The fourth Mughal emperor Jahangir had the instincts of an artist. He brought beauty, poetry and individualism to everything he did, including the minting of currency. And like good art, Jahangir’s coins combine the personal with the political. Take this silver rupee coin, issued in 1606 CE (Hijri 1015) from the Elichpur mint in Berar. Hidden amid the calligraphy on both sides of the coin are the figures of two birds, a hunter and its prey. What do they tell us about the ruler of the land?
Jahangir, the fighter
Image: Jahangir, Silver Rupee Coin of Elichpur Mint, AH 1015 / 1606 CE, Double die struck © Sarmaya Arts Foundation. (2015.N.6.9)
On the obverse or the ‘head’ of the coin, a hawk is sketched in mid-swoop, its wings close to its body, talons outstretched, gaze locked. On the reverse or the ‘tail’ of the coin, we see a small bird, a sparrow or quail, cowering inside the lettering. The mint named on the coin is Elichpur (present-day Achalpur), which was the capital of the Berar province in the Deccan. The Persian words on the observe of the coin state the Islamic declaration of faith or Kalima: ‘La Ilaha Illallahu Muhammadur Rasulullah’. On the reverse are the words stating the name of the emperor, complete with his title and the name of his father: ‘Shah Nur-al-Din Jahangir Ibne Akbar Badshah’. The Hijri year 1015 is inscribed on top.
Image: Map showing the Mughal empire under Shah Jahan, 1652, Nicolas Sanson (cartographer) © Sarmaya Arts Foundation 2017.14.13
In his book Mughal Numismatics: Revisiting Rarities, Mitresh Singh offers insight into the hawk-sparrow motif. The Mughals believed their empire was a superior imperial force, symbolised by the powerful hawk, which could easily subdue lesser kingdoms, represented by the sparrow. Jahangir’s hawk-sparrow coins were minted exclusively at Elichpur during the first year of his rule, 1605-1606 CE. Even though his father and predecessor Akbar had annexed Berar ten years ago, the Mughal emperor would have to continue military campaigns in the region to keep from losing ground to the Deccan Sultanates. The motif on the coin was a not-so-subtle message reminding any potential adversaries of who was really the boss.
Jahangir, the lover
Jahangir with a hawk with inscriptions, 1605-1627 © The Trustees of the British Museum
But the hawk wasn’t just a handy metaphor to Jahangir. It was also an object of fascination in itself. Hawks belong to an order called Falconiformes, which includes eagles, falcons and other birds of prey aka raptors. For thousands of years, these predators of the sky have been used to hunt small game, like hare or pheasant, by people in Mongolia, ancient Egypt and present-day Iran. Given their Turco-Mongol ancestry, the Mughals had a natural affinity for the sport of falconry.
The Mughals’ appreciation for well-trained hawks and falcons was deeply embedded in their court culture. These birds were treated like esteemed courtiers; they were adorned with luxurious accessories and meticulously cared for by expert falconers, and their deaths were publicly mourned. They played a crucial role in the emperors’ hunts, which were not just acts of sport but displays of imperial power. The birds, as extensions of the royal body, contributed to the spectacle of the hunt, reinforcing the idea of the emperor’s dominance over nature and his subjects.
Falconry is still practised in parts of the Arab world, where it keeps its status as the sport of kings and warriors. These lines from the poem Shaheen (1935) by Allama Muhammad Iqbal sum up the sentiment beautifully. Shaheen is the Persian and Urdu word for hawk or falcon and the bird so beloved by Jahangir is an Indian sub-species of the Peregrine called the Shaheen Falcon (Falco peregrinus peregrinator).
Text by Allama Muhammed Iqbal. Photo of Shaheen falcon taken from Ramakkalmedu, Kerala, India by Ullas G Kalappura CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikipedia Commons
Jahangir, the patron
Image: Falcon by Ustad Mansur, School of Jehangir, ca1610-1620, Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay. Photo by Nathan Hughes Hamilton, CC BY 2.0 via Flickr
Finally, Jahangir’s hawk-sparrow coins are a window into his great love for nature. He was a bird-watcher and an amateur naturalist with a keen interest in the animal kingdom. He commissioned some of the most meticulous and detailed paintings of rare and exotic species, creating some of the earliest surviving documents of natural history in India. Many of these paintings were produced in the royal atelier by Ustad Mansur, one of the most celebrated miniature painters of the time.
References
Moosvi, S. (1982). THE MUGHAL EMPIRE AND THE DECCAN—Economic Factors and Consequences. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, 43, P.366.
Mintage World Ltd.(n.d). Jahangir’s Silver Rupee of Elichpur Mint | Mintage World. Mintage World.
Aurangzeb (1906). Ruka’at-i-Alamgiri.(J.H.Bilimoria, Trans.) Cherag Printing Press.P.24
Singh, M. (2021). Mughal Numismatics Revisiting Rarities New Perspective and Fresh Approach. Indian Coin Society.P.152-153.
Liddle, A. (2011). Coins of Jahangir- A Creation of a Numismatist. Manohar Publishers and Distributors.p.25-30
Hickey, K. (n.d.). King of the Birds: Making Symbol, Subject and Science in the Skies of Hindustan. Rice Historical Review. P.58-60
Ranjit Lal, Fantastic Falcons: Streamlined, Superfast Raptors in Many Avatars, RoundGlass Sustain, 30 Sep 2023
