Page:Catalogue of the Coins in the Indian Museum, Calcutta, including the Cabinet of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol 2.djvu/24

 4 INTRODUCTION

The history of the Sultans of Dehli with special reference to their coins has been chronicled by Mr. Edward Thomas, whose book, 1 pub- lished more than thirty -five years ago, still remains the standard work on the subject. The most important contributions in later years to the study of the series have been those made by the late Mr. C. J. Rodgers of Am ri tsar, Panjab, India, in the form of supplements to Mr. Thomas's work published in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal between the years 1880 and 1896, and by Mr. Stanley Lane-Poole in the catalogue of the coins of the Sultans of Dehli in the cabinet of the British Museum. 2

Six distinct dynasties are included in the term ' Sultans of Dehli '. To quote from the introduction to Mr. Lane-Poole's volume : ' The founder of the line of Dehli, Muhammad ibn Sam, was a Ghori Turk ; and his successors, the rest of the first dynasty, were his Turkish slaves and their offspring. The second dynasty, sprung from Jalal-ad-din Firoz Shah, was composed of Khalji Turks. The third dynasty, that of the Taghlak Shahis, was of the race of the Jats. The fourth claimed descent from the Arab Husain, grandson of the prophet Muhammad, and called itself by the sacred title of Sayyids. Indeed, only the fifth and the sixth of the dynasties into which the kings of Dehli are divided could properly term themselves Patan or Afghan, inasmuch as Buhlol belonged to the Lodi tribe of Afghans and Sher Shah to the Sur division of the Lodi tribe.'

I do not propose to review in any detail the history of these dynasties. It will be sufficient for the purposes of this introduction to draw attention to those points in it which are illustrated by their coinage.

The majority of the ' Sultans ' have no claim to the notice of posterity. They were content to lead lives of sensuous ease, leaving the control of affairs in the hands of such of their favourites and ministers as were able to keep in check the independence of the nobles

' The Chronicles of the Pathdn Kings of Dehli, published by Trubner & Co., London, 1871.

2 Published in 1884 by order of the Trustees.