Ancient Arabic, Persian script coins recovered in Kapilvastu

An ancient hoard of 2,315 copper coins, bearing Arabic and Persian scripts, has been unearthed in Kapilvastu district, Nepal. The discovery was made by a local farmer, Ramraj Yadav, while working in his field. He found the coins inside a traditional metal water pot, known locally as a 'karuwa'.

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The coins had oxidised significantly over time, altering their appearance. We had to seek assistance from technical staff at the Kapilvastu Museum to safely extract them from the vessel.

Initially, Yadav handed the pot and its contents to a neighbor, Rohit Kori, who kept them for a week. Rumors about potential government action against possessing unregistered archaeological artifacts prompted Kori to abandon the pot near a pond. This led Ward Chairman Direp Kumar Chaudhary to alert the police, who retrieved the artifact on July 20.

Extracting the coins proved challenging due to centuries of corrosion and moisture, which had caused them to fuse together. Technical staff from the Kapilvastu Museum assisted in safely removing the coins. The collection, weighing 7.034 kilograms, was handed over to the museum on July 21 for examination and preservation. Individual coins measure between 1.4 and 1.8 centimeters in diameter.

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We have informed the Department of Archaeology and initiated further detailed study. The artefacts are currently kept under secure conditions at the museum and will be put on display after consultation with national authorities.

Preliminary assessments by Shanti Sherma, chief of Kapilvastu Museum, indicate the coins date to the 13th or 14th century, possibly from the reign of Sultan Alauddin Khalji. Senior archaeologist Basanta Bidari explained that ancient Kapilvastu was a vital trade hub on the Uttarapatha route. He suggests the coins were likely brought by merchants passing through the region, given Tilaurakot's historical importance as a commercial center.

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Traders used to travel along this route in bullock carts for commerce. Given that Tilaurakot served as an important trade hub during the ancient period, these coins were likely brought by merchants passing through the region.