A Brief Look at Coins of India and Their Four Categories
• Coins of India are studied by numismatists and historians all over the world due to their rich historical significance. • Coins in India can be classified into four main categories based on their time periods namely, Ancient, medieval, colonial and modern. Let’s explore each category in brief today.
• Ancient Coins of India issued by Gandhara Janapada are considered to be the oldest in the world. These rectangular Indian coins were struck from 600BC to 300BC and featured a unique six-armed symbol. • Old coins of India struck during the Gupta Era from 320AD to 550AD feature beautiful inscriptions and designs that truly represents the Golden Era of our history.
• Medieval coins of India were issued by Shah Jahan in the name of his wife Mumtaz while many other beautiful coins issued under him featured poetic couplets. • During the coronation of Maratha Warrior King Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, beautiful hon coins were struck in gold. These Indian coins are considered to be very rare and exquisite.
• Coming to the colonial period, the East India Company issued different coins for three presidencies - Bengal, Madras and Bombay. Gold Mohur issued by British India featuring Queen Victoria is rare and sought after. • Other European powers like the French, Dutch, Danish and Portuguese also issued their own coins in different parts of the Indian subcontinent in varying denominations and of varying types.
• British India coins were circulated as frozen money even after India’s Independence on 15th August 1947. The first modern coins of India of the denomination rupee were minted in 1950. • The anna series was discontinued and decimal coinage was introduced in India in 1957. Indian Coins struck from 1957 and 1964 featured the legend "Naya Paisa" on them.