Ahom, Rajeshwara Simha (Siu-Rem-Pha), Silver Rupee, 11.36g, “Devanagari legend” type, SE 1675, Obv: Devanagari legend “Shri Shri Swarga / Deva Sri Rajeshwa/ ra Simha Nrpasya / Sake 1675” in four lines, Rev: Devanagari legend “Shri Shri Mahe /shwari Charana Ka /mala Makaranda Ma / dhukarasya” in four lines; winged lion to left below (RB# O82.1). Extremely fine, very rare.
Rajeshwara Simha, the fourth son of Rudra Simha, became the king of the Ahom kingdom after the death of his brother King Pramatta Simha. He was a devout Hindu and erected many temples and gifted much land to the Brahmins. Soon after his accession, he paid a long visit to Guwahati to worship at the Kamakhya and other temples. Throughout his reign, he seemingly struck ‘one off’ coins, changing the usual Assamese inscription to Devanagari and Farsi and also sometimes changing the usual octagonal shape to rectangular. Many of these issues are rare and some are known from unique specimens. Rhodes & Bose comment that they are unable to provide an explanation for these shifts, apart from pointing out that they are spread over the span of his reign, so possibly not meant to mark specific events.