COINS OF INDIA & PAKISTAN
FROM ANCIENT TIMES TO THE PRESENT
EARLY
ANCIENT SILVER COIN FROM INDIA
India developed some of the world's earliest coins sometime around
600BC. The coins were made by taking a flat, though often
irregularly shaped, piece of silver, cutting it to the proper
weight, then applying a series of punches to the front of it,
indicating where and when it was made. The punches covered a wide
variety of symbols. As the coin circulated, additional
punches were sometimes put on the back, verifying the weight and
fineness of the coin. The coin, known as the Punchmarked
Karshapana, continued to be issued until about the second century
BC. Today the coin is one of the least expensive
early coins available, and represents one of the earliest approaches to
the development of coinage.
Item IN-PUNCH
INDIA SILVER PUNCHMARKED KARSHAPANA 5th-2nd
Century BC VG
$8.50
Item IN-PUNCHx5
5 DIFFERENT ANCIENT INDIAN SILVER PUNCHMARKED
KARSHAPANA COINS, VG
$39.50
BRONZE COINS OF THE
KUSHAN EMPIRE
The
Kushan Empire covered
much what is now Afghanistan, Pakistan and
Northern India from about the first to the third century AD.
They grew wealthy controlling trade centers on the Silk Road and on the
Indus River and incorporated elements of the Greek, Roman, Chinese,
Persian, Indian and other cultures into their lives. Their
coins incorporate Greek designs and often use a corrupted Greek
alphabet in the legends. Kujula Kadphises united a loose confederation
of tribes to form the Kushan Empire in about 30AD. He further
expanded the Empire until his death in 80AD. This bronze
tetradrachm
of Kujula Kadphises features a 
Greek
style diademed head on
the obverse
and Hercules with a club or another Greek deity on the
reverse. The coin grades Good to Fine. We also have
well made bronze Tetradrachms of Kushan king “Soter Megas”.
The
title “Soter Megas” means Great Savior. The coin,
which grades VG to Fine, shows the Greek style diademed bust of the
king on one side, and the king on horseback on the other. The
king thought of himself as being so great, he did not need to put his
actual name on the coin. Until quite recently however,
scholars did not know who really was! It is now believed that
he is Vima Takha who succeeded Kujula 
Kadphises, ruling from 80AD to
105AD. He expanded his empire into what is now
Pakistan. We also have a number of worn, unidentified Kushan
thick bronze Tetradrachms and bronze Drachms I
don’t have the time to work these up. Most coins
feature the king standing on one side and a Greek, Indian or other
deity on the other. The unidentified coins date from about
105 to 225AD and grade Poor to Good.
Item KUJULA
KUSHAN BRONZE TETRADRACHM, KUJULA KADPHISES
30-80AD G-F.
$9.75
Item
SOTER
KUSHAN BRONZE TETRADRACHM, SOTER
MEGAS 80-105AD VG-F
$9.75
Item KUSHx1
ONE UNIDENTIFIED KUSHAN BRONZE COIN
ca105-225AD, Poor-Good
$4.75
Item KUSHx10
TEN UNIDENTIFIED KUSHAN BRONZE COINS
ca105-225, Poor-Good
$25.00
ANCIENT SILVER
PORTRAIT DRACHM
This ancient silver portrait drachm
was struck by Skanda-gupta, who ruled the Gupta Empire from 455 to
about 485AD. The Empire was one of the most famous and
prosperous Hindu dynasties of India. The name Skanda is derived from
the name Alexander the Great who had marched into India some 700 years
earlier. Skanda was not as successful against his enemies as
his namesake, and lost much of his empire to the invading Huns
(Hepthalites). The coin grades Good to Very Good and has a
very crude portrait of the Emperor on the obverse. The
reverse has legends and symbols.
Item
IN-GUPTA SILVER DRACHM OF SKANDA-GUPTA
455-485AD G-VG $7.50
MEDIEVAL JITAL OF KANGRA
With the closing of vital
trade routes due to the Mongol
invasion of Afghanistan,
this remote
Himalayan town in India developed into a major trading center in the
13th Century, supplying horses to Northern India. These small
(12mm) copper Jitals of Kangra are well struck, however are very
crudely engraved. The design, based on coins that had been in
use for centuries, features a very crude Brahma Bull on one side, and a
horseman on the other. The coins were made from about 1220 to
1300 AD.
Item
IN-KANGRA KANGRA JITAL, ca. 1220-1300AD
F-crude
$6.00
MEDIEVAL HORSE
COIN OF PAKISTAN
This
billon (highly debased silver) jital was struck by Nasir al din
Mohammed
who ruled Sind from 1249 to 1260AD. Sind is located in
south-eastern
Pakistan. Sind was once the center of the ancient Indus Valley
civilizations.
At the time the coin was struck, it was on the edges of competing
empires,
so was able to re-establish its own independence.
The coin
is highly unusual for the period in that it has a clear pictorial
design featuring a horse. Some theorize that this signifies the
resurgence in the trade of war horses that had thrived in the
area in earlier years before the invasion of Ghenghiz Khan.
Item
IN-SIND SIND HORSE
JITAL 1249-60AD (A1819) VF
$6.00
BRASS
TANKA OF DELHI SULTAN MUHAMMAD III
Muhammad
III bin Tughluq ruled much of India from 1325 to
1351AD. He was a scholar, calligrapher and an
innovative monarch. Unfortunately he did not always
consider the consequences of his innovations. Vast amounts of his
treasury was spent trying to expand and consolidate his
realm. This only encouraged numerous revolts throughout his
realm. He forcibly moved his entire capital and all its inhabitants
from Delhi to a more central location in the Deccan of central
India. Unfortunately there was insufficient water
to support the population, and the capital was returned to Delhi two
years later, with great suffering and loss of life of the
citizens. About 1330AD he tried to replace the silver Tanka
with this brass Tanka, in an effort to boost his
treasury. The brass Tanka has beautiful calligraphy
on both sides, with legends to encourage its citizens to accept the
debased currency. His unhappy citizens, forced to accept this token
coinage, soon started to counterfeit them in vast numbers.
Foreign traders would not accept the brass Tankas Within a
few years he was forced to return to the silver Tanka,
redeeming both real and fake brass Tankas at a great cost to
his treasury. It is reported that a “mountain” of these brass
Tankas remained lying outside the sultanate’s treasuries for over a
century. The coins grade Fine to Very Fine with some green
patina.
Item IN-AE-TANK
INDIA, MUHAMMAD III 1325-51AD BRASS TANKA,
F-VF $9.75
COINS OF THE INDIAN
PRINCELY STATES
Though the British controlled most of
India prior to
its independence in 1947, many of the Indian states retained their
right to issue coins. Most coins could only be used within
the
state they were issued and there was little standardization of the
coins or denominations issued from state to state. The result was a
bewildering array of coins, many of which have limited
mintages. We have assembled a collection of coins
from nine
different states. These collections have proved very popular. Because
of the difficulty in obtining coins of the Indian States, we sometimes
have to vary the exact coins included in the set. The latest
group
of
sets we made up included are a square Paisa from Bahawalpur,
1/4 Anna of Gwalior that
pictures
the Maharajah, a 1/4 Anna from Indore that pictures a bull, a paisa
from Jodhpur struck during World War II, a coin from
Kutch that was issued with a center
hole, an eight-sided 1 Anna from Mewar, a Dokdo from
Nawanagar
that was struck from about 1570 to 1894 with virtually no change in the
design, a 1 Pice coin from
Tonk
and a tiny 19th century Travencore 1 Cash that pictures a six-pointed
star in a circle. It is
a fascinating collection from a
fascinating
and ancient country. The coins generally grade Fine to
Very
Fine.
An identification guide is included with each set. The exact
coins
included in the set may vary, depending upon what we have in stock at
the
time your order is received.
Item
BK-IN-STATECOL9 COLLECTION OF 9
DIFFERENT
INDIAN NATIVE STATE COINS$22.95
SCARCE
PORTUGUESE INDIA COINS 
Portuguese
explorer Vasco da Gama first visited India in 1498. Portugal was the
first European nation to establish colonies in India, and for many
years enjoyed a profitable monopoly on European trade with
India.
With the coming of the British and Dutch in the 17th century,
Portuguese power declined, until all that was left were three minor
outposts on the west coast of India; Goa, Damao and Diu. In
1961,
after years of preaching non-violence, India invaded and forcibly
annexed these last remaining outposts. We offer two coin
items
from this now forgotten land. The first is a three
coin set
that includes the bronze 1952 1 Tanga and the copper-nickel 1/4 and 1/2
Rupees issued from 1947 to 1952. The coins grade Fine to Very
Fine. The second is the last coin ever issued by Portuguese
India. It is the 1961 10 Centavos in Uncirculated
condition. All the coins feature the arms of Portuguese India
on
one side and the denomination on the other.
Item
PORTIN-SET3 PORTUGUESE INDIA 3 COIN SET
1947-52 F-VF $12.50
Item
PORTIN-30 PORTUGUESE INDIA 10 CENTAVOS 1961
KM30 UNC. $2.50
RARE COINS OF DANISH
INDIA
Denmark established its
first
colony in India in 1620. A mint was
later established to provide coinage for the colonies. Its
coins
tended to be small crude pieces that were hand struck from hand
engraved dies. Due to falling profits and increasing costs of
maintaining the colonies, Denmark
sold its possessions in India to the British East India Company in
1845,
thus bringing an end to its colonial era and the, coinage of Danish
India.
We recently obtained a hoard of these small, scarce, crude copper coins
of
Danish India. We have not had time to sort through the coins,
so
will
offer them as they come. Because the coins are crudely struck grading
them
is sometimes difficult, so we will just call them crude and worn.
Item
L-DANIND-x1 1 DANISH INDIA COPPER COIN
18th-19th Century $6.00
Item
L-DANIND-x10 10 MIXED DANISH INDIA COPPER
COIN
18th-19th Century $29.75
TINY GOLD COIN FROM
DUTCH INDIA
This
tiny gold fannam is one of the least expensive coins of Dutch
India. The undated coin was struck by the Dutch Indian mint
in Tuticorin between about 1785 and 1792. Tuticorin was taken
over by the Portuguese in 1548, captured by the Dutch in 1658 and ceded
to the British in 1795. The coin is only about 7mm in
diameter. One side has a stylized portrait of the Hindu
goddess Kali. The other side has a degenerated Nagari legend.
The tiny coin was popular as it allowed the poor to hoard gold and
travelers could hide the coins in their mouth. If attacked, a
traveler could swallow the coins, then retrieve them a day or so later
Item DUTCHIN-48
DUTCH INDIA GOLD FANNAM KM48 1785-92 VF
$39.50
INDIA’S FIRST
DECIMAL COINS INCLUDES
ODD SHAPES
India introduced their first decimal coins in 1957. The coins
were initially called Naye Paise, or new Paise, to distinguish them
from the previous coins. In order to aid the many blind in the country,
each coin was distinctly different. This six coin set
includes the round 1 Naye Paisa, scalloped edge 2 Naye Paisa, the
square 5 Naye Paise, the scalloped edge 10 Naye Paisa, the round 25
Naye Paise, all dated 1957, and the round 50 Naye Paise dated 1960, its
first year of issue. The coins have the denomination on one
side and the lion capital from the Sarnath pillar of Ashoka.
The Ashoka lion capital was erected around 250BC and now serves as the
national emblem of India. All 6 coins are Uncirculated.
Item IN-SET6
INDIA 6 COIN SET 1-50 NAYE PAISE, 1957-60 UNC
$5.75
MODERN INDIAN COIN SET
INCLUDES
ODD SHAPES
This set of ten recent coins of India includes 6 odd-shaped
coins. Included is the
11-sided 2002
2 Rupee features a map of India.
The 2001 1 Rupee is struck in stainless steel. The 1999 50
Paisa
features the Parliament building and a map of India. A
rhinoceros
is featured on the 1994 25 paise. The aluminum 1988 20 Paisa coin is a
siven sided coin. The 1988 10 paisa is also struck in stainless
steel. The square 5 Paisa is dated 1993. The 1971
3 Paisa
coin is a six sided coin. The 1976 2 Paisa has scallopped
edges.
The 1972 1 Paisa is square. Because of their low purchasing
power
and the high cost of production, the lower four denominations are no
longer issued and are increasingly difficult to get. The The
reverse of the coins features three lions from the
ancient Pillar of Asoka, a sandstone pillar from the third century
BC. It is an interesting set that includes a
variety of
unusual shapes.
Item
S-IN-SET10INDIA 10 COIN SET 1 Paisa - 2 Rupees
1971-2002 UNC.$4.95
PAKISTAN COIN SET
This 10 coin set includes a 2003 10 Rupee picturing flowers, 2004 5
Rupees, 2006 2 Rupees picturing a mosque and the 2006 1 Rupee picturing
the nations founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Also included is the
50
Paisa, 25 Paisa, scalloped 10 Paisa, square 5 Paisa, 2 Paisa and 1
Paisa dating from the 1970’s to the 1990’s. All coins are
Uncirculated, though they may be poorly toned or poorly struck.
Item
S-PK-SET10PAKISTAN 10 COIN SET 1971-2006, UNC. $12.00
THE
RAMATANKA (INDIAN TEMPLE TOKEN)
This
crudely made brass tokens pictures the Gods Rama and Laksmana standing
on one side of the coin. The other side shows Rama and Sita seated on a
throne, along the monkey god Hanuman. The tokens have a false date,
making some believe they are quite old. They were made during
the 20th century and sold in Hindu temples
throughout
India.
Item
IN-TT INDIA
TEMPLE TOKEN$3.75
Item
IN-TTx5 5 OF THE ABOVE INDIAN
TEMPLE TOKENS (all the same type)$14.95
FOR RELATED COINS OF THIS AREA PLEASE SEE:
AFGHANISTAN
COIN & CURRENCY PAGE
RARE SILVER COIN OF
MANGUBARNI
SRI LANKA COIN SET
INCLUDES NEW ISSUES & BIMETAL
THE
UNUSUAL TIBET SILVER RUPEE
THE
BURMESE PEACOCK RUPEE
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scale with which to judge image sizes
All items are guaranteed to be genuine, unless clearly indicated otherwise.
NOTE: All pictures are of a
typical item taken from
stock. Because we have multiples of most items, the item you
receive
may not look exactly the same, however it will be as described.
Please add postage.
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accepted.
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HERE FOR OUR SECURE
ON-LINE CREDIT CARD ORDER PAGE
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PO Box 365
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USA
Phone 1 805 489 8045 Fax 1 805 299 1818
email: orders@joelscoins.com
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YOU WOULD LIKE TO VISIT:
With the closing of vital
trade routes due to the Mongol
invasion of Afghanistan,
this remote
Himalayan town in India developed into a major trading center in the
13th Century, supplying horses to Northern India. These small
(12mm) copper Jitals of Kangra are well struck, however are very
crudely engraved. The design, based on coins that had been in
use for centuries, features a very crude Brahma Bull on one side, and a
horseman on the other. The coins were made from about 1220 to
1300 AD.
This
tiny gold fannam is one of the least expensive coins of Dutch
India. The undated coin was struck by the Dutch Indian mint
in Tuticorin between about 1785 and 1792. Tuticorin was taken
over by the Portuguese in 1548, captured by the Dutch in 1658 and ceded
to the British in 1795. The coin is only about 7mm in
diameter. One side has a stylized portrait of the Hindu
goddess Kali. The other side has a degenerated Nagari legend.
The tiny coin was popular as it allowed the poor to hoard gold and
travelers could hide the coins in their mouth. If attacked, a
traveler could swallow the coins, then retrieve them a day or so later
This
crudely made brass tokens pictures the Gods Rama and Laksmana standing
on one side of the coin. The other side shows Rama and Sita seated on a
throne, along the monkey god Hanuman. The tokens have a false date,
making some believe they are quite old. They were made during
the 20th century and sold in Hindu temples
throughout
India.