Heavily stylized head facing right within a dotted border // Stylized fire altar with two dashes above the base, Brahmi/ Sharada legend "Sri Tapanasa" ("of Tapana"). 11mm, 0.84 grams. Fishman/Todd "The Silver Damma" #M1.

Earliest of all the Punjabi "damma" series coins, these coins imitated Gupta and Hunnic drachmas. This very crude type gives the name "Tapana" on the reverse and is the progenitor of all the three-dot Multani dammas and other silver dammas from north India. Tapana is among the many names of the solar deity “ finding coins inscribed with this legend minted in Multan, center of Sun-worship, famous for its magnificent Sun-temple is not surprising. Alternatively, Tapan/ Tapana is an ancient male name and Sri Tapanasa ("of Tapana") might be a reference to the issuer of this series as it might be a locally used biruda of the Sindhi Rai or Chach overlords of Multan, an otherwise unattested local ruler of Multan, high priest or another person of importance in the Sun-temple.

Extremely rare, previously known to Joe Cribb and Fishman/Todd only from examples held by a single collector in Pakistan. Attributed and read for the first time only a few years ago by Fishman and Todd in their "the Silver Damma" book. The only coin of this type that went up for a public sale was a piece offered by Steve Album (auction 40, lot 880) which sold for 260$+fees.