Note: Top-Pop, highest graded known coin for the type.
Prince Rafi-ud-Daula was born in the turbulent political atmosphere of 18th century Mughal India, with emperors being used as symbolic puppets by powerful noblemen, notably the Sayyid brothers. Born as the grandson of Bahadur Shah I (Shah Alam Bahadur), he had seen his younger brother be crowned as emperor and die early due to tuberculosis. Subsequently, he was chosen by the Sayyid brothers to take over the imperial takht right after his brother. Reluctantly, Rafi-ud-Daula ascended the throne as Abu’l Fath Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad Shah Jahan II at the age of 23 years on 19 Shaʿbān AH 1131 (8 June 1719 AD).

However, given the symbolic nature of the ascension, Shah Jahan II had no significant control over the empire and was a nominal figurehead used by the Sayyid Brothers. Weak health, compounded by tuberculosis, further limited his capacity to exercise authority, and he died an unfortunate early death at Bidyapur near Fatehpur Sikri at the age of 23, marking the end of his reign on 17 Safar AH 1132 (17 September 1719 AD), which lasted only three months and eleven days.

Coins of Shah Jahan II are among the rarest issues of the late Mughal period, with gold mohurs surviving in particularly small numbers. The present mohur is therefore of considerable historical importance, representing a reign defined not by imperial authority but by its absence. Struck during a moment when the Mughal throne had become largely symbolic, the coin stands as a numismatic reflection of the empire’s declining power and the fragile position of the Timurid dynasty in the early eighteenth century.

Rare Cupro Nickel Two Annas Coin of King George VI of B ...

Copper Nickel Two Annas Coin of King George VI of Bomba ...

Silver Quarter Rupee Coin of King George VI of Bombay ...

Silver Half Rupee Coin of Victoria Queen of Bombay Mint ...