52 



The Initial Coinage of Bengal. 



[No. 1, 



V.— FAKHR-UD-DIN. MUBARAK SHAH. 



On the departure of Muhammad bin Tughlak from Bengal, Tatar 

 Khan honorarily entitled Bahram Khan, an adopted son of Ghias- 

 ud-din Tughlak, seems to have been left in charge of the provinces 

 included in the government of Sonargaon, while the Lakhnauti 

 division of the kingdom of Bengal was entrusted to Kadr Khan. 

 On the death of Bahram Khan,* which is stated to have taken place 

 in 739 — but may probably have to be antedated to 737 — Fakhr-ud- 

 din Mubarak, his Sildhddr, took possession of the government, and 

 proclaimed his independence. He was in the first instance defeated 

 by the troops sent against him from Lakhnauti, but finally succeeded 

 in maintaining his authority, and, as the coins prove, in retaining his 

 hold on Sonargaon and its dependencies throughout the nine years, 

 from 741 to 750 a.h., comparatively undisturbed. The history of 

 the period is confused, and the dates given by the native authors 

 prove of little value ;f but the coins establish the fact that in 751 

 another ruler, designated Ikhtidr-ud-din Ghazf Shah, presided over 

 the Mints of Eastern Bengal. 



v. Fakhr-ud-din. Mubarak Shah. 



No. 11. 



Sonargaon, a.h. 737,-741, 742, 743, 744, 745, 746, 747, 748, 749, 



750. 



Silver. Size, vi. to vij. Weight, 166.0 grs. Unique. 



Plate I., fig. 7. 



Obv. Kev. 





^yliu— — X««J\ 



Margin, 



*Nizara-ua-din Ahmad says, Mubarak killed Bahram Khan ; while Abul Fazl 

 affirms that Mubarak put Kadr Khan to death. — Ayin-i-Akbari, ii. 21. 

 f Ferishtah, Briggs, i. pp. 412-413 ; iv. 328. Stewart, pp. 80-83. 



