An exceptionally rare Islamic gold coin, weighing 45g of pure gold, from the Ghorid dynasty, dating from the early 13th century is estimated to fetch £200,000 – £300,000, when it comes under the hammer of specialist auctioneers Morton and Eden in London on October 22, 2020.


The coin bears the sole name of one of the most famous Ghorid Sultans – Mu’izz Al-Din Muhammad bin Sam (567-602h), also known as ‘Muhammad of Ghor’.

 

Stephen Lloyd of Morton & Eden explains: “This outstanding, large gold coin is of significant historical importance to the Islamic world and especially to India. This is because the man who issued it, Mu’izz al-Din, is credited as having laid the foundations for subsequent centuries of Muslim rule in the Indian Subcontinent.”

 

Mu’izz al-Din Muhammad was born in Ghor, now the heart of present-day Afghanistan. Together with his elder brother, Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad, they created a vast Ghurid empire stretching from Northern India in the East to the margins of the Caspian Sea in the West.

 

It is Mu’izz al-Din’s successful campaigns in India for which he is most well-known today. As swathes of Indian territories fell under his command he quickly set about establishing Islam there.

 

As a consequence he is widely acknowledged as having changed the course of Indian history. When Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad died in 599h (1202), Mu’izz al-Din succeeded him as sole Ghorid Sultan until he was assassinated in the Punjab in 602h (1206).

 

Steve Lloyd of Morton & Eden said: “This is a truly special coin. It was struck to celebrate and acknowledge the power and greatness of Mu’izz al Din (Muhammad of Ghor) at the height of his achievements in India.”