Drahms, denars and divinity

Zoroastrian motifs on Indian and Iranian coins reflect the influence of the religion
Shailendra Bhandare

Ancient coins from Iran, Central Asia and India are an important medium for featuring Zoroastrian divine representations. As per the belief of kingship in Iran and India of yore, a king is personally blessed and given the right to rule by one or more deities. Such divinely blessed rulers were widely regarded to have superhuman qualities and attributes, some of which were considered bestowed upon them by the legitimizing deities. In the ancient Iranian tradition, an important attribute was Khvarrah or God-given (kingly) glory which made a king resplendent with divine light.      1. Iranian king on a throne holding......



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