1846.] Muhammadan Sovereigns of Bengal. 333 



the events of his reign to that of his predecessor. Ferishteh briefly men- 

 tions Mahmud as a nobleman of Bengal; but he is correctly described 

 in a Persian history of Bengal now before me, as the brother of Nasrat 

 Shah. I have had several of his coins in my possession, but find room 

 in the present plate for one only, No. 24. They are all distinguished 

 by having a small circle on each face, concentric with the rim of the 

 coin, containing what appear to be the words $>[» vj 



Reverse and Obverse read continuously — 



and on some of the coins the place of coinage ^UIa^. ^ * s tne 

 date upon this coin 933, which is so irreconcilable with the chronology 

 of written history. Mahmud died according to Ferishteh in 945, and 

 with him was extinguished the independence of the kingdom of Bengal. 

 The city of Gour was invested by the hostile armies of the emperor 

 Homayun, who, on its capitulation, held his court there for some months.* 

 Sometime, however, elapsed ere the kingdom of Bengal was finally at- 

 tached to the Moghul empire ; for the different rulers, who were from time 

 to time appointed to administer the government in the name of the em- 

 perors of Delhi, omitted no opportunity of seeking to throw off their alle- 

 giance, and occasionally to a considerable extent succeeded in doing so. 

 The coins of these rebellious subjects, from Shir Shah, who usurped under 

 Homayun, to Daud Khan, when the kingdom was finally absorbed by 

 Akbar, as well as of those who attempted independence before the dynasty 

 of kings which we have just been considering, may furnish an interesting 

 subject of future notice ; more particularly, if collectors who may be in 

 possession of specimens, would be good enough to communicate impres- 

 sions or drawings of them. 



* For an interesting account of the state of Bengal at this period and the cir- 

 cumstances attending its conquest by Homayun, the reader may consult Joao de 

 Barros' work, Dos feitos que os Portuguezes fizeram no descubrimento e conquista 

 dos mares e terras do Oriente; fourth decade, ninth book. 



