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 Replies: 7 / Views: 2,314 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Kushan Empire (Taxila and surrounding region in Punjab) Kipunadha, c. 330-350 AD AV Dinar, 21mm 7.56g Obv: Kipunadha standing, sacrificing at altar, Bhacharnatha written vertically beneath arm, Kipunadha as monogram to right Rev: Ardoxsho seated on throne, holding cornucopia and garland  Despite being largely overtaken by the Kushano-Sassanian empire in the mid-third century, the once-great Kushan empire dwindled to the size of a mere kingdom centered at Taxila (in Punjab, northern India) and persisted for more than a century under the rule of ephemeral kings who are mostly not attested outside of their coinage. Kipunadha seems to have been the last true Kushan king; he was very likely overthrown by the Kidarite Huns who overtook the area in the mid/late 4th century AD and continued minting gold coins in this style. While history has forgotten Kipunadha, his legacy lived on in India through the various imitations of his coinage. The Standing King / Ardoxsho motif was copied by the earliest Gupta kings, the Kidarite huns and their successors, and ultimately persisted until the early 13th century as the Kashmir copper staters that our own @Paulouche collects. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7066 Posts |
Kushan gold! Don't see that on the boards very often. Congrats, Steve. Kipunadha may be forgotten to history, but here he is, being written about 1,700 years later. Not a bad testament.
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Moderator
 United States
23731 Posts |
Impressive coin Steve, I would love to have one of these.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
6130 Posts |
Thanks guys.
Considering that they are made of gold, these late Kushan coins are shockingly cheap, only like $200-300 compared to $2,000+ for gold of the earlier Kushans or the Guptas. Now I am sure these are not 90+% fine like a Kanishka dinar would be, but there is definitely gold in them. (Come to think of it, I have never seen the fineness listed for these issues?)
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Moderator
United States
34418 Posts |
Yes very nice @finn. On my radar too, but not sure that I have pulled the trigger yet on one.
"If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz
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Valued Member
Canada
266 Posts |
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Moderator
United States
23731 Posts |
Steve looking through my book on Kushan. Kushano-Sasanian and Kidarire coins, by Jongeward, Cribb, and Donovan, your coins seems to be a match for Gobl 596.
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Pillar of the Community
 Spain
2752 Posts |
 Wonderful coin!...  You acquired this one at a really good price and with great provenance from the Yacob and Tali Shavleyan Collection.Congrats!  There was also another ephemeral Kushan king...Hanaka late 4th century?.. Due to the strategic location of Taxila passing through into Kashmir this style of coin is one of the longest running. @Kushanshah summed it up nicely in another thread..."If it ain't broke, don't fix it". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TaxilaPaul and his paint strikes again!...Just to show how the style has become more and more abstract over the centuries but still holds the essence of the original design.  |
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Replies: 7 / Views: 2,314 |
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Posted 12/20/2019 5:03 pm
