(sold for $15.0)

1459-1474, India, Bengal Sultanate, Barbak Shah. Silver Tanka Coin. Khazana mint.

Mint Place: Khazana
Denomination: Tanka
Mint Period: 1459-1474
Condition: Some deposits and scrapes/hits, possibly clipped in the past or struck on a smaller planchet, otherwise VF!
Diameter: 28mm
Weight: 9.02gm
Material: Silver

The Bengal Sultanate (Middle Bengali: শাহী বাঙ্গালা, Arabic: سَلْطَنَة اَلْبَنْغالِيَّة)[3] was a late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, with a network of mint towns spread across the region. The Bengal Sultanate had a circle of vassal states in the Indian subcontinent, including parts of Odisha in the southwest, Arakan in the southeast, and Tripura in the east.

The Bengal Sultanate controlled large parts of the eastern subcontinent during its five dynastic periods, reaching its peak under Hussain Shahi dynasty. Its raids and conquests reached Nepal in the north, Brahmaputra valley (modern-day Assam) in the east, and Jaunpur and Varanasi in the west. It was reputed as a thriving trading nation and one of Asia's strongest states. Its decline began with an interregnum by the Suri Empire, followed by Mughal conquest and disintegration into petty kingdoms.

Ruknuddīn Bārbak Shāh (Bengali: রোকনউদ্দীন বারবক শাহ, Persian: رکن الدین باربک شاه; r. 1459–1474) was the son and successor of Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah. Initially appointed as the governor of Satgaon during the reign of his father, Barbak ascended the throne of the Bengal Sultanate in 1459. He was the first ruler to give prominent roles in the Sultanate's administration to the Abyssinian community. Historian Aniruddha Ray credits Barbak Shah as the pioneer of urbanisation in Bengal.