Coins casted in Lahore Mint of Akbar found in Samarkand
Samarkand, Uzbekistan: Coins casted in Lahore Mint(ضرابخانه) (Монетный двор) of Mogul Empire Akbar the Great have been found while digging in a house in Samarkand on Sunday.
According to newspaper “Pravda Vostoka”, a jug of old Indian coins buried in private land was found in Ishtihan district of Samarkand region by the owner of the house who was digging a hole for brick molding. This jug was full of This ceramic vessel (jug) was full of 206 coins.
The treasure was passed to the local Institute of Archeology where it was discovered that all coins belong to the period rule of Babur’s grandson and Humoyun’s son – Akbar the Great, and were coined of copper. These coins were casted in Mint of Lahore, Ahmadabad and Faheshpur. Coins are dated to approximately between 1563 and 1600.
Scientists think that the coins that made their way to Uzbekistan could have belonged to a merchant or a traveler who due to emergency situation or some other danger did not manage to exchange them with dealers whose stalls were all around the medieval bazaars. This is more likely considering the fact that one of the biggest trading routes was going through Central Asia – the Great Silk Road.
The treasure of Ishtihan is an evidence of trading and cultural relations between countries of Central Asia and India, set up already in the ancient times and that flourished in the epoch of the Boburids in India. The study of the findings is currently in process.
Now Lahore is a part of Pakistan but it was capital of Akbor for many years and engineers and architects and construction experts from Samarkand and Bokhara played a pivotal role in the construction of Old Lahore during the era of Akbar The Great.
