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220
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[JULY, 1890.
The Lodhîs also at any rate struck both at Dehli and Jaunpur. Again, Humâyûn never put his name on copper, only the year and the mint. The Sûrîs, however, always did so, and seldom the mint. Thus, but very few copper coins of Islam Shah Sar have the name of the mint on them and the same may be said of the copper issues of Muḥammad Sur. There is also no mint given on the few copper coins known of Sikandar Sar and Ibrahim Sur. Further, the coppers of Shêr Shah, which are found in great variety and numbers all over the Pañjab were in all probability meant to be dáms, weighing about 320 grains, and those of the other four Sûri kings were similar in make, size and legend.
Now, Akbar adopted the dams of the Suri kings, but sometimes used the style of his father Humayun, and sometimes followed a style peculiar to himself, contracting a habit towards the latter part of his reign of placing the name of the coin upon the coin itself. For this purpose (1) fulús was used jast as we use 'copper' and meant any sized copper coin ; (2) the tankal and its parts, the ním (half) tanka, chuhárum hissa-i-tanka (4th), hashtum hissa (8th), and shánzdahum hissa (16th), as definite coins with fixed weights ; (3) the wisfi (half), as half a dám. This last is a very rare coin, and in one instance I have met with the actual words else half a dam on such a coin (Pl. II. fig. 32). All the coins of this description are rare and in fact all those that I show on the plates attached to this paper are so. They are difficult to obtain, the legends are uncommon and the mints also.
It would seem, too, that weights were minted in Akbar's time under the auspices of the mint authorities, though jewellers then, as now, probably kept sets of agate weights. I have seen such minted copper weights from the Lâhôr, Ågra and Kâbul mints, which in my previous papers on the copper coins of Akbar I thought were coins, inasmuch as they have the name of the mint, the year, and the month on them, exactly as the coins have.. In Agra they were called tanke, spelt , and were issued, as far as I know, only as four-tánke and two-tánke pieces. In Kâbul and Lahôr they were called tanke, spelt S, of which I have seen one one-tanke and one four-tanke piece. From Kábul I have a one-tanke and a two-tanke piece, and I now give a four-tanke piece (Pl. II, fig. 29).
The weights of the tanke pieces are a puzzle. Those given in my previous papers, 3 - two one-tánke pieces, weighed 59 and 58.8 grains respectively, though much worn; but the twotánke pieces I have seen vary from 119.5 to 108 grs.; while the three four-tánke pieces described in the present paper vary from 237 to 244-5 grains. This should make the one-tánke piece about 61, or perhaps 62 grains. Now the Ain-i-Abkari gives the weight of a jeweller's tank as 24 ratis, and on actual weighment I find that 24 ratis=42 grs., and in this I am supported by Thomas, who says one ratí =175 grs. Therefore a one-tánke piece should weigh 42 grs., but it does weigh 58.8 to 62 grs. Again in Babar's Table of Indian Weights given by Thomas the tang is said to weigh 32 ratis, equal to 56 grains, but even this weight is less than that of worn copper tánke pieces 300 years old. Next, General Cunningham estimates the rati at 1.8229 grs. and Mr. Maskelyne at 1.85. This goes nearer to what we want, if a tinke piece of 59 grs. = 32 ratis, because then 1 rati = 1.844 grs. But this is my lowest weight, whereas the four tánke piece weighs 244.5, though it is worn, making one tank = at least 61.1 grs, and 1 rati = 1.91 gr. All this makes me think the Ain-i-Akbari is wrong in saying that the tank was of 24 ratis, and that it was really of 32 ratis. It also makes me think that the rati was heavier then than now.
A noteworthy feature in the coins of the second plate is that the names of the old Persian months appear on them, on fig. 20 Ardibihisht, on fig. 21 Khurdad, on fig. 22 Shahrêwar, on fig. 23 Azr, on fig. 24 Amardad, on fig. 25 Farwardin, on fig. 26 Amardad, on fig. 29 Abán, on fig. 36 Tir. Thus we have the names of eight out of the twelve Persian months.
1 (See next note as to whether this word should be tanka or tank.-R.C.T.) - (May not these words be tanki and tanki P-R.C.T.] 3 J. A. S. B., Vol. XLIX. Pt. I. 1881, Pl. xix. fig. 3, and Vol. LIV. Pt. I., 1888, Pl. i. fig. 14.
