Indo Sassanian Coinage - Series 1.11 - Cicle Lips - Never Before Published!

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Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:04 am Apologies for skipping way, way ahead of myself on this one, but I feel the need to get them out there! In late 2016, I purchased an individual coin from Dr. Lanz, being sold as "Chaulukya Gadhaiya Paisa" It stuck out to me as unusual because rather than having two crescent-shaped lips as normal, there was a small circle in front of the bust and under the nose. I bid high and won it, then began my search for answers. As I got copies of the relevant reference works (A big thanks to everyone who helped with that!) I came to realize that my coin was not a published type in Mitchiner, Deyell, or Maheshwari! As they say, "One coin does not a variety make" so I slapped it at the end of my Chaulukya series the first time around. When Paul posted another odd coin with some striking similarities to mine, I began searching and ultimately found the source - one ebay seller who was slowly feeding out a small hoard of late type Gadhaiya. Over the span of about six months, I managed to get five coins in addition to my first, and earlier this summer finally(!) convinced Paul to trade me his . My current seven coins comprise, by my calculation, somewhere between 1/3 and 1/2 of all known specimens. So here it is - Series 1.11 - "Circle Lips" type Gadhaiya Imitative This coin is, and likely will remain, an enigma. They are clearly copies of intermediate type Gadhaiya, made by a moderately experienced engraver who was not trained in the significance of the iconography of what he copied. These coins start as excellent copies and quickly degrade to a sloppy mess. The unifying feature of all of these coins is, of course, the circle in front of the bust. Its significance, however, is not easy to sort out. If the Malwa type coins' "elephant trunk" noses were intended to replace the Sankh shell, the circle could perhaps be the sun. It is not, however, the standard Gadhaiya style sun - which is a total of seven dots comprised of a central dot surrounded by a rough hexagon of six dots. There are two other coins within the Indo Sassanian series that use a hollow ring - the Horseman series and the Omkara series, which despite being struck on a completely different fabric, appear to use nearly the same punch used on the dies of this series. The Horseman series is itself associated with the Chauhan king Jaitra Simha (fl. 1275 AD) who, in addition to his usual lion type, also struck horseman coins. The hollow-ring sun does appear on his lion type, which is also a completely different fabric. The Omkara series also utilize the hollow-ring as a variant for the "eye" of the portrait, and were likely made around the 13th/14th centuries. Another possibility are the silver drachms of the Chahamana king Ajayadeva II (1110-1135), featuring a seated Lakshmi with a similar circle for her navel. Ajayadeva's wife, Somalladevi, famously produced crude-fabric Gadhaiya imitations which are not unlike these coins. The problem with both, unfortunately, is that these coins are struck to an extraordinarily tight weight standard - All of mine fall between 3.88 and 3.99 grams - probably an even 4.00 if fully uncirculated. This is problematic for any of the "officially minted" theories, as the main line of Gadhaiya had shifted upward to a standard of 4.20-4.25 grams, reflected in both the Ajayadeva, Somalladevi, and Jaitra Simha drachms. Some other consideration points for the series: Overall: - I cannot test the silver fineness, but by appearance, I would estimate it at between 30-50% - Overall fabric is nearly identical to late Gadhaiya coins - Coins are engraved in high relief, and the flans are always smaller than the dies used. - Weight standard is tightly maintained at 3.88-3.99g - Diameter is also tightly controlled, between 14-16mm Obverse: - The head shape is the standard late Gadhaiya shape - Few of the coins have an eye; most of the ones that do only have a tiny pinpoint. - The nostril is similar to the late Gadhaiya, however it is thinner, larger, and almost always engraved as a half-circle attached to the nose on both sides; by comparison, all late Gadhaiya noses are crescents and detached from the nose. - The lips, of course, have been replaced with the enigmatic circle. - All of the Gadhaiya-type headgear (vestigial hat, wings, korymbos) is retained - The ribbons are present and generally correctly engraved - However, one particular variety has the lower ribbon detach from the upper and slide down the portrait Reverse: - The fire altar is present, and overall fairly well engraved, compared to the coins which these copy - The shaft is correctly engraved as a six pointed star with a central dot (compare to "unusual nose" coins which simplify it to an X) - The arms of the attendants are present, but on some coins they are horizontal, not angled. - The attendants have degraded to a meaningless field of dots - Only two of my coins shows the moon is still present; it is likely present on all of these coins, but off flan. - I cannot discern how the sun is portrayed, if at all. Within this series, I have my coins grouped into the following varieties: 1.11.1 - Early Type With Eye 1.11.2 - Intermediate Type Without eye 1.11.3 - Intermediate Type, Atypical Ribbon 1.11.4 - Late/Degenerate Edited by Finn235 12/29/2019 03:11 am Report this Post to the Staff

Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:15 am 1.11.1 - Early types with eye It is unfortunate that the lone best exemple of this type sold a couple months before I was aware of the small hoard being disbursed. I was however able to acquire two examples that although faint, do have an eye. Coin 1 17mm 3.91g The portrait on this coin is abnormally chubby, even for the series, although existence of a pin point eye does qualify it for 1.11.1. The circle here is directly touching several other parts of the coin design. The nostril is thin, relatively narrow, but large in relation to the face. Gadhaiya-style wings are present, the ribbon and ear are in relatively good style, and the bottom crescent of the korymbos is visible. The reverse here is a bit more degenerate than the others in the series, although this example shows the moon better than any other. The attendants' arms are nearly horizontal, which is not typical for this series. Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:23 am Coin 2 15mm 3.94g Again, the eye is barely more than a needle point here, although this coin does show a remarkably good imitation of a late Gadhaiya to the casual observer. The circle is better proportioned in comparison to the nose and beard dots, although there is a half-sized dot between the circle and the chin dot. The nostril is much more conservative, and on this example we can see the hair bun, which is a dot with a couple small vestigial rays. The fire altar is more or less indistinguishable from a late Gadhaiya. Part of the moon is visible. Based on what is visible, it is unlikely--but not impossible--that the attendants are organized into breasts, necklace, and face. Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:36 am 1.11.2 - Intermediate type without eye These examples are the more common, and do not have any indication whatsoever of an eye being present. Coin 1 15mm 3.95g This is my first example, purchased from Dr. Lanz via ebay in late 2016. It is overall a good imitation of the late Gadhaiya, the only significant differences being (besides the circle) a slightly longer nose, missing eye, attached nostril, and the neck crescent being a straight bar without curvature. Of the series, this example has one of the smallest nostrils. It appears that there is a small dot in the middle of the right headgear crescent, but upon closer inspection, that appears to be metal pushed up by the striking of the coin, not an intentional feature. The fire altar again is quite good, although the flame leans a bit to the right. The attendants are gone except for their arms - there are two parallel rows of dots that run from the arms up to the flame. This example does not have a discernible sun. Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:40 am Coin 2 16mm 3.99g Like the first coin, this example has a cheek that is a bit wider than it ought to be, and is of overall sloppy style. The lip hovers a small distance from any other design element, and has a central dot - whether that is intentional or simply displaced metal I cannot comment. The lines of the ribbon are crooked and most of the beard dots are touching at least one other dot. The fire altar by contrast is well engraved and appears to be straight. The attendants are not visible. Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:51 am 1.11.3 - Intermediate type, Atypical ribbon This series includes the coin originally owned by Paul, and both coins are in a markedly better state of preservation than the others. They are distinguished because the bottom (curvy) portion of the ribbon is not directly below the upper (horizontal bars) portion. Instead, the bottom portion of the ribbon has slid down to be roughly even with the portrait's chin, not the lips. Like the preceding series, these do not have eyes. Coin 1 14mm 3.91g The ex Paulouche coin! I did not see the connection at first, as the right portion of the ribbon is weakly struck, making it appear almost like a C shape rather than a circle when photographed. The portrait is struck in high relief like a proper late gadhaiya, and also the nose is much shorter. Unlike all other coins from this series, this example seems to be lacking the nostril. Important to this series, the lower ribbon is situated beneath the circle, and a dot separates the upper and lower portions. The ear is typical, but does not have a clear hair bun behind it. The fire altar is well-engraved and much too large for the flan. This example has one of the most faithful fire altar shaft-stars that I have seen. It is large and nearly symmetrical. Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 02:57 am Coin 2 15mm 3.91g Like the previous example, this coin is well-engraved in high relief and is in better condition than is typical for this series. The circle is more tightly squeezed in around the other facial features, and the nostril is present and quite large. The lower ribbon again is beneath the circle, while the upper portion is in its proper place. Four dots are present where there shouldn't be dots - This raises important questions as it is possible that the dies for these coins are comprised of a small face/fire altar motif floating in a sea of dots. Unlike the previous example, the fire altar is much smaller, allowing the arms of both attendants to be seen, as well as the full base, bowl, and most of the flame. Edited by Finn235 12/29/2019 02:57 am Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 03:03 am 1.11.4 - Degenerate type This coin is a one-off; I am not sure whether it was engraved this way on purpose or if the mint workers simply continued using and repairing a die that was far past its intended life. Coin 1 16mm 3.88g The most immediately apparent feature of this coin is that the eye socket has totally filled in. The nose is more vertical and the nostril is much closer to the face. The circle is higher to compensate, although the ear is quite well engraved for the type. The hair bun is a plain dot, and we can see the smallest portion of the rear ribbons - this at least proves that they are there behind the ear, presumably on all examples. The fire altar is large, at least symmetrically engraved, and seems to be surrounded by a tight row of dots, rather than attendants. Report this Post to the Staff
Spence Moderator United States 34423 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 06:14 am Nice work @finn. Maybe write up for the upcoming (third) issue of Koinon? "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 Report this Post to the Staff
echizento Moderator United States 23731 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 07:39 am Excellent write up on this type. These coins are odd looking to begin with to see these with the circle make them even more strange. I agree with Dave this would be a and excellent article to get published. Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 09:30 am Very interesting indeed. I always love your descriptive writing and keen observational skills, Steve. Where others, including dealers (apparently), see homogeneous groupings, you home in on the irregularities and subtle differences that might define varieties. Such fascinating detective work. Yes, source material for an article here, for sure. So, the working assumption is that these are imitatives based on their weight and that they were produced by the same workshop or group of ancient counterfeiters, right? And that the coins are all, presumably, part of a single hoard that was dispersed on the market starting around 2016? Edited by Kamnaskires 12/29/2019 09:34 am Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 09:50 am Steve, here's a "circle lips" at 4.16gm. Official? Or an anomaly among generally lighter ancient counterfeits of the type? https://www.vcoins.com/en/stores/da...Default.aspx Report this Post to the Staff
Palouche Pillar of the Community Spain 2752 Posts	Posted 12/29/2019 3:26 pm Great break down Steve! I'm glad my x coin has helped and its really interesting to see it placed in a series...Wonderful work and thanks for sharing....Paul Report this Post to the Staff
Finn235 Pillar of the Community United States 6130 Posts	Posted 12/30/2019 4:03 pm Thanks all! I do hope to get this worked into an essay to hopefully be published in the next Koinon - I still need to do comparative shots and of course re-work the writeup for a more academic setting (gosh it's been so long since I've written for academia!) @Bob, you are likely correct - I would assume that these were all made by the same political entity, although I highly doubt that these were "counterfeits" per se - just a twist on the tried and true formula. I doubt that the Lanz specimen was part of the same hoard, although I suppose it could have been, if it was flipped immediately and the others traded hands a few times before being sold on ebay. What is interesting is that despite the incredible rarity of these coins, none of them were struck with the same die - that indicates that this is just the tip of a hopefully very large iceberg. I hope I am around to see (and maybe buy) the rest when they are eventually discovered. Good detective work on spotting that example on vcoins! I am curious how you found it, because I've spent countless hours looking for more examples of these but have never seen that one before. It is a great example of 1.11.1 with a very clear eye and importantly we can see almost the entire moon. As for the weight, my only comment for now is that we just need more data points. I was surprised to see how uniform mine were, although all of mine were probably made close together - I could certainly see a minor kingdom sticking to the "official" trade weight to start with, and then letting that slip to under 4g over time. What I really need to do is to get these under an XRF machine, but the only one I know of in my town is owned by a coin shop proprietor - a crotchety old frump who will only use it on gold, and only if you are selling it to him. Says it's a "legal risk" and he could "be sued" if I tried to use the results of an XRF analysis in the wrong way? If I can get a compositional breakdown, I would be a lot closer to being able to articulate when these were likely made. Edited by Finn235 12/30/2019 4:05 pm Report this Post to the Staff
Spence Moderator United States 34423 Posts	Posted 12/30/2019 5:18 pm @finn, you might reach out to the mod @SPP-Ottawa. I seem to recall him having an XRF. "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 Report this Post to the Staff
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