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August, 1908.)
SOME DOUBTFUL COINS OF SOUTHERN INDIA.
815
No. 2- - Obv. - Apparently some animal - sihha! - with tail over back. Perhaps a ganda bhérunda,
with elephant in beak. Rev. - Similar to No. 1-A
Are these tample coins ? Sir Walter Elliot who possessed two coins with similar reverses, but having a Nandi (bull couchant) on the obverse (Coins of Southern India, pp. 85-102, Plata III., Nos. 94, 95), connected them with the Kakatiya sovereigns of Warangal about the thirteenth centary, but I do not know his reasons for this assignment. Capt. Tufnell (Hints to Coin Collectors, Part I., p. 19) attributes them to the Vijayanagara kingdom, or later. Mr. Lóventhal's No. 98, Plate IV. (Coins of Tinnevelly), is somewhat similar in that the inscription contains apparently the same word, namely, éri dira, within a cirele of dots, bat in characters which appear to be Kanarese rather than Telugu; the ra stands below the vi, on the right of the erf; the obverse has a figure of Garuda. He attributes the coin to the time of the Nayakas, and considers it a purely Tinnevelly coin, not current elsewhere. His Nos. 99, 101 seemingly belong also to this series, as well as Nos. 109, 110, 112, 114, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124. His No. 120 resembles No. 1-D above. With regard to his No. 124, Mr. Lóventhal classes it as undoubtedly a Nayaka coin of Madura, roughly A. D. 1600 to 1736, and he states that nearly all the Nayaka coins from Madura and Trichinopoly and also the coins of the Vellore Rayars have that inscription on the reverse." I observe, however, that No. 124 appears to be of a corrupt type, the first character being drawn in a roversed position to that of my coins as now figured ---turned the wrong way in fact - and it is the only coin which he has figured in which the characters resemble those given on my plate. If he is right in his Assignment of No. 124 to the Madura Nayakas, it is possible that these chiefs tried to copy an older coin, such as those in my plate. It is difficult, however, to judge from his illustrations.
The legend has been read áridhara, which is probably correct, though the aspirate mark does not occur in the second character on the coins. The word is an epithet of Vishņu. We may call this the “Sridhars Series."
If they are temple coins, to which of the great temples do they belong?
Note that my No. 4-F also bears the same word áridhara. It may belong to this series, the the peacock being a variety of obrerse.
No. 3-A, Thick copper "dub" -
Obo. - A Vishņu namam, or trident-mark, with chank and chakra at sides. Rev. --- Legend in rough Nagari characters.
This is evidently a modern coin. But who coined it ? Mr. Lóventhal's 60, 61, 62 havo ndname, but with Garudas on the obverse. (Cuins of Tinnerelly, Plate III. pp. 13, 14.) The author cannot place them. No. 8-B. Thick copper "dub" -
Obo. - Similar, but different die.
Rev. - Do. do. No. 4-A, Copper
Obv. - Peacock to left, inside a circle formed of triangles.
Rev. - Ins. in Persian-falús - in circle of dots. No. 4-B. Copper --
Obo. - Peacock to right, inside a similar circle. Rep. - Similar to No. 4-A.
No. 4-0. Copper
Obo. - Pencock to right. Rev. - A legend in three lines, illegible. May be Tamil
