The city surely has a rich history that dates back to centuries but what one may not know is the fact that it is also the proud custodian of one of the world’s largest collection of coins. With over three lakh Indian coins, the city is only second to the British museum in London.
The state department of Archaeology and Museums had been thinking to create an exclusive numismatics gallery at the AP State Museum in Public Gardens for some time now. It has finally decided to throw open the gallery to the public in the coming months.
“We have a rich collection of coins and unfortunately they have been off display. Now, we are going to open an exclusive gallery in about three months. It will have all the important coins from different eras, dynasties, denominations and it would be a complete learning experience for the visitors,” said Dr KP.Rao, director of department of archaeology and museums.
According to him, the coins would be displayed in bullet proof glass closets. Visitors can also look forward to a section which will give them information on various technologies used in minting coins during different eras.
The collection, that belonged to the erstwhile Nizams, includes earliest of the punch-marked coins(silver coins with irregular shape) used between sixth and second centuries BC. Some also belong to Maurya Gupta, Satawahana dynasties to the latest Qutb Shahis, Asaf Jahis and British Indian coins. Interestingly, the department also has over 20,000 gold coins with them.
“These coins were not just a medium of exchange but a reflection of the rule and prosperity of a kingdom and lifestyle of the people. They symbolised the status of the economy,” said Rao.
Echoing similar views, Md Safiullah, a city based historian who specialises in coins between 1347 and 1947,believes that study of these coins would help resolve a lot of questions in the history of Hyderabad, that remain unanswered.
“The first three rulers of Qutb Shahi dynasty did not have their names inscribed on the coins. Probably, Vijayanagara and Bahmani coins were still in circulation. The first coin of Qutb Shahis came under IbrahimQuli Qutb Shah in 1550 and as a matter of fact, coins were not really popular among the public,”he said, which is possibly why the founder of Hyderabad Mohammed Quli, the fifth sultan of Qutb Shahis, had coins with legends saying in Persian- God’s curse be on those who do not accept these coins.
Interestingly,Abdullah Qutb Shah, who ruled between 1626 and 1672 had the legend in Arabic that said “It has ended well”. “There are no satisfactory answers for having these pathetic legends on coins. Nizam had the second largest collection of coins in the world with over five lakh coins and it has remained a mere collection without an research going into them. There is a huge requirement for putting more research,” he said.