Curiouser And Curiouser (Elephant Coins Of The Satavahanas)

Further down the rabbit hole we go.

In the heart of the Deccan highlands of India, there existed an empire by the name of the Satavahanas. They controlled a reasonable territory for anywhere between 250 and 500 years, from no earlier than 275 BC until no later than 220 AD.

Satakarni is listed as the third king of this dynasty, reigning for 56 years in either the first century BC or the first or second century AD. His coins are plentiful, and not terribly expensive. They feature an elephant with his name in the Prakrit script. The reverse is the "Ujjain symbol", four circles with dots arranged on a + or x symbol.

 

 


Now here is the fun one:

 

 

Clearly a derivative from the same region, but not the same:

- This coin is paper thin, very unlike the chunky Satakarni bronze
- Heavy flow lines and the odd protrusion following the reverse design lead me to believe this coin was struck at VERY high temperatures, possibly even blurring the line between struck and cast.
- The elephant is highly stylized and the legend is blundered
- The reverse is not the Ujjain symbol, but rather a ring of six circles around a seventh central circle. Of interesting note is that the name "satavahana" is believed to be a reference to the seven horses which draw the chariot of the sun god Surya.

What's it all mean? Is this a barbarous copy? Unattributed king or vassal? I don't know, but it is fun to investigate! Feel free to chime in or share any examples or knowledge!