Indore half anna: Km 68

[Rangnath]

When is a bull simply a bull? 

Both of these coins, half annas that weigh 16.7 grams and 17 grams,  seem to be Km 68 (am I correct?)from Indore during the reign of Tukoji Rao II, 1844 to 1886.  Different dies were used, but the basic idea seems the same:  a bull kneeling before an altar or Siva lingum.
Is this bull a symbol of wealth and God's bounty on Earth, or does the bull represent something more specific; Nandi, the vehicle of Lord Siva.
Tukoji's son was named Sivaji and so perhaps Lord Siva was the family deity.
The family dynasty, the Holkars, had a peasant herding origin. Perhaps the bull simply refers to this origin.  What do you think?
richie

[Oesho]

The Holkars were devotees of Shiva. The bull (Nandi), as you already wrote, is the vehicle of Lord Shiva. The Shiva lingam the symbol of Shiva's creative powers. When you see a lingam in a temple, or in the open, there will almost always be a bull in front of it. Sometimes the bull is located in a separate pavilion in front of the main temple. I have added an illustrative picture, taken at the ghat of  Maheshwar, the capital of Ahalya Bai - the famous queen of Indore, which illustrates this perfectly.

[Rangnath]

Thanks Oesho. Graphically, the symbols make for an attractive coin and I'm pleased to know that the bull represents Nandi.  The photo certainly illustrates the point.
richie