating ro’b-u qahr, that is, fear and awe or haibat-i ululamri, that is, dignity and awe of authority in the heart of the people (dar sinā-i’ nazzārgiyān munqqash māndi).67

ReferencesAlam, Muzaffar. The Languages of Political Islam in India, c. 1200–1800, New Delhi, 2004.Al-Ghazali. Muhammad bin Hamid. Nasihat-ul muluk, Jalaluddin Homai, ed., Tehran, 1982.Ali, Athar. ‘Towards an Interpretation of the Mughal Rule’, in Hermann Kulke, ed., The State in

India: 1000–1700, Delhi, 1995, pp. 263–77.Allen, James A. ‘“My Father is a Sun and I am the Star”, Fatimid Symbols in Ayyubid and

Mamluk Metalwork’, Journal of the David Collection, Vol. 1, 2003, pp. 25–48.Alvi, Sajida Sultana. Advice of the Art of Governance, Albany, 1989.Ashraf, K. M. Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan, New Delhi, 1970, reprint.Aziz, K.K. The Meaning of Islamic Art, Vols I & II, New Delhi, 2004.Barani, Ziauddin. Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi, (ed. Saiyid Ahmad Khan), Calcutta, 1862.Beveridge, A.S., trans., Baburnama Vol. 1, New Delhi, 1970, reprint.Beveridge, Henry, trans & ed., Akbarnama of Abul Fazl, Vol. I, Calcutta, 1907.———. ed., The Tuzuk-i Jahangiri or Memoirs of Jahangir, trans. Alexander Rogers, Vol. II,

London, 1914.Blair, Sheila S. and Jonathan M. Bloom. ‘Art and Architecture: Themes and Variations’, in John

L. Esposito ed., The Oxford History of Islam. New York, 1999, pp. 215–67. Blake, Stephen P., ‘The Patrimonial–Bureaucratic Empire of the Mughals’, in Hermann Kulke,

ed., The State in India: 1000–1700, Delhi, 1995, pp. 278–303.Chattopadhyaya, Brajadulal. ‘Political Processes and the Structure of Polity in Early Medieval

India’, in Hermann Kulke, ed., The State in India: 1000–1700, Delhi, 1995, pp. 195–232.Creuzer, Friedrich. Symbolik und Mythologie der alten Volker, besonders der Griechen

[Symbolism and Mythology of Ancient Peoples: Especially the Greeks], Leipzig, 1840.

67 Barani, Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi, pp. 28–29.





Donner, Fred M. ‘The Formation of the Islamic State’, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 106(2), April–June, 1986, pp. 283–96.

Eliade, Mircea and J.M. Kitagawa. The History of Religions, Chicago, 1959.Farid, G.S. ‘The Markings on the Coins of the Sultans of Bengal’, Journal of the Numismatic

Society of India, Vol. XL, 1978, pp. 27–33.Goron, Stan and J.P. Goenka. The Coins of the Indian Sultanates, New Delhi, 2001.Gupta, P.L. ‘Mint-Towns of Akbar’, in H.R. Gupta, ed., Essays Presented to Sir Jadunath Sarkar,

Vol. II, Hoshiarpur, 1950, pp. 154–69.Habib, Irfan. ‘Barani’s Theory of the History of the Delhi Sultanate’, Indian Historical Review,

Vol. VII(1–2), 1980–1, pp. 99–115.———. ‘Formation of the Sultanate Ruling Class of the Thirteenth Century’, in Irfan Habib,

ed., Medieval India 1: Researches in the History of India 1200–1750, Delhi, 1992, pp. 1–21.

Hangloo, Rattan Lal. ‘Legitimising Delhi Sultanate: The Role of Ceremonials and Symbolism’ in Radhika Seshan, ed., Medieval India: Problems and Possibilities, Jaipur, 2006, pp. 116–36.

Hardy, Peter. ‘The Growth of Authority over a Conquered Political Elite: The Early Delhi Sultanate as Possible Case Study’, in J.F. Richards, ed., Kingship and Authority in South Asia, Delhi, 1998, reprint, pp. 216–41.

Hasan, Farhat. State and Locality in Mughal India: Power Relations in Western India, c. 1572–1730, New Delhi, 2006.

Heesterman, J.C. ‘The Conundrum of the King’s Authority’, in Hermann Kulke, ed., Kingship and Authority in South Asia, Delhi, 1995, pp. 13–40.

Hodivala, S.H. Historical Studies in Mughal Numismatics, Varanasi, Numismatic Society of India, 1976.

Holand, Critopher P., ‘Akbar and the Mughal State: The Quest for Legitimization in Hindustan’, pp. 1–36, www.ega.edu.

Hussain, Syed Ejaz. The Bengal Sultanate: Politics, Economy and Coins, New Delhi, 2003.———. ‘Kings and Coins: Money as the State Media in the Indian Sultanates’, in Himanshu

Prabha Ray, ed., Coins in India:Power and Communication, Mumbai, 2006, pp. 56–65.———. ‘Meaning and Message of Art on Bengal Sultans’ Coinage’, Journal of Bengal Art,

Vols 11–12, 2006–2007, pp. 21–37.Inden, Ronald, ‘Ritual, Authority, and Cyclic Time in Hindu Kingship’, in J.F. Richards, ed.,

Kingship and Authority in South Asia, Delhi, 1998, reprint, pp. 41–91.Jackson, Peter. The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History, Cambridge, 1999.Karateke, Hakan T. ‘Legitimizing the Ottoman Sultanate: A Framework for Historical Analysis’,

www.lucian.uchicago.eduKulke, Hermann, ed., The State in India: 1000–1700, Delhi, 1995.———. ‘The Early and the Imperial Kingdom: A Processural Model of Integrative State

Formation in Early Medieval India’, in Hermann Kulke, ed., The State in India: 1000–1700, Delhi, 1995, pp. 233–62.

Kumar, Sunil. The Emergence of the Delhi Sultanate: 1192–1286, Ranikhet, 2007.Lambton, Ann K.S. State and Government in Medieval Islam, Oxford, 1981.Langer, Susanne K. Problems of Art: Ten Philosophical Lectures, London, 1957.Maloni, Ruby. ‘Propaganda and Legitimacy of Regime: Akbar and Abul Fazl’, Journal of History

and Social Science, Vol. 1(1), July–December 2010, pp. 300–22.Mitchiner, Michael. Oriental Coins and Their Values: The World of Islam, London, 1977.





Moin, Danish and Dilip P. Balshekhar. ‘Art and Artistic Design on Medieval Indian Coins’, in A.K. Sharma et al. eds, Pura Prakashm (Dr Z.A. Desai Commemoration Volume), Vol. II, Delhi, 2003, pp. 310–24.

Mukhia, Harbans. The Mughals of India, New Delhi, 2009, reprint.Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. Islamic Art and Spirituality, Delhi, 1990.Nath, R. ‘Mughal Institution of Jharokha (c. 1506–1707 AD)’, in R. Nath, ed., Medieval Indian

History and Architecture, New Delhi, 1995, pp. 63–74.Necipoglu, Gulru. The Topkapi Scroll-Geometry and Ornament in Islamic Architecture: Topkapi

Palace Museum Library MS H, 1956 (Santa Monica, CA: Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities, 1995).

Richards, J.F. ‘The Formulation of Imperial Authority under Akbar and Jahangir’, in J.F. Richards, ed., Kingship and Authority in South Asia, Delhi, 1998, reprint, pp. 253–326.

———. ‘Norms of Comportment among Imperial Mughal Officers’, in Barbara Metcalf, ed., Moral Conduct and Authority, Berkeley, 1984, pp. 255–89.

Rizvi, Syed Athar Abbas. ‘Munajat (Invocation of God) of Shaykh Abu’l Fazl Allami (1551–1602)’, in Iqtidar Husain Siddiqui, ed., Medieval India: Essays in Intellectual Thought and Culture, Vol. 1, New Delhi, 2003, pp. 125–41.

Shivram, Balkrishna. ‘The Authority of the Padshahs in Sixteenth-Century Mughal India’, South Asian Cultural Studies, Vol. 2(2), pp. 11–38.

Siddiqui, I.H. Perso-Arabic Sources of Information on Life and Conditions in the Sultanate of Delhi, New Delhi, 1992.

Sinha, Sutapa. ‘Coins Hoards, Currency Pattern and Trade: Bengal Sultanate (AD 1205–1576)’, Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan, 2003.

Siraj, Minhaj-ud Din. Tabaqat-i Nasiri. (ed. W. Nassau Lees et al.), Calcutta, 1864.Stein, Burton. ‘All the King’s Mana: Perspectives on Kingship in Medieval South India’, in J.F.

Richards, ed., Kingship and Authority in South Asia, Delhi, 1998, reprint, pp. 133–88.Steingass, Francis. A Comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary, Indian edu.Thackston, Wheeler M. The Jahangirnama: Memoirs of Jahangir, Emperor of India, 1999.———. The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor, 2002.Topa, Ishwar. Politics in Pre-Mughal Times, New Delhi, 1976, reprint.Treadwell, Luke. Buyid Coinage: A Die Corpus (322–445 A. H.), Oxford, 2001.Tripathi, R.P. Some Aspects of Muslim Administration, Allahabad, 1978.Weber, Max. ‘Politics as a Vocation’, in H. H. Gerth and C. Wright Mills, eds, From Max Weber:

Essays in Sociology, London, 2001 reprint, pp. 77–128.Wink, Andre. Al-Hind: Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Vol. II, New Delhi, 1999, reprint.



Documents

Symbolism and the State Authority: Reflections from the Art on Indo-Islamic Coins