Paranumismatica - Indian Token Coins

The coins appearing hereunder, relates to the Indian Token Coins of 1911 issued by Longman, presumably a British company. As is apparent from the legend, they were produced in Germany. They bear the bust of King Edward VII who died in May 1910. They are made of card board. The denominations are Half Rupee, Quarter Rupee and 1/64th of a Rupee ( 1 Paisa). Although they are not identical but imitations of the coins, having the bust of Edward VII, in circulation during that period. The tokens depict the bust facing left. While One Paisa has a copper color, the other two coins have the appearance of silver.On a reference being made to the RBI Monetary Museum and the Indian Institute of Research in Numismatic Studies, they expressed their unfamiliarity with any such tokens. Accidentally I came across an article dedicated to 'Exonumia' (Study of Tokens, Medals etc.), a term I was not familiar with, in the Coin Encyclopedia web site. The term 'Paranumismatica', however, lends more comfort. I was amused as also enthused and thought of getting my token coins published there so that they come to the knowledge of a larger number of enthusiasts in numismatics.

Longman's Indian Token Coins
We are aware of 'play money' in use in the U.S. and other countries where replicas of coins are created in plastic or metal for children to play with. They are available in any toy store. But in the Indian context, the above referred tokens do not seem to be 'play money'. During World War II there was shortage of all kinds of metal world-wide. But the World War I started only in August 1914. An important event during that year was the coronation of George V at New Delhi on the 11th December. Reasons for 'Token Coins' being introduced, through private enterprise during that period is unexplainable at the present state of our knowledge. Further more, the above tokens are not in a mint condition. They appear to have changed several hands as the wear and tear suggests.
Recently I made a reference to the British Museum as well and the response received is appended:
"Thank you for your enquiry. This is is not a token coin issued as part of the currency in colonial India, but an imitation produced either as a toy, or possibly for the collectors' market. In either case, I would guess that it was issued in, and for use in, Great Britain rather than India. While I have not been able to trace a reference to Longman's, it seems likely that they were a British company, which may well have produced other series of token coins as well. Clearly this one was intended as part of an Indian series, imitating a half-rupee of George V (1910-36).
Yours sincerely,
Gareth Williams
Duty Curator"
We welcome contributions in this regard for enrichment of knowledge about the tokens under discussion.

भारतीय टोकन मुद्राएँ

एक बार मेरे एक बड़ी मूँछ वाले मित्र ने मुझसे पूछा, "क्या तुम्हारे पास चमड़े के सिक्के हैं". मैने अपनी अनभिंग्यता व्यक्त की. फिर उसने तुगलक की कहानी सुनाई. मैने कहा हाँ पढ़ा है, देखा नहीं है. उसने फिर कहा "अंग्रेज भी कम नहीं थे". मैने पूछा क्यों. कल बताऊँगा कह मुछड़ चलता बना. दूसरे दिन वह मेरे पास आया और एक डिबिया निकाली. डिबिये के अंदर से तीन गोल सिक्के नुमा वस्तु निकाली और मेरे हाथ रख कर कहा लो यह तुम्हारे लिए है. मैने उन्हें गौर से देखा. वे कार्डबोर्ड के बने थे. हूबहू अँग्रेज़ों के जमाने के सिक्कों के जैसे ही दिख भी रहे थे. एक अठन्नी, एक चवन्नि और एक एक पैसा.
अठन्नी और चवन्नि रुपहले थे तो एक पैसा ताम्र वर्ण का. अग्र भाग पर एड्वर्ड सप्तम बाईं ओर मुहँ किए हुए दर्शाया गया था. राजा के नाम की जगह गोलाई में "लॉंगमॅन्स इंडियन टोकन काय्न्स"अंकित था. नीचे की ओर "जर्मनी में बना" का उल्लेख भी था. पृष्ट भाग पर फूलों का बेल, राजमुकुट, मुद्रा का मूल्य एवं वर्ष १९११ अंकित किया गया था.
मैने थोड़ी छानबीन की तो पता चला क़ि एड्वर्ड सप्तम तो सन १९१० में ही स्वर्ग वासी हो गये थे. अलबत्ता १९११ में जॉर्ज पंचम क़ी ताजपोशी नई दिल्ली में हुई थी. ऐसी कौन सी घटना थी जिससे प्रेरित होकर एक ब्रिटिश कंपनी के द्वारा ऐसी मुद्राएँ (टोकन) निर्मित कराई गयीं. मैने सोचा, संभव है क़ि बाज़ार में धातुओं की कमी के कारण चिलहर की किल्लत रही हो. द्वितीय विश्व युद्ध के समय ऐसी स्थिति निर्मित हुई थी. परंतु प्रथम विश्व युद्ध का प्रारंभ तो अगस्त १९१४ में जाकर ही हुआ था. मैं बड़ी दुविधा में पड़ गया और अब भी हूँ. क्या इनका निर्माण बच्चों के खेलने के लिए हुआ था. यह मानने को मन नहीं करता क्योंकि व्यापार वाले खेल में नकली नोटों का या फिर अंक लिखे बिल्लों का प्रचलन मैने देखा है. ये जो सिक्के (टोकन) जिनकी चर्चा हो रही है, पुराने हैं. कई हाथों से गुज़रे होंगे. क्षरण साफ दिखता है.
मैने भारतीय रिज़र्व बॅंक के मौद्रिक संग्रहालय एवं इंडियन इन्स्टिट्यूट ऑफ रिसर्च इन नूमिसमॅटिक स्टडीस (IIRNS) से भी संपर्क कर सहायता माँगी पर उन्हे ऐसे टोकन्स क़ी कोई जानकारी नहीं थी. अंततोगत्वा मैने ब्रिटिश म्यूज़ीयम से पूछा. उनका कहना है क़ि ए टोकन सिक्के भारतीय उपनिवेश के मुद्रा के रूप में प्रचलित नहीं किए गये थे (सरकारी तौर पर). ये बच्चों के खेलने के लिए या फिर संग्रहकर्ताओं के लिए "अनुकृति" मात्र हैं. दोनों ही स्थितियों में भारत के बजाए ग्रेट ब्रिटन में प्रयोग (प्रचलन) हेतु इन्हे जारी किया गया होगा. संभवतः लोंगमेन एक ब्रिटिश कंपनी रही होगी और उन्होने दूसरे सिरीज़ (भारत के अतिरिक्त) के टोकन सिक्के भी जारी किए होंगे. उनका यह भी कहना था क़ि इन टोकेनों में जॉर्ज पंचम वाले सिक्कों क़ी नकल क़ी गयी है (जबकि हमने उन्हे टोपी पहने ही सिक्कों पर देखा है).
बहरहाल मेरी दुविधा जस क़ी तस है. मेरी समस्या यह है क़ी मैं जान ही नहीं पा रहा हूँ कि मैं और क्या जानना चाहता हूँ. यदि पाठकों में से किसी को भी कुछ भी पता हो तो निःसंकोच अवगत करा दें. टोकनों के छाया चित्र नीचे दिए जा रहे हैं.

Appearance of "OM" on Coins

In July 1996, while going through the morning new papers, I stumbled upon a news item appearing in the Times of India. The caption said “Historians stumped by “Om” Coin”. The report said that six coins were found near the Siddheshwar lake in the Khopat area of Thane (Maharashtra) and one coin had “OM” engraved on it. The report further stated that occurance of “OM” symbol (as is known today in North India) was evolved during the 2nd Century BC as confirmed by the officials of the Institute of Oriental Studies, Thane. Famous historian V.V. Mirashi is quoted to have assumed its occurance somewhere in the 9th or 10th Century AD.
I looked at the coin photographs appearing alongside the news. There was a coin with a lion standing to the right, with the tail rolled up. At the end of the tail the so called “OM” was clearly visible but the area was darker indicating that the symbol was placed deeper than the coin surface. Clearly a device was overstruck. Faintly I remembered to have had some affinity with the coin. Later in the evening I went through the Journals of the Numismatic Society of India and traced the same to the Sada Dynasty (JNSI Vol XLVIII pp14-23 : Sada Coins from Vaddamanu). Similar overstruck Sada coins with a “Triratna“ device were already reported. In this case the Triratna was punched over the tail of the lion. The end of the tail became a part of the symbol to resemble “OM”. Out of the six coins discovered, only three of them were shown in the photograph. One small coin had the legend “Rajasa Kurasa” (Kuru dynasty of Kolhapur area) and the other one was of “Pulamavi” of the Satavahana lineage. All the coins are datable to 2nd Century AD. How come that a site is yielding coins of different dynasties of the same period. It is, however, not clear as to how were the coins discovered. Thane was definitely a crucial centre with maritime trade. We can not rule out the possibility of a modern day collector’s coins being lost and found. The coins appear to be clean without traces of any deposits. While examining my old floppies, I came across scanned photograph of the disputed coin and thought of penning down for wider appreciation of such numismatic problems.
Incidentally, the “OM”, according to the Hindu mythology, is a cosmic sound and is there from the beginning of the Cosmos. Not only in Hinduism, “OM” is the ultimate, even in Jainism, Buddhism and among the Sikhs. The question is, how was it represented symbolically. Today we find it represented by characters of a script, expressed by a combination of letters producing an “OM” like sound. But it is not necessary that the SOUND be bound with the same characters for ever. “OM” in the various Indian scripts as known today was not the same in the past. This I could understand from the symbols appearing at the beginning of Copper plate grants/inscriptions. Usually they begin with “OM Siddham/Swasti……….” Here we find “OM” appearing differently.

Agent Bushby Saheb - Coins of Rewa State

This is an English version of my Hindi article posted earlier.

Also published by Encyclopedia of Indian Coins


The Bushby Coin (Click To Enlarge)
During the course of my active service, I happened to be at Jabalpur in 1990 and there was one Mr. Soni, Dy. Manager working with me. He belonged to a goldsmith family and they had their own jewellery shop in the Sarafa area of the city. When he learnt about my numismatic leanings, he offered to help me. He told me that people from many walks of life, come to their shop to dispose off silver and gold coins, when they needed liquidity. He started bringing few coins every day for my approval. In turn, I used to identify one or two pieces, depending on their antiquity, and paid for them according to the then prevailing market rate. Ancient gold coins were also made available but I simply turned a blind eye as it was beyond my means to possess them.
In between I learnt that at Rewa, not a very distant place, a trader popularly known as Mathurawale, is disposing off his scrap consisting of old coins stored in jute bags, at Rs.100/- per kg. He, however, does not allow people to be selective. He will take out coins from the bag and put them on the scale and the matter ends there. I got interested and thought of trying it out. Within a few days I had a kilogram of those coins brought to me by a friend of mine, who was posted at Rewa.
I bought a small packet of Caustic Soda wafers and made out a solution in a mug of water. The coins were dipped and kept in the solution overnight. Next day they were cleaned. Most of the coins turned out to be of medieval period from various parts of the country. It was for the first time that I was having a feel of such heavier coins. They had inscriptions in Arabic/Persian. Some coins which were in cast copper, belonged to the Mouryan period. There were coins of the erstwhile princely state of Rewa as well.

One coin which had a lion standing to the left on the obverse, proved difficult to understand. The reverse had some thing inscribed but was proving unintelligible. I could not make any sense out of it. Reference to some publications and comparing with all conceivable scripts proved an exercise in futility. Finally I went to one Shri R.R. Bhargava, a very senior collector, for help. We were known to each other for over an year. He held the coin in his palm and instantly threw it aside declaring that it is “Bushby”. I lifted the coin and tried to make out, but in vain. Once again I requested him to read the legend. While attempting to do so, there appeared a stunning expression in his eyes and said hey! this is a ‘mirror image’. He then requested me to allow him to retain the coin. After learning that it is a ‘mirror image’, I could not have but leave his place, with the coin in my pocket.



Copper Coins of Raja Jaisingh Deo of Rewa from 1809 to 1835

Copper Coin of Viswanath Singh the next ruler from 1835-1854
During the British period, we had provinces directly administered by them and about 40% of the area was covered by Princely States who were enabled to administer their states themselves under a special treaty. There used to be a Political Agent, a representative of the Crown, stationed nearby, to keep a close watch over the activities of the Princely States and safeguard the British interests. Some such States were permitted to have their own coinage and stamps. It was quite usual for the Princely States to issue commemorative coins honouring queen Victoria. Some states issued coins inscribed “Dosti Londhon” to indicate their loyalty towards the Crown.

During the reign of Raja Raghuraj Singh (1854-1880) at Rewa, he went a step ahead, and to woo the then Political Agent “Bushby”, issued coins in his honour. This was considered ridiculous and frowned upon at London. But the coin collectors of England took a fancy and became crazy to grab them. It is for the first time that the coin honouring Agent Bushby, with a mirror image, is being published here. One can attempt to read the legend “Agent Bushby Saheb” from right to left, in three rows. We are also publishing three coins of Raja Jaisigh Deo (1809-1835) and one of Viswanath Singh (1835-1854).

एजेंट बुशबी साहेब - रीवा राज्य के सिक्के

सारथी से साभार

बुशबी का सिक्का
बात १९९० की है. उन दिनो मै जबलपुर मे पदस्थ था. मेरे दफ़्तर मे एक कनिष्ट अधिकारी श्री सोनीजी थे. उनकी सोने चाँदी की दूकान हुआ करती थी.मेरे सिक्कों के संग्रह के बारे में जान कर उन्हों ने कहा कि बहुत सारे सिक्के उनके यहाँ बिकने के लिए आते हैं. मैने उनको परखा और अपनी क्षमतानुसार चाँदी की ही कीमत पर खरीदता रहा. सोने के भी पुराने सिक्के दिखाए गये पर मैने हाथ खड़े कर दिए.फिर खबर मिली कि रीवा में कोई मथुरावाले सेठ हैं. उनके यहाँ पुराने सिक्के बोरों में भरी पड़ी है. १०० रुपये किलो की दर से बेचते हैं. छाँटने नही देते. मैने भी सोची कि क्यो ना एक बार आजमाया जावे.

कुछ ही दिनों में १ किलो भर सिक्के एक मित्र के मध्यम से प्राप्त हुए. मैने उन्हे कास्टिक सोडा के घोल में डुबो कर रखा. फिर उनकी सफाई की. अधिकतर सिक्के मध्ययुगीन सुल्तानों के थे वो भी अलग अलग क्षेत्रों के. कुछ मौर्य शुंग के ढलवा तांबे के सिक्के. रीवा रियासत के भी कई थे. एक सिक्के ने मुझे उलझा दिया. विभिन्न लिपियों की जानकारी रहते हुए भी मैं सिक्के पर अंकित नाम पढ़ने में असफल रहा. एक बुजुर्ग संग्रह करता श्री आर.आर. भार्गवजी के शरण में गया. देखते ही उन्हों ने सिक्के को एक ओर पटक दिया और कहा “बुशबी तो है”. मैं भौंचक्का रहा गया. मैने सिक्के को उठाया और दोबारा कोशिश की. बुशबी कहीं नहीं दिख रहा था. मैने दोबारा उनसे कहा, चलिए पढ़ कर बताइए. अब चौकने की बारी उनकी थी. उन्होने कहा अरे यह तो मिरर इमेज है. मुझे दे दो. बात समझ में आने के बाद मैं कैसे मानता.

अँग्रेज़ों के जमाने में भारत में एक तो अँग्रेज़ों के द्वारा प्रशाशित प्रांत हुआ करते थे और लगभग ४०% भाग उन देसी रियासतों के थे जिन्हों ने अँग्रेज़ों से संधि कर रखी थी. इन देसी रियासतों में प्रशासन राजा का ही हुआ करता था. परंतु उनपर अंकुश बनाए रखने के लिए अंग्रेज सरकार अपना एक पोलिटिकल एजेंट नियुक्त कर देती थी. कुछ रियासतों को अपनी खुद की मुद्रा और डाक टिकट जारी करने की छूट थी. रीवा भी एक ऐसी ही रियासत थी जिसने अपने सिक्के जारी किए थे. अँग्रेज़ों से दोस्ती निभाने के लिए या फिर अपनी स्वामी भक्ति प्रदर्शित करने हेतु विभिन्न रियासतों के द्वारा विशेष सिक्के जारी करने की परंपरा रही है. ऐसे सिक्कों को हम commemorative coins कहते हैं. रानी विक्टोरिया, या दोस्ती लंडन के नाम से ये सिक्के जारी हुए थे.

राजा रघुराज सिंग के शासनकाल में रीवा रियासत एक अकेला राज्य था जिसने पोलिटिकल एजेंट को खुश करने के लिए तत्कालीन एजेंट बुशबी के नाम पर सिक्के जारी किए. इसकी इंग्लेंड में आलोचना भी हुई. परंतु इंग्लेंड के संग्रह कर्ताओं को इस सिक्के ने क्रेज़ी कर दिया और वे अपने संग्रह में इसे शामिल करने के लिए लालायित थे.

रीवा रियासत द्वारा जारी किए गये कुछ सिक्कों की छाया प्रति नीचे दी गयी है. परंतु प्रथम बार हम एजेंट बुशबी का वो सिक्का प्रकाशित कर रहे है जिसमे बुशबी का नाम उल्टा अंकित है. वस्तुतः सिक्के की डाई ग़लत बन गयी थी. उल्टे अक्षरों में दाएँ से बाएँ agent bushby sahep पढ़ सकते हैं. प्रथम तीन सिक्के राजा जैसिंह देव (१८०९-१८३५), एक महाराजा विस्वनाथ सिंह (१८३५-१८५४) और सबसे उपर महाराजा रघुराज सिंह (१८५४-१८८०) के हैं.

Punch Marked and Gold Coins from Malhar

The first coin appearing above is in Gold but the quantity of gold seems minimal. This was worn around the neck as a pendant. Scholars opine that this is an imitation of Roman Coin.
The second one is a Silver Punch Marked coin which has been overstruck with the Malhar device "". It bears four symbols. Sun at top left corner, a Bull facing right at the top right, an Elephant facing right at the bottom and the an unidentifiable truncated symbol. It weighs .75 gm. This is 1/4th of a Karshapana which are scarce. The third one a silver Punch Marked Coin on which the Sun is clearly seen at top right corner. Apart from that there is an incision like marking. The fourth one, also a Silver PMC seems to bear around five symbols out of which the Sun could be seen at top right corner.

Coins of Smaller Denominations

The Coins displayed above are in Copper and very small in size. They all bear some markings. However I did not attempt to clean them properly as I was sure that it is unlikely to find any legend on them

They could be placed in around 3rd Century AD. I wonder as to how people used to manage them.

Anonymous Coins from Malhar

Coins of Bhaliga

Coins of Bhaliga have been found in lead as well as copper. Most of the coins bear a tree in railing as the reverse symbol. On all my coins there is an elephant to the right on the obverse above which the legend appears as Siri Bhaligasa. One copper coin bears the full legend "Rano Siri Bhaligasa"

Coins of Sivamagha

I am not averse to placing Sivamagha in around the 1st half of 2nd Century AD as for as I could visualize from the palaeography on his coin issues. Among the Magha rulers, we find Sivamagha bringing out coins in all conceivable shapes. We come across square, oblong, round as well as octagonal coins in lead and copper. Interestingly, the penultimate (with a crack) coin appearing above, has traces of Gold. The second coin on this page is superb in the sence it has a very clear legend Rano Siva Magha Sirisa starting from 9' O Clockto 3'O Clock. His coin issues are quite different from what we have seen with earlier rulers. A peacock has invariably been depicted on the reverse of all his coins with or without a pedestral.

(The first coin is not a part of my collection)

Coins of Dharmabhadra

After Achadasiri, we find a ruler named Dharmabhadra or Dhamabhada (as per the coin legend). The typography of Brahmi characters are almost similar to that of Achadasiri and he too could have belonged to 1st Century BC. There are only two coins found so far. Both of them are in copper with a tree in railing on the reverse. There is however a tiny symbol at the corner resembling a square within which a + mark is placed.

Coins of Achadasiri

After Silalusiri, the reigns appear to have been taken over by Achadasiri. The advent of Malhar symbol "" could be seen on his issues. The coins are in lead and copper (1, 2, 4 and 6). All copper issues have a Tree in railing on the reverse while on most of the lead coins the reverse is blank.

Coins of Silalu Siri (Earliest Inscribed Coins)

(Double click over the photograph for an enlargement)

The earliest inscribed coins found at Malhar belong to a ruler named Silalu Siri. Palaeographically, his coins are placed in the 1st Century BC. Initially the reading on the coin was confusing and appeared as if it is Salapusa but later, addition of more coins made the legend clear. Few of his coins are overstruck with the typical Malhar Symbol "" (Device) and it appears within an incuse. All coins are in lead and do not bear any symbol on the reverse.

Mysterious Malhar Symbol

After having traced the Magha’s origin at Malhar, it would be pertinent to dwell on the mysterious “Angular Nandipada” or the Malhar Symbol. This is purely native to South Kosala as indicated by coin finds. Occurrence of this device had been rare elsewhere excepting perhaps on coins from Kausabi reported by Altekar (JNSI IV p.1 & JNSI VII p.7). The coins reported have been counter struck with Nandipada symbol. This is indicative of the period during which Maghas gained control over Kausambi. The ruler named ‘Pothamitra’ could have preceded Maghas thereat. Coming down to Malhar, we find coins of a king named Silalusiri (who could have been a Saka chief) immediately before the advent of Raja Maghashri (Ranjo Maghasirisa).We come across lead coins of the former king counter struck with the Malhar Device. We have one copper and four lead coins of Silalusiri with and without the so called mint mark. Instead of considering this device as a mint mark for Malhar, we could assume that, to begin with the Magha ruler used his initial letter ‘Ma’ for stamping the coins of the erstwhile rulers to indicate his suzerinity and used the same device for his own issues for smaller denominations.

This symbol is seen in all the coins from Malhar being used by (different or may be by the same dynasty) issues upto the 4th century AD.

A friend of mine, after examining my coins, was in favour of calling it a religious symbol – a Fire Altar. This can not, however, be ruled out. The rulers could have been fire worshippers

Maghas from Malhar

Our Puranas (Vayu Purana) contain references to the rule of 9 rulers of Magha or Megha dynasty in South Kosala (present day Chhattisgarh) during the ancient times. However, in the absence of epigraphical or any significant numismatic evidence to support the Puranic reference, Ajay Mitra Shastri (Kausambi Hoard of Magha Coins) had to remain contended with the assumption that the Kosala Country could have extended upto Bandhogarh (Shahdol District in Madhya Pradesh) as its northern most boundary. On the other hand K.D. Bajpai (Indian Numismatic Studies, Delhi 1976 Page 16/17) has reported issuance of Copper Coins by Magha rulers in the South Kosala region. His discovery is assigned to the second half of the 3rd Century A.D. The coins are supposedly discovered by him at Bandhogarh. It seems that he has assumed Bandhogarh as being in South Kosala so as to validate the Puranic references. Secondly no coins of Maghas excepting of Sivamagha and Yamagha are known from South Kosala. However tonnes of coins assignable to a second or third generation Sivamagha in Bell Metal are known from Shahdol (Bandhogarh) and Rewa regions.

It may be remembered that the earliest epigraphic evidence (N.P. Chakravarty – Brahmi Inscriptions from Bandhogarh – Epigraphica Indica, Vol.XXXI-1955-56 p.167) relating to one of the Magha rulers, Bhimasena reckoned to be of 129 and 130 A.D. were found at Bandhogarh (Shahdol) and Ginja Hills (Rewa) respectively followed by one of Bhattadeva of 168 A.D. at Bandhogarh itself. The latest one is of Bhimavarman of 217 A.D. from Kosam (the ancient Kausambi) near Allahabad, which indicates a South to North movement of the dynasty.

Two copper coins reported by Shri R.R. Bhargava (Numismatic Digest, Vol VIII, June & December 1984) from Tewar (ancient Tripuri near Jabalpur) have been found to be almost identical to the two coins of Sivamagha from Malhar reported later by Shastri and Rishbud (Numismatic Digest, Vol. IX). Together with the above two coins, in the reportings, a third copper coin of Yamagha from the same place i.e. Malhar was also published. Provenance of the aforesaid coins were also not considered sufficient to establish Malhar as the original seat of the Maghas. The hesitation was due to non occurance of the coins of the founder “Maharaja Magha” in the region But now in view of fresh evidence of coins attributed to a ruler named Maghasiri or Magha from Malhar, the puzzle remains resolved. Therefore the Maghas originated at Malhar and then moved to Bandhogarh and finally to Kausambi as indicated in previous paragraph.

My First Coin from Malhar

As I had earlier stated, I started reading literature available with the Bilaspur Museum. It was believed that at the beginning of the Christian Era, Dakshina Kosala, was under the suzerainty of the Satavahanas. All inscriptions of that period are referred to as that of Satavahanas. The 2nd Century rock inscription at Gunji (Barpali) near Sakti (now Janjgir district) is also attributed to Satavahana period. The inscription tells about distribution of 1000 cows to local Brahmins twice by Raja (King) Kumaravaradatta and a third time by his minister. Because of this hangover I largely read about the Satavahanas and their coinage. To cap it, a coin found at Balapur in the sands of the river Mahanadi is attributed to a king named Apilaka, who happens to be the 5th in the Satavahana lineage.[ Now it has been established that the attribution was faulty. The name has been read as Rano Siva Siri Silalukasa by Dr. (Mrs.) Susmita Bose Majumdar in her monograph titled “a new series Coins of Malhar” wherein most of the coins covered are from my collection](IIRNS Publication available here).

If I am lucky, I could dig out Raja Kumaravaradatta, I thought. May be I could also bring out other Satavahana rulers who are not known by their coin issues. Cleaning of the coins was proving difficult. All the pieces had hardened mud coating. Finally I put them in Acetic Acid overnight and I could succeed in getting rid of the deposits using a tooth brush. Out of half a dozen pieces, one was a lead coin with inscription. Others were copper and highly corroded. However I was very happy and started trying to figure out the name of the King on the lead coin.
With my limited knowledge of Brahmi characters, I read the name as Maagha Sirisa. Immediately I referred to the list of Satavahana rulers and thrilled to find something matching. There was one Meghaswati listed there. I showed it to my friends in the Archaeological department. They encouraged me and suggested further readings. However, I could not resist myself from sending out a letter to Dr. Ajay Mitra Shastri at Nagpur reporting my findings. In turn he expressed his doubts and asked me to go through his book on “Kausambi Hoard of Magha Coins”.

Steadily my collection started growing with many more additions establishing the real cradle of Maghas at Malhar

Malhar Visit

One day Mr. G.L. Raickwar and Rahul Singh, both from the local Archaeological Department, who became close friends of mine, suggested a visit to Malhar, a large village, some 33 kms South East of Bilaspur. Malhar is supposed to be a place where occurance of ancient coins was reported. I readily agreed and accompanied them. I visited the ruins of beautiful temples, Pataleshwar, Deor, Didindai etc and the site museum where the earliest sandstone idol of Lord Vishnu is kept. The sculpture is said to be an important find. Although crude looking, it has something inscribed on it in Brahmi characters of the 2nd Century A.D. Then I was taken round to a nearby mound said to contain a ruined mud fort. It was surrounded by a moat with little water. Originally it provided protection to the then existing fort.

Mr. Raickwar started giving me lessons in locating coins. We started searching and within half an hour collected few pebble looking pieces. He declared that they are all pieces of metal enveloped in mud. I could not believe it but they were really a little hevier. In the past, while digging the moat, the deeper soil was thrown up which contained all the antiquities of the early ages. When it rains, water flows down creating cavities in the ridges and one could look there to collect such heavier, mud enveloped pieces.

After returning from Malhar, we washed all the mud pieces and lo! They turned out to be tiny square copper pieces containing some symbols. There were, however, no traces of any inscription. Nevertheless they were the ancient coins.

Then I became a frequent visitor to Malhar, particularly on Sundays and holidays during and after the rainy season. In the process I met one Mr. Gulab Singh Thakur of Malhar who also collected coins but was reluctant to part with them. Thereafter, I could locate a resource person there, who was my subordinate. Although he had interests, I guided him and he started working for me thereafter.

Initiation into Numismatics

My obsession or perhaps fascination for ancient coins started somewhere in 1984. At that time I was posted as a General Manager of the Regional Rural Bank at Bilaspur. I was required to tour extensively in the rural areas. Once, while I was visiting a branch, I happened to pass by Talagaon, some 29 kms south of Bilaspur. At my request, the driver turned the vehicle towards the temple site. The famous Devrani and Jethani temple complex were in ruins but still looked imposing. Fragments of sculptures were lying scattered all around. One small piece of a fragment attracted me. It was a slender hand of a lady, above the wrist, wearing bangles and holding something. I could not resist the temptation of picking it up. At home I grinded the lower part so that the hand could rest on a table top. Thereafter I started to have a deeper look into the slightly folded hand. To my surprise all the important lines were engraved in the palm. However the marriage line was absent and this puzzled me. Incidentally I had some elementary knowledge of Palmistry.

On the next day, while at office, I conversed with one of my associate officers, Mr. Ramu Shukla as he too loved to live in the past. He told me about two dedicated officials of the Archaeological Department, Mr. G.L. Raickwar and Mr. Rahul Singh and that they would be too happy to interact with me.

The next Sunday, I picked up my scooter, kept the broken hand of the sculpture and headed to the museum located near the town hall. Huge broken bodies of sculptures were on display in the museum compound. In front of them were two persons apparently engaged in some deep study. I figured out that these are the people I am looking for. I approached them and they confirmed my assumption. I was warmly received after I introduced myself. I asked them if they have found the upper part of the sculpture of whose hand I was holding. They replied negatively. I triumphantly declared that the original sculpture should have been that of a Devadasi. I then drew their attention towards the absence of marriage line in the palm. There was an element of surprise in their looks. They desired me to meet them in their office anytime, even late in the evening and that they would love to exchange views.

Since their office was very close to my house, next day itself I called on them in the evening. I carried and surrendered the piece of hand (sculpture) I had with me. Both the officials were very very cordial and expressed their willingness to help me understand Archaeology. That day itself, they opened up everything they had. I was amused to peruse Copper Plates containing inscriptions in box headed Brahmi script Mr. Singh cajoled me and wanted me to try to figure out the contents. I could read some characters. All the coins were shown one by one and I was really thrilled to keepthem on my palm realizing that they belonged to the 2nd Century A.D.

Soon thereafter excavations were conducted at Talagaon in Devrani Jethani complex(6th Century A.D.) I was requested to join the team and I gladly agreed. Every day we used to go to Talagaon carrying our lunch boxes and return late in the evening. I was with them for nearly a week and remember to have positioned myself at the Sanctom Sanctorum (Garbhagriha), where I thought coins would pour out. To my dismay only one silver coin of Prasannamatra of the Amararya Kula (Sharabhapuria)(6th Century A.D.dynasty) surfaced (Silver coins of Prasannamatra are very rare). Incidentally I may mention that the temple complex was dated as of 6th Century A.D. on the basis of the coin find. In the absence of any other evidences, coin evidence is reckoned as conclusive. When I wanted to know about the various dynasties which had ruled over Chhattisgarh (Dakshina Kosala) prior to 5/6th century A.D. I was told that it is the darkest period in History. We know about the Mouryan empire followed by Satavahanas and thereafter, it is a big question mark. Here I learnt that since no inscriptions, copper plates etc. belonging to this dark age is available, the only alternative is to search for coins which may contain the names of the rulers of Dakshina Kosala. I spent few months studying books on Coinage and Brahmi script (from the Museum library) to help me in my quest.

The excavations at Talagaon were continuing. In between I had the opportunity of meeting Dr. K.K. Chakravarty, Commissioner of Archaeology Department. He was perhaps made aware by my friends in the department as regards the help I was extending. It was merely vehicle support at the cost of my Bank. He seemed to be a thorough gentleman and we became friends soon. He too invited me to join the team at Talagaon. On a particular day, when I was at the site, digging operations were going on close to the Devrani Temple. It was like a digging a grave to get to the skeletons without breaking them. The diggers came across a large sculpture buried in a rectangular pit. Very carefully the soil was removed. The face was downwards. There was another gentleman, a scholar from Harvard , Dr. Pramod Chandra , present there. Every one was curious to find out as to what the sculpture was. Turn by turn each one of the officials present, climbed down the pit and had a feel of the bottom (some soil was removed using brushes). I was, however, amused as I could not understand the purpose behind it. I too followed suit but instead of feeling the bottom of the stone slab, I looked down and found that the pit was lined with stone. When the sculpture was finally taken up, people present were amazed. There lied a unique statue

Rudra Shiva

with various parts of its anatomy represented by various animals, creatures and faces.
Discussions amongst the scholars present began. Dr. Chakravarty opined that the statute could have fallen down and in course of time soil would have got deposited over it. Dennis the Menace in me prompted to say loudly, no sir, it was a deliberate burial. Look at the hard surface in which it was lying. It is lined with stone slabs. The statue would have been broken, in case, it really fell down. The scholars were in favour of naming it as Rudra Shiva. Nothing of its kind is known in the Indian Iconography.