It is probably fair to say that the focus of numismatists has tended to be more on the remarkable variety of Gupta gold coins and their rich iconology than on the silver issues. Until recently the standard references for the Gupta silver comages have been the works of J. Allan [Allan 1914] and A.S. Altekar [Altekar 1957]. These have, however, been out of print for a long time; contain poor quality photographs and no other visual assistance for coin identification; and there is much in the way of new material and interpretation that has arisen since their publication.
An array of new material has been superbly brought together by S. Kumar [Kumar 2017] in a seminal work that embraces the entirety of the Gupta gold, silver and base-metal coinages within their historical context. Kumar's in-depth analysis of the silver coins was built on a classification according to each relevant emperor and based on the coins overall reverse designs (Garuda, bull etc), leaving room to explore the nuanced relationships and individual mintages of types within these groups: a task he left to future scholars [personal communication]. Kumar presents metrological and pioneering metallurgical information on the silver coins offering new insights into their composition, which can be built upon to provide the granularity to assist such exploration: an undertaking only partially completed by two articles on particular types of Skandagupta and Kumaragupta 1 by K.K. Maheshwari and B. Rath [Maheshwari and Rath 1996 and 1998), leaving untapped a rich source of data to guide our understanding of these coins and the history that surrounds them.
The late issues of the Indo-Saka Western Ksatrapas, who were defeated by the Guptas; the "trident" coins from Kathiawar, the issues of the Traikutakas; and the coins of Krsoaraja are all known to be connected to the Gupta coinage by stylistic and other considerations. These coinages and their associated dynasties are, however, poorly, and often incorrectly, understood.
Being aware of Alex Fishman's impressive catalogs of the Ksaharatas and the Western Ksatrapas, and the astonishing work on the silver dammas of early medieval India by Alex and Ian Todd, I was in anticipation of their new book on the silver coinage of the Guptas and associated states in western India. Alex corrected some wrongly identified dates and legends and saved me from repeating old mistakes when he very kindly cooperated on my own book on the Gupta gold, silver and base metal coinages. In the process, I got glimpses of lan and Alex's new book, which made me very curious. I knew it would be good, but I had no idea that it would be such an exciting, instructive and at the same time entertaining read! It is exciting because it paints a completely new picture of the political and numismatic history of fifth-century Saurashtra, Instructive in view of the numerous coin photos, charts, and drawings of Brahmi legends and numerals and their paleographic development. And entertaining because of the enviable talent of the authors to combine their research results into an overall picture and a story you absolutely want to follow!
The setting of the action is Gujarat and, in particular, its peninsular part, Kathiawar (Saurashtra), the place of confrontation between the Guptas and late Western Ksatrapas. The coins in question are the silver drachms of the period starting with the fall of the Western Ksatrapas. As the story progresses, the reader becomes aware of the legacy of the late kings Rudrasena IV (398-403 CE) and Rudrasinha III (385-415 CE) and their decisive role in the political and numismatic history of fifth-century Kathiawar and northern Maharashtra. And new names of the late Ksatrapas are revealed: Miradatta and Jivyaka, the latter identified as the actual issuer of some crudely struck late Western Ksatrapa drachms on which the personal name so far had been read as "Indraka" or "Ja'uka". The authors thoroughly re-examine and re-evaluate already known coins, but they put their hands also on completely new material. They compare legends, letter forms, weights, metal contents, and portrait styles of the diverse coin series under research, meticulously noting even the smallest detail. Their holistic view of the entire coin ensemble reveals close stylistic links, leads them to chronological conclusions, and enables them to identify a number of mints. The result is a fresh picture of the interwoven silver coinages of the late Ksatrapas, Guptas, Traikutakas, that of the Kalachuri king Krsparaja and the "trident type" coins.
One of the fascinating discoveries may be the radical reattribution of the "trident types". These silver drachms with their Ksatrapa styled bust on the obverse and trident surrounded by a legend on the reverse are conventionally attributed to the Maitrakas who started to rule Saurashtra at the end of the fifth century. Todd and Fishman show convincingly that these coins were not minted by the Maitrakas. In fact, they were issued considerably earlier by a certain Madasena (ca. 415-45 CE), son of the last Ksatrapa king Rudrasithha III (385-415 CE). The reading of the legend on these trident-type coins turned out to be a never-ending problem in the past. The reason is the existence of diverse legend variants of which the scholars were unaware, so their efforts to reconcile the variants in one consistent reading were fruitless. Todd and Fishman are the first to distinguish these legend varieties, which reflect Madasena's rise from a vassal to an independent king.
The new identification of Madasena also affects another coin series, the so-called "Bombay fabric" drachms, ie. smaller and lighter versions of Ksatrapa styled drachms with a peculiar style of their own. These coins with the personal names Madasena and Vijayasena were hitherto regarded as Mumbai region issues of the Western Ksatrapa kings Damasena, son of Rudrasithha 1 (222-38 CE), and Dämasena's son Vijayasena (238-51 CE). In the case of Madasena the name was explained as a misspelling of Darmasena. Based on palacography, style, and overstriking. Todd and Fishman rule out such an early dating of these coins. Instead, they regard them as having been struck by Madasena, son of Rudrasimha, and Madasena's sons Vijayasena and Rudrasena the coins of Rudrasena being exceedingly rare with only two known specimens, both with the clear patronymic Madasenaputra. The minting date of the "Bombay fabric" coins is fixed by the authors to the early 440s CE, a period after which the Mumbai region appears to have come under the control of the Traikutakas.
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