Lot 7431

Kārttikeya Type, AV dinara, 8.06 g, 19.5 mm, specific gravity 14.18. Obv.: Tall, elegant, bare-chested king feeds fruits from a twig to a peacock with its tail raised. He stands with hips swayed to his right. The outfit includes smooth loin cloth, prominent sash, and necklace. Hairdo of curls Circular legend from I o’clock jayati svaguṇair guṇa...mahendrakumāraḥ, ‘Mahendrakumāra, … having an abundance of virtues, conquers through his virtues’, partly legible. Gerald Browne (1993-1994:162-163) suggested jayati svaguṇair guṇarāśir vṛtranihantṛ-mahendrakumāraḥ, comparing Kumāragupta to Indra as killer of the demon Vṛtra. The middle section of the legend is always off flan / Rev.: The young warrior god Kārttikeya sits to left on his peacock mount balancing on rocks, the deity’s divine landscape. He scatters treasures (more obvious in this design than in other Kārttikeya coin varieties), so the hand is not held in a protective gesture described by Kumar). In left hand a spear. Behind the raised peacock’s tail mahendrakumāraḥ; (Raven 2015:66-68, cp. fig. 8; Kumar 2017/2024: Class I, but not this design; Raven frthcmg: KG1/Group 3, Var. 1.2, Fr.95) - VF-XF, Design-wise among the rarest of Kārttikeya coin varieties