How much would a numismatist pay to add a rare coin to his prized collection?
A whopping Rs. 6.25 lakh was the answer at the recently concluded auction of rare coins and currency notes conducted by Marudhar Arts, an Archaeological Survey of India-licensed auction house. This was over three times its minimum bid price.
A pair of gold tanka and another of silver belonging to the Delhi Sultanate under Mubarak Shah got the highest bid at the annual auction.
The new owner is a numismatist based in north India. While the gold tanka is rated ‘extremely rare’, the silver pieces are mentioned as ‘very rare’ on the rarity scale, the organisers said.
“The important thing to note here is that Mubarak Shah did not issue any coins with his own name during the first seven years of his reign, preferring to continue the posthumous types of Firuz Tughluq and Muhammad-bin-Firuz,” said auctioneer Rajendra Maru.
Said to be of the highest rarity in the coinage of the Delhi Sultans, Mr. Maru said the silver coins are worth much more than the gold ones as the latter are easily found.
There were as many as 79 exhibits while 927 items were auctioned during the sixth edition of the annual event.
“Though we conduct an online auction every fortnight for a lot of 2,000, we reserve the cream for the annual offline auction,” he added. An astounding 25,000 collectors visit the city to attend the event from across India.
