The Scandal Behind Jahangir’s Coins

Eight days after his father’s death, Jahangir ascended the Mughal throne. But the young emperor soon rattled up the kingdom’s orthodox clergy with a surprising scandal — issuing new coins.

Emperor Jahangir's Twelve Zodiac Coins

Even today, Jahangir’s coins are highly prized in the world of coinage. When the Mughal prince took the throne, coins in circulation usually featured a realistic portrait of his father, Akbar.

But soon, Jahangir, much like his predecessor, came to be known for his unconventional streak. Although we overlook coins today as loose change, they became a unique canvas for the emperor’s experiments during the time. In many of his memoirs, Jahangir describes the decrees and decisions he made relating to currency. In one such account, he writes:

“Prior to this, it has been the rule that on one side of gold coins my name has been engraved, and on the other side the name of the minting place, the month, and the regnal year. Around this time it occurred to me that instead of the month a figure of the constellation representing the month should be depicted.”

This decision resulted in zodiac coins: the dynasty's brilliantly minted, one-of-a-kind coinage. Issued from 1618 to 1625, these coins were quite unusual since no other record of Indian coinage with astrological imagery existed at the time. Moreover, they were far too decorative to fit into the conventions of Islamic coinage.

But under the patronage of Jahangir, these new coins soon hit the Mughal streets. On one side, a constellation corresponding to the month of its issue was stamped. For instance, during the month of Farvardin, a figure of Aries was engraved onto the coin.

On the other side, Jahangir’s love for couplets led to beautiful poetic inscriptions being plastered across the coin alongside details about the reign and year of issue.

All this was a drastic point of departure, but one that fits into the other artistic and cultural advancements that gave Jahangir’s reign an eclectic reputation. Other coins Jahangir issued also featured him holding a cup of wine in his hand.

Already at odds with the changes from his father’s time, the clergy were admittedly not pleased by these new coins. However, Jahangir did partially bring back using the Hijri era for his coinage. Sadly, this was the only solace he offered to the orthodox class.

A significant moment in women’s political life during the time can also be chronicled through Jahangir's coins. During his rule, Jahangir became the only Mughal emperor to grant the right of coinage to his royal consort, Nur Jahan. This made her the first queen, after Razia Sultana, to have the right to issue coins.

Among Jahangir's repertoire of coins, one of them is even inscribed with a romantic couplet featuring his wife’s name reading:

“By the order of Jahangir, gold attained a hundred times its beauty when the name of Nur Jahan, the First Lady of the court, was impressed upon it.”

However, when Jahangir’s son Shah Jahan took the throne, these scandalous coins seemed too much to handle. So much so that he ordered every last coin to be melted. Driving this point home, Shah Jahan even ordered the death penalty for anyone found possessing these coins. This policy is also partly the reason why so few coins have survived from the time and why the ones that did are so highly-prized among collectors.

But valuation aside, the surviving coins also seem to carry an often overlooked side from Jahangir’s biography. Often written off as the opium-addicted Mughal, they show how he was also an open-minded king. One who stamped coins with love letters to his wife, couplets from his time, and even the stars above.

Gold Mohur of Nur Jahan