The Numismatic Bibliomania Society
PREV ARTICLE       NEXT ARTICLE       FULL ISSUE       PREV FULL ISSUE      

V25 2022 INDEX       E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 25, Number 32, August 7, 2022, Article 8

NEW BOOK: TREASURE ROOM OF THE SAKRA KING

The ANS has published a new book on the votive coinage from Gandharan Shrines. -Editor

In the Treasure Room of the Sakra King: Votive Coinage from Gandharan Shrines
[Hardback]
Waleed Ziad(Author)

Treasure Room of the Sakra King book cover ISBN: 9780897223676
Published by: American Numismatic Society
Series: Numismatic Studies
Volume: 44
Year of Publication: 2022
240p
H11 x W8.5

In a lush valley within the Sakra peak in Gandhara (northwestern Pakistan) is a vast limestone cave temple, part of an ancient Hindu sacred complex. For over 700 years, this cluster of shrines minted hundreds of varieties of their own votive coinage – a unique case in Central and South Asia. These were miniscule copper coins, issued for pilgrims, featuring eclectic and original combinations of Greco-Roman, Iranian, Indic, and Islamic iconography. This book examines the native Sakra copper coinage issued from circa 550 to 1100, corresponding to the Nezak, Turk Shahi, Hindu Shahi, and Ghaznavid dynasties. These coins provide a window into what may have been an ecclesiastical administration exercising varying degrees of autonomy throughout its lifetime. They practically blur boundaries between vernacular folk art and monetary instruments serving political or confessional agendas.

The book relates both the remarkable story of these coins and the sacred sites, and introduces the obscured history of the most neglected yet formative 500 years of Pakistan and Afghanistan's history. It also offers new paradigms for conceptualizing local currency, the making of religious imagery, and the process of transculturation. Importantly, the Sakra coins issued under Ghaznavid rule overturn popular misconceptions about early Hindu-Muslim encounters, suggesting instead that the Ghaznavids pursued a flexible, negotiated policy with regard to Hindu sacred sites.

For more information, or to order, see:
In the Treasure Room of the Sakra King: Votive Coinage from Gandharan Shrines [Hardback] (https://www.oxbowbooks.com/dbbc/in-the-treasure-room-of-the-sakra-king.html)

Kahn E-Sylum ad03 banner



Wayne Homren, Editor

Google
 
NBS (coinbooks.org) Web

The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com

To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum
PREV ARTICLE       NEXT ARTICLE       FULL ISSUE       PREV FULL ISSUE      

V25 2022 INDEX       E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

Copyright © 1998 - 2024 The Numismatic Bibliomania Society (NBS)
All Rights Reserved.

NBS Home Page
Contact the NBS webmaster
coin