Text and Photos : Dr. Mahesh Kalra

Trade was on full swing in the Palaeolithic era with simple barter of edible goods against stone tools and weapons

Money has acquired various forms in today’s world - paper money, plastic money, electronic money, coins of gold, silver, fixed deposits, shares, bonds, demat accounts, etc., and it remains the most essential commodity for fuelling our jet-setting lifestyles. But what is money?
Theoretically, money is anything that helps one pay for his or her daily transactions like buying, selling and helps in storage of ‘value’ for later usage. The history of human species has been invariably intertwined with money influencing our interactions with our fellow beings on a day-to-day basis. However, the idea of money did not evolve overnight and had to undergo a parallel evolution with growth of human beings from pre-historic barbarians to the comfort-seeking creatures of today.
India has the longest and unbroken tradition of monetary evolution that underwent dynamic changes with the rise and fall of numerous kingdoms and dynasties in the Indian sub-continent. Hence, the study of Indian money is essentially a kaleidoscopic study of the Indian civilisation itself in its varied hues.

The pre-historic era (2.6 million years ago - 5000 B.C.)
The Indian sub-continent has seen continuous human occupation right from the beginning of the hunter-gatherer stage (2.6 million years ago) during the Stone Age to a settled human existence supported by farming and animal domestication during the Neolithic period (approx. 8000 B.C.). Running parallel to this evolution has been the growth of human capability of trading beginning in the Palaeolithic era (2.6 million years - 12000 B.C.) with simple barter of edible goods against stone tools and weapons. The Indian archaeologists have found evidence of such exchanges in the form of ‘factory sites’ of tools which suggest mass production of stone tools for bartering.
The succeeding periods of prehistoric era viz. Mesolithic era (12000 B.C. – 8000 B.C.) and Neolithic era (8000 B.C. – 5000 B.C.) saw more sophistication in barter system with the evolution of primitive money in the form of ‘money objects’. This is suggested by hoards of ‘money objects’ like arrow heads, iron filings, bead money, copper implements and cowry shells (in lands far away from the sea) found all over India’s numerous pre-historic sites. Archaeologists have inferred that these objects were used to ‘buy’ other valuable objects since they were perceived as ‘valuable’ by the primitive people. Thus, the pre-historic period helped train humans in the essential art of mutual exchange. However, the period was interspersed with sporadic violence over the ‘perceived inequities’ fostered by this primitive trading. The major drawback of barter was the excessive reliance on a mutual need for exchange between the concerned individuals; a condition that made trading a probable cause for strife in pre-historic society.

Harappan era (Mature phase ~ 3500 B.C. – 1900 B.C.)
The next phase in the Indian sub-continent’s development was the beginning of the Harappan civilisation around 3500 B.C. in the north-western region of the sub-continent. The Harappan civilisation was India’s first tryst with urban culture and international trade. Harappans traded with the Mesopotamian people extensively as evidenced by exchange of pottery, seals and other objects through middlemen from Dilmun (modern Bahrain). The Harappans evolved newer scientific advances like metallurgical objects, exact weighing system, innovative ship-building techniques, cities with advanced municipal sewage systems and multi-storeyed brick houses; however, not much has been discovered about their exact medium of exchange for their ‘international’ transactions.
The theory that Harappan seals were used as currency has been discounted by eminent scholars. Alternatively, it has been suggested that the presence of huge ‘granaries’ (probably owned by the state) may have been the ‘storehouses of value and wealth’ in the Harappan economy. Like many other aspects of the Harappan civilisation, Harappan currency remains one of the greatest enigmas that defies logic and solution.

In ancient India, noble metals were weighed against a leguminous seed called Gunja or Ratti indicating a uniform system set in place by Mauryans

Iron Age (Vedic, post-Vedic and early Buddhist era ~ 1500 B.C. - 500 B.C.)
The period following Harappan civilisation’s decline was the Iron Age period of early Vedic civilisation when the Rig Veda was first composed around 1500 B.C. on the banks of River Saraswati. The Vedic people were pastoralists by profession and hence the cow formed an important form of currency for storage of value and large exchanges like royal estate, donation to the Brahmans for Yagnas, etc. References to cow as wealth is seen in the multiple terms derived from the cow in the Vedic literature like Gou Puccha (cow’s tail being handed to a new owner), Gowdhar (village headman) Duhhitri (synonym for daughter and also means the one who milks the cow), Gaavishthi (cattle raids by enemy tribes), etc.
Gou Puccha was the first reference to accounting in the Veda of commodities i.e. a king/priest’s wealth was indicated by the number of Gou Pucchhas. This concept in combination to branding of cows was later extrapolated to the official stamping of coins for ensuring authenticity of coins issued by the state.
The later Vedas mention the use of gold and silver in the form of Hiranya pinda and Rupakas for transactions. A verse in the Yajurveda mentions the sale of Soma (wine) against gold pieces called Candra (pl. Candrani); its lower denominations called Pada meaning feet of the cow (equivalent to the quarter of a cow) and Safa meaning the hooves of the cow (equivalent to one-eighth of a cow). The later writings speak of other types of gold coins called the Nishka, Suvarna and Shatamana. However, no existing samples of these coins have been found leading to the inference that these coins were probably unstamped ingots of gold exchanged for their intrinsic value.
The late Vedic period (8th century B.C.- 6th century B.C.) and early Buddhist period (6th century B.C. – 5th century B.C.) saw the rise of newer political units called the Janapadas (Jana - People Pada - Foot) that rose in various parts of India and issued India’s first ever coinage in silver. Each Janapada issued a unique coinage with varied symbols punched on the coin as a symbol of its sovereignty. These coins are thus called ‘Punch Marked Coins’ by modern numismatists, named after the unique technique of using multiple punches to strike various symbols on the coins.
The Janapadas merged into sixteen larger units referred to as Solasa Mahajanapadas in the Buddhist and Jain texts; these were Anga (Bengal and east Bihar) Ashmaka or Kuntala (modern Andhra Pradesh), Avanti (Ujjain), Chhedi (Bundelkhand), Dakshina and Uttar Panchala (the Gangetic Doab), Gandhara (N-W Afghanistan), Kamboja (Hindukush region), Kashi (Varanasi), Koshala (Ayodhya-Faizabad region), Kuru (Delhi and surrounding areas), Magadha (south Bihar and East Bengal), Matsya (modern Jaipur and Alwar districts of Rajasthan), Malla (modern Gorakhpur in eastern U.P. and parts of Nepal), Shurasena (Mathura region) and Vrijji (North Bihar).
The punch-marked coins were found all over the country and each region issued a unique type of punch-marked coin for circulation in its jurisdiction.
The punch-marked coins were essentially pieces of silver cut from metal sheets, weighed and punched with particular symbols unique to the Janapada issuing it; hence these pieces were rectangular or square shaped. Additionally, punch-marked coins were uninscribed in nature i.e. without written legends in any script to provide details of their exact origin.
For e.g. Gandhara Janapada in the North-West Afghanistan issued a very typical silver punch-marked coin called the ‘Silver Bent Bar’ coin by modern numismatists, that has a typical long bar of silver weighing around 11 grams with punch marks of a six-armed symbol called Shadachakra on the either ends of the obverse (‘heads’ end) side. Additionally the bar is slightly bent giving the coin a concave surface on the obverse side.
Other Janapadas like Ashmaka/Kuntala (parts of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh) issued punch marks of a unique double-pulley symbol. Most of the coins have numerous symbols ranging from two to four stamped on its obverse sides. The reverse (tail’s end) side have no symbols except for small marks called ‘shroff marks’ made by traders to authenticate the coin for general circulation.
The punch-marked coins are referred as Karshapanas (Kahapanas in Pali) in Buddhist literature like Jataka tales and Jain literature of the ancient period. The most famous tale is of Buddha’s foremost disciple Anathapindika, a merchant who purchased a garden called Jetavana for his Master by covering its entire floor with silver Kahapanas amounting to an astounding sum of eighteen crore rupees!
Interestingly, the Roman historian Quintus Curtius refers to presentation of 80 talents (a unit of measurement in ancient Greece) of stamped silver ‘signati argenti’ to Alexander by the Indian king Oomphis (Ambhi) signalling the presence of Indian silver currency during Alexander’s invasion of Indus region in 326 B.C.
The smaller units of Karshapana called Ardha Panas, Pada Pana, Dvi-Mashaka, Mashaka and Kakani existed in binary denominations ranging from half to 1/32th part of Karshapana. These lower units were minted with copper to reduce the inherent value of the currency. According to the Arthashastra, a labourer was paid a mashaka (1/16th Karshapana) as a day’s wages during the Mauryan period!

Maues issued coins in silver and copper with Indian and Greek images like a copper coin with an elephant’s head on obverse and a Greek symbol, Caduceus on the reverse

Mauryan era (320 B.C. – 180 B.C.)
The Mahajanapadas increasingly came under the imperial banner of Magadha beginning in 320 B.C. when Chandragupta Maurya (r. 320-298 B.C.) established the Mauryan kingdom at Pataliputra. Chandragupta succeeded in capturing the North-Western frontier from Greeks under Seleucus Nikator I in 305 B.C. and the empire reached greater zeniths under his grandson, Ashoka (r. 269-232 B.C.) who practically ruled the entire sub-continent from Gandhara to modern-day Karnataka.
Monetarily, these developments gave rise to an imperial Magadha punch-marked coinage which was used as common currency all over the Mauryan Empire. Hence, these imperial punch-marked coins are found even today as coin hoards all over the Indian sub-continent due to their widespread circulation.
The unique feature of Imperial Magadha coinage is the uniform presence of five punch marks on each coin in contrast to other coins which have two to four marks on each coin; additionally Imperial Magadha coins have a sun symbol as a constant feature of each coin probably representing the family deity of the Mauryas and were of uniform weight.
In ancient India, noble metals were weighed against a leguminous seed called Gunja or Ratti (Abrus precatorius) each weighing 0.11 grams and all Mauryan Punch-marked coins weigh around 32 rattis (3.4 grams) indicating a uniform system set in place by Mauryans.

Post-Mauryan period of Indo-Greek influence (180 B.C. – 100 B.C.)
The Mauryan Empire declined around 180 B.C. leading to the fragmentation of the country’s polity into successor states that were based on tribal allegiance, older monarchies and newer trade guild states.
However, another political development was the emergence of a strong Greek state called Bactria around 250 B.C. north of Hindu Kush which spread to north-western India around 180 B.C. under King Demetrius I. This led to the founding of a new kingdom referred to as the ‘Indo-Greek Kingdom’ by modern historians.
The 30-odd Indo-Greek kings issued India’s first coinage based on Classical Greek coinage employing the Western ‘die-striking’ technique with portrait and inscribed titles of the ruler. Demetrius I issued a unique coin with his portrait with an elephant’s scalp on his head portraying his subduing of the Indians under their ruler, Sophagasegnus (Shubhagasena) in Kabul valley in 180 B.C.
Demetrius went on to issue a bilingual coinage using Greek script on obverse and North-Western Indian script of Kharosthi on the reverse; making it the first Indian coin inscribed in a local Indian script. His successors, Agathocles and Pantaleon who ruled the kingdom jointly issued a bilingual coin using Greek and the North Indian script of Brahmi which was prevalent throughout the Indian sub-continent since Ashoka’s period when he used it on his famous pillars to issue his edicts on Buddhism throughout his realm.

Kushana ruler Kanishka I used images of different deities demonstrating his wide religious beliefs. Seen here - coins with the image of Buddha on it

The Indo-Greeks also introduced a new weighing system called the Attic system which used multiples of 4 grams instead of the ratti system. Their coins were more sophisticated and circular in shape; using real life portraits of the rulers in conjunction with images of deities to confer legitimacy of the rulers.
The Indo-Greek coinage influenced later Indian rulers to use portrait images and deity images to convey their religious beliefs to the common public. Agathocles issued a bilingual coin with the images of Vasudeva and Sankarshana (Krishna and Balarama) on either side making it the first Indian coin to feature Indian deities!
The decline of Mauryans aroused the passion of ancient martial confederations to reorganise themselves. They issued new sovereign coins influenced by Indo-Greek coins and replaced the older symbols with the images of clan deities. Chief tribal states mentioned in ancient classics like Mahabharata and by Classical Greek historians include Audumbaras, Agras, Arjunayanas, Kunindas, Malavas, Pauravas, Shibis, Vrishnis, Yaudheyas, etc.
Their coins were inscribed with their clan names in Brahmi or Kharosthi or both leaving ample epigraphic evidence for modern numismatists.

Invasion by Indo-scythians and Kushans (135 B.C. – 250 A.D.?)
The Indo-Greeks declined first in Bactria because of hordes of foreigners like Shakas (Indo-Scythians), Pahlavas (Indo-Parthians) and Kushans invaded their kingdom. The Shakas snatched Bactria from its last Bactro-Greek ruler Heliocles around 135 B.C. and later spread to the Indian territories of the Indo-Greeks. Two lines of Shaka invaders are known from their coins in India, one called Vonones ruled Baluchistan (Gadrosia) and Kandahar (Arachosia) and the other dynasty under Maues around Indus region in Punjab.
Maues issued coins in silver and copper with Indian and Greek images like a copper coin with elephant’s head on obverse and a Greek symbol, Caduceus on the reverse. He introduced elements of his nomadic past by introducing a silver coin with the image of the king on a horse with spear that became the prototype of all nomadic coinage issued later.
The Kushans rose from a Central Asian tribe called Yuezhi and lorded over a huge kingdom stretching from Bactria to as far as Mathura in North India. The Kushans began their tryst with India under Kujula Kadphises (r. 30-80 A.D.) around 45-60 A.D.
Kujula issued a coinage in copper on the lines of last Indo-Greek ruler of India, Hermaeus with the title ‘Koshano’. He introduced a distinct coin with images of an Indian bull and a Bactrian double-humped camel with Kharosthi and Bactrian legends. He was briefly succeeded by his son, Vima Takto (80-90 A.D.) who issued a nameless coinage with the title ‘Soter Megas’ (Great saviour).
However, his successor, Vima Kadphises (90-100 A.D.) changed the paradigm of Indian coinage by introducing gold coinage for the first time. His coinage, probably fashioned after Roman gold coinage pouring into India through Indo-Roman trade, was issued as double dinara, dinara, half dinara and so on. The coins portrayed the king as an elderly stocky bearded man in various poses like seated on a low couch or cross-legged on a lump of clouds/rocks or standing at a sacrificial altar or riding a horse carriage and dressed in a long coat with huge boots. Vima Kadphises’ coins feature the first images of Shiva with his bull, Nandi on the reverse with Kharosthi inscriptions.
He was succeeded by the most famous Kushana ruler, Kanishka I (100-127 A.D.?) who was content with being portrayed in the ‘standing-sacrificer’ pose but used images of Indo-Aryan, Greek, Iranian and even Sumero-Elamite deities, demonstrating wide syncretism in his religious beliefs. Kanishka began his reign by issuing coins with Greek deities with Greek inscriptions.
His later coins use the Bactrian language with a corrupted Greek script (using the letter ? to represent ‘sh’ as in the word ‘Kushan’ and ‘Kanishka’) and the Greek deities were replaced by Persian deities. Later he included Indian deities like Lakshmi (called Ardoksho, a Bactrian name) Shiva (Oesho means Eeshwar), Parvati, Karthikeya (Mahaseno) and Buddha (Boddho) on his coins and issued them from his twin capital cities Purushpura (modern Peshawar) and Mathura which were under Kanishka’s direct rule.
Kanishka’s successors Huvishka I and Vasudeva I continued his style of coinage till the Kushan dynasty was routed by local rulers at the beginning of the third century. The Kushans were thus responsible for the introduction of gold coins into the sub-continent with richer imagery of both the kings and deities that inspired later rulers.
During the period of Kushan domination of the north-western region, the central, western and southern parts of India came under the sway of the descendants of the Shakas called Western Kshatrapas (by modern historians) in the Central and West India and the Satavahana dynasty in the West and South India.
The Western Kshatrapas (35-405 A.D.) ruled parts of Saurashtra, Kutch, Malwa, Sindh beginning in the year 35 A.D. The first two rulers, Aghudaka and Bhumaka continued the Indo-Greek style of coinage with bilingual scripts of corrupted Greek and Brahmi along with Greek symbols like Arrow and Thunderbolt and Greek deities on their coins.
Later rulers beginning with Nahapana (r.119-124 A.D.) issued a distinct silver coinage with his portrait. Nahapana had an epic struggle with the Satavahana ruler, Gautamiputra Satakarni who defeated Nahapana in 124 A.D. and counterstruck his coins with Satavahana imagery.
Nahapana’s territories were recovered in 130 A.D. by another Kshatrapa ruler, Chastana who began his reign with a new coinage that was emulated by all his successors till the end of the dynasty in 4th century A.D. after its conquest by Chandra Gupta II, the Gupta emperor who conquered Western India.
The coinage has a typical portrait of the king facing right with corrupt Greek legends on the obverse and the reverse has a three-arched hill surmounted by a crescent and a wavy line below and a sun on its right. The Brahmi inscription is in Sanskrit language replacing Prakrit which was used on all earlier coins. Thus, the Western Kshatrapas despite their foreign origin, signalled their total integration with Indian culture by using Sanskrit on their coinage!

Chandragupta-II’s coinage has a typical portrait of the king facing right with corrupt Greek legends on the obverse and the reverse has a three-arched hill surmounted by a crescent and a wavy line below and a sun on its right.

The Western Kshatrapas progressed to using dates in Shaka era beginning in 78 A.D. for the first time under the Kshatrapa ruler Rudrasimha I making it the first Indian coinage to do so and hence its exact dating is possible.
The Western Kshatrapa coins also use two types of titles viz. Kshatrapa and Mahakshatrapa depending on the King’s stature/achievements and detail the patrilineage of the king.
For e.g. Chastana’s illustrious grandson, Rudradaman I (r. 130-150 A.D.) issued a coin with the title read as “Rajno Kshatrapasa Jayadamaputrasa Mahakshatrapasa Rudradamasa’ in Brahmi script translated as Kshatrapa Jayadaman’s son Mahakshatrapa Rudradaman. The titles, Mahakshatrapa and Kshatrapa are also used to denote the king and the crown prince as many kings have coins with both titles issued by them. These features have thus helped numismatists trace the exact lineage of the Western Kshatrapas with exact dates.

The rise of Deccan and Tamil Nadu (300 B.C. - 225 A.D.)
Ancient South India was divided into two culturally and politically distinct regions of Dakshinapatha (Dakshina, a word derived from Dakhina which is again derived from Deccan) and Tamil Desha (modern Tamil Nadu and parts of Kerala).
The Satavahanas (Andhras) began their rule as vassals of Mauryans and after the Mauryan decline in 180 B.C. as vassals to their successors, the Shungas (185 B.C.-75 B.C.) and the Kanvas (75 B.C.-25 B.C.) The Satavahanas saw series of upheavals under around 30 kings listed in the Puranas such as gain of Ujjain after death of the last Kanva king, Susharman probably assassinated by his Satavahana vassal and the loss of Ujjain to Shakas later; the loss of Western India to Shakas and gain of newer territories in Andhra Pradesh under Gautamiputra Satakarni.
Their history as per numismatics is divided into an early and late phase with different type of coinages.
The early phase coinage is marked by the use of base metals to mint coins which had the legend ‘Satavahana’ or ‘Satakarni’ inscribed in Prakrit language using Brahmi script as ‘Satakanisa’ or ‘Sata’ with an animal or stupa image on the obverse with a typical symbol called ‘Ujjaini symbol’ (consisting of a cross joining four circles) on the reverse.
The later phase had a brilliant coinage in silver beginning under Gautamiputra Satakarni (107 A.D.–130 A.D.) who expanded the Satavahana realm further south and came in conflict with the Western Kshtrapa ruler, Nahapana defeating him and usurping his kingdom in 125 A.D. Gautamiputra’s silver coins were inspired by the Western Kshatrapa coinage and have the king’s portrait on the obverse with Prakrit legend written in Brahmi and the Ujjain symbol with the three-arched hill with crescent on the reverse with early Telugu legends in Brahmi. The legends have matrilinear names of the kings like Gautamiputra, Madhariputra, Vasisthiputra, etc. indicating a matriarchal society.
This trend of silver portrait coins were continued by his successors, viz. Vasisthiputra Pulumavi (131 A.D. – 159 A.D.), Vasisthiputra Shiva Satakarni (159 A.D. – 166 A.D.) till the last effective Satavahana emperor, Yajna Sri Satakarni (r. 167A.D. – 196 A.D.)
Vasisthiputra Pulumavi also introduced a unique lead coin with the portrait of a double-masted ship indicating the importance of maritime trade for generation of revenue for Satavahanas as well as the technological advances made by Indian seafarers.
Another feature of Satavahana coinage arising from archaeological excavations has been the discovery of different types of local coinage in base metals issued by Satavahana rulers for various cities like their western capital Pratisthana (Paithan), Newasa (Ahmednagar district), Junnar, etc. These findings indicate that Satavahanas issued a baser coinage for local use to supplement either the Mauryan Karshapanas that continued to be used long after their issue or Roman gold coins that have been found in large quantities in South India as the primary currency.
Other areas beyond Satavahanas’ western empire (parts of modern Maharashtra (Kolhapur region), Karnataka, coastal Andhra Pradesh) were ruled by local administrators appointed by Ashoka known as Mahaarathis (Maharashtriyas), Mahaatalavaras and Mahaasenapatis who set up their own kingdoms and began issuing their own coinage around second century B.C. These feudatories were subdued by Gautamiputra Satkarni in the middle of 2nd century A.D. and brought under the Satavahana rule.
Thus, a Maharathi family called Sadakana issued their coins from Banavasi (Mysore-Kanara region), another family called Anandas also issued a typical lead coinage with images of a six-arched hill with Brahmi legends with the King’s name on the obverse and a tree-in-railing and Nandipada (a symbolic representation of Shiva’s vehicle Nandi) from Karwar.
The Tamil Desha was divided into three regions ruled by separate dynasties, the Pandyas (central Tamil Nadu), Cholas (eastern Tamil Nadu) and Cheras (Kerala and parts of Coimbatore and Salem districts) in the last three centuries before Christ. The coins used in this region were Mauryan punch-marked coins which were supported later by Pandyan punch-marked coins as evident by finding of a hoard that had worn-out Mauryan coins along with newer Pandyan coins in Bodinayakanur in Tamil Nadu in the nineteenth century.
The Pandyan punch-marked coins had a reverse stamp of stylised fish that became a heraldic symbol for the Pandyans and weighed only 1.5 gms (about half of Mauryan Karshapana) with five distinct symbols on the obverse.
The earliest Chera coins were in copper with a heraldic symbol of ‘bow and arrow’ and the other side had an elephant carrying a standard (an ancient banner with symbols of the ruling dynasty).
Cholas issued square copper coins with images of a standing tiger with upraised tail and without inscriptions.
However, after the beginning of the Christian era, Tamil Desha saw a huge influx of Roman silver and gold coins due to the Indo-Roman spice trade. Pliny the Elder, (renowned Roman Senator who wrote a famous encyclopedia on ancient Rome called ‘Naturalis Historia’ which forms an important reference book on Roman history) famously lamented about this vicious trade that drained Roman gold into India. These coins were converted into local coinage by deeply incising the Roman Emperor’s portrait and counter-striking them with local symbols.

The Gupta Age (320 A.D. – 550 A.D.)
North India witnessed the rise of the Gupta dynasty in the early fourth century of the Christian era with the rise of Chandra Gupta I (r. 320 - 335 A.D.) at Pataliputra in 320 A.D. He was aided by his marriage to an influential Licchavi princess, Kumaradevi, an alliance which helped him overcome his regional adversaries.
His successor, Samudra Gupta (r. 335 – 380 A.D.) took the empire to further heights by invading South India and annihilating all neighbouring kingdoms on the way. Apart from his coinage, Samudra Gupta’s martial exploits are well-documented as inscriptions on the famous Prayag Prashasti (Allahabad Pillar) by his friend and court-poet, Harishena.

Skanda Gupta issued many beautiful types of coins especially the King-Lakshmi type where Goddess Lakshmi is shown to bestow victory upon the king

Samudra Gupta was also the chief architect of a prolific coinage in gold for general usage and began his reign by issuing a commemorative coin in honour of his parents’ marriage. The coin had an image of a couple with Brahmi legends ‘Chandra’ and ‘Kumaradevi’ in Gupta Brahmi script.
Samudra Gupta initiated a new gold coin prototype, named the ‘standard type’ coin by modern numismatists, which was emulated by all later Guptas. The coin has the king’s profile on the obverse making an offering at the fire altar with his right hand. The coin also has a Garuda standard on the right with a legend written vertically below the king’s left arm in Chinese fashion. This prototype is the biggest pointer to the coinage’s derivation from Kushan coinage. The reverse has Goddess Lakshmi’s image with all attendant paraphernalia like cornucopia, lotus, etc. inspired by Kushans’ use of Ardoksho.
Samudra Gupta was a prolific coin issuer and issued six different types of coins apart from the standard type, viz. the archer type, the battle axe (Parashu) type, tiger slayer type, Ashwamedha type and King-Queen type to showcase his martial achievements. He also issued the ‘Lyrist’ (Veena player) type to exhibit his gentler side.
Samudra Gupta fashioned his coinage after the Kushan weight standards which in turn were adopted from the Roman standard of ‘Denarius Aureus’ of eight grams. However, the later Guptas, notably Skanda Gupta (r. 455 - 467 A.D.) issued gold coins of the Suvarna standard weighing 9.2 grams after Indian standards of metrology.
Chandra Gupta II (Vikramaditya) (380 - 415 A.D.) emulated his father’s achievements by subduing the Western Kshatrapas and went on to issue a silver coinage for his western regions specifically fashioned after Western Kshatrapa coinage. His reign was the most prosperous of all rulers as is apparent from the predominance of his coinage in hoard findings.
Kumara Gupta I (Mahendraditya) (r. 415 - 455 A.D.) ruled the Gupta Empire at its zenith; he issued a record fourteen types of coins, the largest by any Gupta emperor. He re-introduced the ‘Tiger slayer’ and ‘Lyrist’ types issued by his grandfather, Samudra Gupta and issued newer types like ‘Rhinoceros slayer’, ‘Peacock rider’ (Karttikeya), ‘Apratigha’ (Parents crowning him), etc.
Skanda Gupta (r. 455 - 467 A.D.) was the ‘last of the Great Guptas’ and braved the attacks of the Hunas from the North vanquishing them. He issued many beautiful types of coins especially the King-Lakshmi type where Goddess Lakshmi bestows victory upon the king.
But the Gupta Empire could not withstand the Hunas’ continued onslaught after Skanda Gupta’s death in 467 A.D. The later rulers like Buddha Gupta (467 - 487 A.D.), Narasimha Gupta (Baladitya), Kumara Gupta II continued to fight till the last Gupta ruler, Vishnu Gupta (r. 540 - 550 A.D.) was confined to Kannauj as a local ruler.
Thus, the Gupta coinage set high standards in terms of quality and artistic beauty that brought Indian coinage at par with the coinage of other classical cultures like the Roman Empire, the Sassanid Empire of the Middle East and the Han dynasties of China. The Guptas also set an example for all later rulers who tried to issue similar coins in the post-Gupta period, an influence which was seen till the later day Mughal era in the sixteenth century as gold ashrafis of Akbar and Jehangir!

(This article is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Parmeshwari Lal Gupta, the doyen of Indian Numismatics whose iconic book “Coins” has been the Dronacharya to hundreds of Eklavyas like me.)

To be continued
The writer is a multidisciplinary professional and dabbles in medicine, journalism, teaching and numismatics. He is currently pursuing his Masters in Numismatics and Archaeology from the Mumbai University.

Contact the Writer .