note on the history of the east india company coinage from 1753-1835 / by edgar thurston
TRANSCRIPT
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7/25/2019 Note on the history of the East India Company coinage from 1753-1835 / by Edgar Thurston
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7/25/2019 Note on the history of the East India Company coinage from 1753-1835 / by Edgar Thurston
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7/25/2019 Note on the history of the East India Company coinage from 1753-1835 / by Edgar Thurston
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/
OT
ON THE
HISTORY
OF
THE
EAST INDIA
COMPANY
COINAGE
From 1753-1833,
By
EDG R
THURSTON
When I
was
engaged in c o l lec t ing material for my
Hist o ry
o f t he
Coinage o f t he Territories of t he East India Company i n t he Indian
Peninsula, and
Catalogue
o f t he coins in t he Madras Museum,'* t he
records o f t he Madras Mi nt wer e placed at my disposal by t he Madras
Government,
and I expressed a h o pe that some o ne wo u ld eventually
explore
t he ar ch ives o f t he Calcutta and Bombay Mints wi t h a
view
to
clearing
up
many
obscure
points
in
t he
history
o f
t h e c o i nage
o f
t he
Company, wh i c h constitutes a compli cated
branch of modern
numis
matics.
My head-quarters
having,
by
t he fortune of s e r v i c e ,
been t em
porarily transferred f r o m Madras
t o Calcutta, t he opportuni ty
has
been
taken
advantage
o f t o
examine
t he
records
o f t he Calcutta Mint
; and
f a c i l i t i e s
for
carrying
o ut t he research i n
my
spare moments were
courteously
given
t o me by Col onel Baird, F.
R.
S . , Master o f t he
Mint,
to
whom
I
have t o express my
great indebtedness.
The Calcutta Mint C o m m i t t e e Proceedings wh i c h are preserved i n
t he Cal cu t ta Mint, commence with t he year 1792 (mo re than thirty years
after t he establishment o f t he
Calcutta
Mint), and a r e , wi t h ver y f ew
exceptions,
continuous
t o 1835, where
my
investigations ceased,
as
t he
history
o f t he Company's coinage
. a f t e r that
year,
in
wh i c h a general
British
currency was established, i s no longer veiled
in
doubt and
obscurity.
Of
t he
Calcutta Mint Records f r o m
t he
establishment
o f t he
Mint
in
1760 t o 1792, I
have been unable t o f i n d
any t r a c e , and t h i s
i s t he
more
t o be
regretted,
since t he history o f the coinage during
t h i s
*
Madras
Government
P r e ss , 1 8 0 0 .
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2
History o f
t h e East
India
Company
Coinage.
period i s beset with d i f f i c u l t i e s , t he pr o b lem being, as po int ed o ut by
Dr. Stanley Lane-Poole* to determine
where
t he nat ive coinage ends and
t he Company's begins.
1753. In a despatch
to t he
Court o f Directors dat ed 12t h Febru
a r y , 1753, i t i s
mentioned
that t he u t m o s t
alcutta. J . . , ,
secrecy
was
necessary
with
reference
to
t he
establishment of a m i nt at
Cal c ut t a, as
any attempt to
e f f e c t
an ar
rangement
wi th
t he Nawab wo u ld be immediately overset
by Juggut
Sing.
A
vakil was
entrusted and
consulted,
who said that hi s master,
Hackem
Beg, had a
so n in great
power
a t Delhi, who m ig h t
be
able
to get
a
phirmaund f r o m t he
king
; but that
t h i s w o u l d
b e at t ended at
least
with
t he expense of 100,000 rupees, and t h a t , o n t he
arrival
of
t he phirmaund at Cossimbazar, i t wo u ld cost another 100,000 rupees
to
t he m ut s uddy s and diwans o f t he Nawab
to
put t he p h i r m aund
in
f o r c e .
1759-60. The establishment o f a mint at Calcutta f i n a l l y
t o o k
place
in
1759 or
1760,
and
t he
following i s
a
translation
o f t he par-
wana
: To
t he
noblest
of
merchants,
t he
English
Company,
be
t he
royal favour.
In
Calcutta
a
m int
i s
established.
Tou
s h a l l
coin
gold
and s i l v e r o f
equal
value
and
fineness wi th the ashrafees
and
rupees o f
Murshidabad in t he name o f Calcutta.
In
t he suburbs o f
Bangala,
Bihar,
and
Orissa,
they s h a l l
be
current,
and
no
person shall demand
o r i n s i s t u p o n a discount upon them. Dated t he 11th o f t he moon
Zihada in t he 4t h year.
1792. In 1792 a C o m m i t t e e was constituted in Calcutta by order
_
of
t he Governor-General, Earl Cornwallis, for
Bengal.
.
, ...
superintending t he m ints and enquiring into
t he
general st ate o f t he coinage i n Bengal, Bihar,
and Orissa. Among
t he
instructions
given t o
t he
C o m m i t t e e were :
1 .
To
enquire
particularly
into t he
cause
o f
t he l i t t l e progress
wh i c h had
been
made
towards t he
establishment
o f the general
currency
o f t he sikka rupees.
2 . To ascertain t he causes
of
t he
batta
o r discount that
had
f r e
quently been
levied o n
t he exchange o f a go ld mohar f o r s i l v e r .
3 . To report whether i t
w o u l d
be advisable to declare t he go ld
mohars,
and t he
multiples
t h e r e o f , legal tender of payment in t he
three provinces in a l l transactions,
public
and private, a t t he value at
wh i c h they were then received and paid
at
t he
general treasury
and i n
a l l private
transactions.
* C a t a l o g u e
o f
c o i n s
o f
t h e
Moghul
Emperors,
1 8 9 2 .
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4
History o f
t h e East
India
Oompany
Coinage.
r e c e i p t s ,
debased
t he
coin
t o 24
and 3 2 chauwals. The
m int records
were
burnt by
Balwant Singh, and no
records
were
kept
i n t he m in t
until
t he 17th year o f t he reign o f Shah 'Alam
(1776).
The farmers
carried
away their
books
in
order
to
conceal
t he
p r o f i t s
they reaped
f r o m debasing t he c o i n s . The system o f farm ing o ut t he mints, f i r s t
adopted by Ratan Chand, Diwan to Farrukhsiyar, at length intro
duced t he c u s t o m
of
changing t he value o f t he rupee every year.
Th ose who had payments
to
make
were
consequently
obliged
t o carry
their old rupees
to t he m in t to
have
them re-coined
into
sikkas,
t he
name given
t o
t he rupees
o f
t he c ur rent year. Previous
t o t he 10th
year
of t he
reign
o f Shah
'Alam
(1769), t he new
coined sikka rupee,
after
circulating twelve months, f e l l 3 per
c e n t . ,
and at
t he
expiration
o f
two
years
2
per
c e n t ,
more,
at
wh i c h
value
i t
continued
under
t he
denomi
nation
sanwat.'
On t he 6t h August,
1771,
this
usage
was
abolished
by
t he
British
Government, who resolved t hat t he sikkas coined i n t he
1 0t h year o f t he reign should be considered as sanwats, and t hat t ho se
coined i n t he 11th and a l l subsequent years should pass i n payment at
t he same value as t he sikkas o f t he
current
year.
From t he beginning o f t he 4t h t o t he end o f
t he
6t h and l a s t year
(1754) o f
Ahmad
Shah t he
m in t
was under t he charge o f
Agha
Asad
Beg,
Kiladar
o r Governor
o f t he
F o r t
of Chunar. The assay o f t he
rupees
was f r o m
26
t o
3 2 chauwals.
At
t he
commencement
o f
t he
reign
o f
'Alamgfr
II
(1754)
t he
m in t
f e l l to t he Vi zier Shuja'ud-daulah.
Du r i ng t he
1st
and 2nd
years
t he
assay o f t he
rupees
was f ro m 26 t o 28 chauwals.
In
t he
3 rd
year
Shuja'nd-daulah
made over t he
mint
t o hi s brother-in-law, Mirza
'AH
Khan, who farmed i t t o Subhdw Chand. The assay o f t he rupees was
f r o m 24 t o 3 2 c hauwal s. In t he 4t h year t he m int was farmed to t he
agent o f an em inent Benares
banker,
and t he rupees were debased to
64 chauwals and, for t he f i r s t time, half a r a t f
in
weight.
Raja
Balwant
Singh
refused to receive them
i nt o hi s treasury. . In t he 5 t h year t he
rupees were raised
t o
their
proper
weight
o f
9 m ash as,
7 r a t i s
(o r
63 2
chauwals),
but
continued
at
t he
debased
standard
of
40
and
48
chauwals.
In t he 6t h and l a s t year
o f t he rei gn t he rupees were debased to 100
5 3 5
95
cbauwals assay ( i . e . s i l v e r and alloy) and half a r a t i
in
weight .
In t he 1st
year
o f t he
reign
o f Shah 'Alam, Shuja'ud-daulah ap
pointed
a
person o n his
own
part t o superintend t he
coinage,
and
t he rupee was restored t o i t s f o rme r weight, (9m. 7 r . ) and t o 26 c h a uwa ls
assay. Du r i ng t he 2nd t o 8 t h year s t h e assay remained at 40 chauwals.
In t he l a t t e r year (1767)
Shuja'ud-daulah, at
t he rec o mmendat i on o f
L o rd C l i v e , resolved t o reform t he c o i n . The Benares mint
was,
ac
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History o f t h e East India Company Coinage,
5
cordingly, c o m m i t t e d t o t he care o f Mirza Hasan, who engaged
to
restore
t he
rupees
t o their proper
weight
and
standard.
A Delhi rupee
of
t he 18th year o f Muhammad Shah was
sent as
a sample for t he new
coinage. This
rupee was
22
chauwals
f i n e ,
but, being wo rn,
had l o s t 2
chauwals
i n weight. The
new rupees were,
i n
consequence, 2 chauwals
d e f i c i e n t ,
and f ro m that t i m e
t he
Benares rupees
continued at 9m .
6 r .
6
c h . ,
being
2 chauwals l e s s than t he
original
weight o f 9m. 7 r .
In
t he
9t h year
t he
mint was
fanned t o Monsieur Gentillo, t he
French
Agent
at Shuja'ud-daulah's c o u r t ,
and t he
same assay
(22 chauwals)
was
con-
tinned
until t he 15th
year
(1774).
A
considerable portion o f t he rupees
issued in t he 16t h year c o nt ai ned o nl y 5 o z . of s i l v e r , to 10| o z . of
copper.
In
t he 17t h
year
o f
t he
reign
o f
Shah
'Alam
(1776) t he
m in t
was transferred by t he Company
to
Chait
Singh,
who
engaged
t o c o in
rupees o f
9m. 9 r . 6
c h . ,
weight and
18 chauwals
f i n e , and
to
continue
t he die
o f t he
17th san,
in
order
to
put an end
to t he confusion i n
t he
currency occasioned by t he constant alteration
o f t he value of
t he
c o i n .
Al l rupees, therefore, t he
Records
s t a t e ,
coined
in t he Benares
mint since
t he 17th year o f t he present reign,
ought
to
be
o f t he same
weight
and
standard, and to pass c urr ent as sikkas* o f
the
present
year. The rupees current in t he d i s t r i c t of Benares may, therefore,
be classed as
sanwat
and sikka, t he f o rme r coined under t he Mughal
Princes,
and
t he
l a t t e r
since
t he
17th
year
of
t he r ei gn
of
Shah
A l a m ,
when
t he mint was ceded t o t he Company by t he Vizier, and by them
transferred
t o Chait Singh.
The following
table gives informati on as to
t he assays,
weights,
and
names of t he rupees
coined
at t he
Benares mi nt f r o m
i t s establish
ment
to 1782
:
* P r e v i o u s t o
t h e
time o f Farrnkhsiyar
a l l
r u p e e s c o i n e d
under
t h e r e i g n i n g
king
were c o n s i d e r e d a s
s i k k a s , and
p a s s e d
a t t h e i r
o r i g i n a l v a l u e d u r i n g
h i s
l i f o .
At t h e
a c c e s s i o n o f a new k i n g ,
t h e
r u p e e s o f
t h e
former r e i g n were s u b j e c t t o a
b a t t a ,
and
were
n o t
r e c e i v e d
i n t o
t h e
r o y a l
t r e a s u r y .
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T h eu p e e s
f
h et hot he a r s
fA l a m g i rI
e r ea l l e dr i s u l i s
f r o ma v i n g
h er i s u l
r
i n d ur i d e n t
t a m p e dp o n
h e m .
T h e
u p e e sf
h es tot he a r se r ea l l e dh u m k ao h a r s h a h i s ;
t h u m k a
i g n i f y i n gm a l ln do h a r
h a h
e i n gh ea m e
fh a h
A l a m
p r e v i o u soi sc c e s s i o noh eh r o n e .
Ia l l e dh a u r arr o a d
o h a r s h a h i s
oi s t i n g u i s h
h e mr o m
h e
h u m k ar
m a l l
n e s ,h i c hh u j a u d - d a u l a h
t
h ee s i r efo r d C l i v e
1r d e r e d
o
ei s c o n t i n u e d .
S i k k au p e e sfh ea m ee i g h tn di n e n e s sn dh i c hu g h toa s s
c u r r e n t
th oa m e
a l u e .
h e yr ei s t i n g u i s h e d
l s oy
h e
p p e l l a t i o n
o fa c h h l i d a r
r o m
h e
e a d
f
i s he i n g
t a m p e d
p o n
h e m .
R e m a e k s .
C a l l e d
h a r d a r
r o ma r k
r
r a n c h
a r k e d
n
h e
o i n .
C a l c u t t a
W e i g h t .
C h .
4
4
6
E
7
2 8
7
V
M . 2 8
9
9
9 1 0 . 9
B e n a r e s
W e i g h t .
C h .
: : :
. . .
4
. e
B
7
: : :
2
7
2
7 2
M .
9
. . . . . .
9 9
9
9
9
A s s a y .
1
1
2
2
1
2 4
j
2
3 2 2 2
)2
2
14
I2
2 4
\0 12
)4
18 0
2
4 0
2
2 2
2 2 2 2
2 8
2
M u h a m m a d
h a h .
A h m a dh a h .
1 s t
e a r
2 t h
. .
2 t h
1 . h
E k i g n .
1 5 t ho
n de a r s
2 3 t h2 t h
2 9 t h0 t h
2 n dot he a r s
2 t hot he a r s
A L A M G f EI .
1 s tn dn de a r s
4 t h
. .
S h a hAa m .
1 s t
e a r
2 n dot he a r s
2 t h
8 t h
1 1 t he a r
1 3 t h
o
4 t he a r s
1 5 t h
t h
1 7 t h2 t h
2 t he a r
3 r de a r
O S
*
e g u l a t i o n,2 1 ,e f e r s
o
h u r s h a h c er
i r s o o l e e
u p e e s .
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History o f t h e
East
India Company
Coinage.
7
The
f a c t i s incidentally
mentioned
t h a t , when t he Shahzadd (Shah
'Alam) invaded Bihar,
t he
m int
accompanied
him, and
a
large quantity
of
Benares
rupees
were melted down and coined
into
rikabees
( r i k d b ,
a stirrup)
wh i c h
were l r . 2ch.
d e f i c i e n t
in
weight,
and of
64 chauwals
assay, but
were made t o pass in t he camp as sikkas o f t he established
weight
and f i n e n e s s . I t i s also noted that t wo l a c s o f rupees
were
annually melted down for t he manufacture o f t he laces and rich
s t u f f s
for wh i c h Benares was celebrated.
From Mr. B ar l o w's sket c h t h e f o l lo wi ng
account
of t he coinage of
copper has been derived.
The
pice current i n t he city and d i s t r i c t
of
Benares previous
to
the establishment o f t he mint , were m ost ly coined at
Gorakhpur
in
Oudh
f r o m
c opper
brought
f r o m
t he
northern
h i l l s .
The
f i r s t
coinage
o f
pice
a t
Benares was
i n
t he
23rd year of the
reign o f Muhammad
Shah
(1742), when
100 maunds weight
were struck
with
t he
die
of t he
sikka
rupee.
Prom
that period t i l l
t he 4t h
year
of t he r ei gn o f Shah
'Alam (1762),
no pice were
coined in t he Benares
mint.
In t he 5 t h
year t he farmer o f t he m int purchased
s o me
English copper, and coined
i t into pice o f 10 m ash as st am ped with t he die o f Gorakhpur. The
number exchanged for a r up ee was 45 t o 4 8 . The coinage of pice was
again discontinued until
t he
17th year (1776), when i t was re-established
by permission
of
Raja Chait Singh. The new pice were 10m. 3 r . in
weight,
and
passed
current
at
about
5 0
o r
51
t o
t he
rnpee.
In
t ho
following year a quantity
o f
copper
was
brought
t o Benares
f r o m
Calcutta, and
t he
coining
o f
pice and
exclusivo privilege of
buying and
selling copper
in Benares granted to
o ne Kashmiri
Mall f o r Rs .
5 , 0 0 0 .
The weight o f t he coins continued t o be
10m. 3 r . and
they
passed
i n
t he bazar at
abo ut 5 2 o r 5 3
per
rupee. In
t he
19th and
20th years
t he coinage
was
declared f r e e , and
those who
brought c opper received
pice in return, after
paying d u t i e s .
In t he 21st
year (1779)
a consider
able
revolution
t o o k .pl ac e i n t he c opper coinage. The Nawab Vizier
issued orders t o t he o f f i c e r s o f t he Allahabad m int t o reduce t ho weight
of t he pice t o 9m. 2 r . The merchants, finding that their maund o f
copper yielded 3,650 pice at Allahabad and only 3,250 at Benares,
carried a l l their c opper t o t he f or mer p l a c e . The coinage o f pice was,
consequently,
at
a stand s t i l l only 29
maunds
being coined during t he
year. Large quantities o f t he
new
Allahabad pice were
brought
by
merchants t o
Benares.
Raja
Chait Singh
at f i r s t refused t o
authorise
their
currency,
but
at length
gave hi s
consent,
and
t he Allahabad
pice
of 9m . 3 r . were
declared
current, and
ordered
t o be received i n
payment
i n common wi t h t he o ld
pice
of
10m.
S r .
The
result was that t he
bankers
contrived
t o
lower
t he
value
o f
t he
pice altogether,
and wer e
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8
History of t h e East India Company Coinage.
assisted
in so
doing by large importations f r o m Allahabad.
In the
22nd
year Raja Chait Singh ordered pice
t o
be coined
of t he
same s i z e
and weight
as t he Allahabad p i c e ,
and t h i s contributed greatly
t o
over
st o c ki ng t he c i r c u l a t i o n .
In
t he
23rd
and
24th
years, after
t he
expul
sion
o f Chait Si ngh , t he
same weight
(9m.
2 r . )
was continued,
and
t he
price o f
pice
continued to f a l l
until
t he famine i n t he
next
year, when
they sold at thirteen for
a
rupee.
In
t he
27th
year t he Resident
at
Benares
ordered that no
pice
should
be
issued f r o m t he m i nt u nder
10m. 3 r . and that Gorakhpur p i c e , weighing 10m. to 10m. 3 r . and
Benares p i c e , wei gh i ng 1 0m . 3 r . should pass at t he same value. The
price
immediately
rose
to
5 8 per
rupee.
In t he 28th year (1787),
when
i t
was
supposed
that s u f f i c i e n t new
pice had been coined for t he c i t y
o f
Benares, t he
Gorakhpur
pice
were
forbidden,
and
only
t he
new
Benares
pice stamped
with
a t r i s i i l
( t r i d e n t ) ,
and
weighing
f r o m
10m.
to
10m. 3 r . and
t he
Gorakhpur
p i c e , re-stamped
and
no t
under
10m.
in
weight,
were declared current.
As regards
t he go ld coinage at t he Benares
mint,
i t i s stated that
t he go l d
was
assayed
there
by t o u c h o n a species o f t he salgram* stone
so
celebrated
in
t he sast ras o f t he
Hindus.
Upon c o mpar ing t he
Calcutta wi th t he Benares gold
mohars,
i t was f ound (178 7) t hat t he
f or mer was about
Rs.
2-1-6 better than t he l a t t e r , i .
e . ,
R. 1-14-9 in
weight and As 2-9
i n assay.
I t was suggested, therefore,
that
t he
Benares
mohar
should
be
raised
to
t he
same
weight
and
standard
as
t he Calcutta
mohar.
1792.
On
June
2 6 ,
1792, t h e f o l l owi ng
regulations
were submitted,
among o thers, f or
t he
consideration
o f
t he
sh?daaCbld.Patna, MUr'
Governor General
I . That t he
rupees
coined
th r ough ou t
Bengal, Bihar, t and t he
d i s t r i c t
of Benares, be o f t he
same
weight,
standard, s i z e
and
impression (the
rupee
o f t he 19t h san
then
coined
at Calcutta).
I I . That t he m in ts o f Dacca, Patna and Murshidabad be re
established.
I I I . That o ne species
of
c opper c o i n
be
declared current t hr o ugh
o ut t he
Company's dominions.
In
August,
1792, i t was n o t i f i e d
that directions
had
already
been
given by
t he
Governor General for
t he
re-establishment o f
t he
mints
at
Dacca,
Patna, and
Murshidabad ;
and
in t he
same
m on th, t he
follow-
* Salagrama s t o n e s
a r e
f o s s i l ammonites,
w h i c h ,
a s worshipped by
t h e
Hindus,
a r e c ommonly p e r f o r a t e d by
h o l e B
b e l i e v e d t o have
been made
by
V i s h n u .
+ I h a v e , f o r c o n v e n i e n c e , adopted a
uniform s p e l l i n g
o f
t h e
names, o f p l a c e s ,
e .
g . ,
B i h a r
and Murshidabad
i n s t e a d
o f
Behar and
Moorshcdabad.
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History
of
t h e East India Company Coinage.
)
i ng propositions were, among others,
made
by t he Calcutta mint Com
mittee,
with a
view
t o
drawing
t he old and l ight c oi ns
into t he mints,
and
establishing
the general currency
o f t he
sikka rupee :
I .
That after
April
10th, 1794,
only
t he
san 19 sikka
rupees
bo
received at t he
public
t r e a s u r i e s ,
o r
issued therefrom
;
I I .
That
public notice
be given
that Government,
wi th a
view
to
enabling
individuals to get their
old
coin o r bullion converted into
sikka
rupees
without
delay, have
established
m in ts
at
Dacca, Patna
and Murshidabad in addition t o t he m int at Calcutta;
I I I . That t he rupees coined at Dacca,
Patna
and Murshidabad,
be made precisely of t he same shape, weight and standard a s t he
19 san sikka rupees coined at Cal c ut ta, i n order
that
t he rupees struck
at
t he
several
m in ts
m i gh t
no t
be
recognisable
f r o m
each
o t h e r ,
and
m ig h t
be
received and paid indiscriminately ;
IV.
That
t he
dies
be made
o f t he
same s i z e as t he
c o i n ,
and that
t he coins be
milled
;
V. That
t he hijrah
year
be
omitted, as
t he insertion of
i t ,
by
sh owing
t he
year
in wh i c h t he rupees were struck,
w o u l d
defeat t he
object of Government i n continuing t he
19th
san u p o n t he c o i n s .
The e a r l i e s t weekly account o f t he new Da c c a mint
wh i c h
I have
been
able
t o f i n d , i s
dated
11th August, 1792,
Dacca
o n w h i c h day t ho Assay
Master
also submit ted
to
t he
Calcutta
Mint
C o m m i t t e e
t he
accounts
o f
t he
preceding
three
months, and
promised
i n future t o f o rwar d a
weekly
account.
On 23rd O ct o ber , 1792, t he Assay Master o f t he Mu rs h ida bad m in t
reported
that
he was erecting
workshops,
e t c . ,
Murshidabad.
&t t he
Dutoll
Factory, and h oped t o begin
coin
i ng
by t he end o f t he
following
week.
The opening
o f t he
mint
was
announced
t o t ho
Governor General
in a
l e t t e r
dated
December,
1792.
1793. On 24th February, 1793,
the
Assay Master o f t he Patna
mint
announced t o t he
Calcutta
Mint C o m m i t t ee
Patna.
everything
wo u ld
be
ready
by
t he
end
o f
t he month for t he c o i ni ng o f f i v e
l a c s
monthly.
In
1793 a
regulation* was passed, by wh i c h t he gold and s i l v e r
coin i n
Bengal,
Bihar, and Orissa was reformed,
Bengal. e cnrrenCy
0f
any g 0 ] t j or s i ] V e r coin
in
these
provinces,
but
t he
19th san
gold mohar
and
19th
san sikka
rupee,
and their respective divisions into halves and quarters, was prohibited.
* S o o P r i n s o p , I n d i a n A n t i q u i t i e s , and T h u r s t o n , H i s t o r y o f t h o Coinage o f t h e
East
I n d i a
Company.
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10
History of
t h e East India Company
Oo i a g e .
1795. In a m i nu t e dated 2nd
October,
1795, t he defective
state
of t he
copper
coinage i n Bengal
was
dealt
with,
Bengal.
a n ( j
^e
principles u p o n whicli
t he copper currency
was
regulated
under
Native
administration,
and
t he
rules
that
had
been prescribed
regarding
i t by t he
British
Government were noted.
Under t he Mogul administration, t he m i nu t e s t a t e s ,
t he s i l v e r c o i n
was t he only measure o f value and legal tender o f payments.
G o ld
mohurs and pice were struck at t he m in ts for t he convenience o f indi
viduals, who carried gold or c opper t o bo c onvert ed into those c o i n s .
But t he Government never f i x e d t he number o f pice wh i c h should be
equivalent
to
a rupee, any more than t he
number
o f rupees wh i c h should
pass
in exchange
for a gold
m o h u r . From t he
year 1772,
when
t he
m in ts
at
Dac c a, P at na,
and Mu rs hi dab ad
wer e wi t hdrawn, no
pice
were
coined in t he Provinces until 1783,
when
a
contract was
concluded
with
Mr. Prinsep for
coining
pice o n
account
o f
t he Go ver nm ent . Th ese
pice were of fo ur descriptions,
v i z . , wh ole o r
pucka, weighing
20
annas,
half p i c e ,
quarters and eighths.
These
pice were
issued
by t he Govern
ment
at
t he
rate
o f
3 2
pu cka p i c e ,
64
h a l f ,
128
quarter p i c e , and 25G
eighth pice
for t he sikka rupee.
At a c o u n c i l , over wh i c h Si r John Shore, Governor General, pre
s i d e d , held o n 2nd October, 1795, i t was considered expedient t hat t here
should o nl y be t wo descriptions o f copper c o i n , a wh ol e and half p i c e ,
to
pass
at
t he
value
of
a
quarter
and
an
eighth
o f
an
anna
respectively.
I t was, accordingly, resolved
that
a Regulation
sho ul d b e
framed, and
published
for t he establishment o f a
new
c opper
coinage*
for Bengal
Bihar, and Orissa. Among
t he
provisions o f
this Regulation were :
I . That people
i n a l l
parts
o f t he c ountry
be apprised
o f t he
value
at wh i c h
t he
coin was
issued by Go ver nm ent , and t o
be
received and
paid by
t he public
and
individuals
;
I I . That t he
value
be inscribed
o n o ne
surface i n Persian, Bangali
and
Nagarihe charac ters used i n business i n t h e P ro vi nc es
;
I I I . That t he coin
be
declared
legal
tender o f payment f or f rac
tions
o f
half
a
rupee
;
IV. That t he coin be struck at t he Calcutta mint, and no t at t he
three City mints.
The Governor General
approved
o f samples o f t he new pice and
half
pice
in
November, 1795, and
orders
were
issued
t o coin an equal
value o f
t he
t wo c o i n s , until i t was
ascertained
wh i c h was l i k e l y t o be
in t he
greatest demand. A
week
l a t e r , however,
t he
Governor
General,
understanding
t hat t he r e l a t i v e values of t he wh ole
and
hal f pi ce
wo u ld
The
e x i s t i n g
p i o c e
was
known
M
t h e
C a l c u t t a , o r
P r i n s e p s
p i c e .
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History o f
t h e East
India
Company
Coinage.
11
be
best understood
by
t he Natives, especially t he lower orders,
by
substituting ek
pai sikka
and adha
pai
sikka for paun ana and
(the
inscriptions
originally ordered) reso lved that instructions for
altering
t he
inscriptions
be
issued t o t he Mint
Master.
Towards t he end o f 1795 trouble was caused by t he debased
quality o f t he go ld m o har s issued f r o m t he
8hidAbddPatna'
Dacca'
Patna'
and Murshidabad mints, and by
t he rupees
issued
f r o m t he P at na and
Mursh id
abad m i nt s b ei ng bel ow sikka standard. I t was, after
enquiry
into t he
matter, resolved
that
the
coinage
o f
gold
at
t he Pat na m i nt should be
for t he t i m e
discontinued,
and t h a t , for
t he
present, no more coins
should be
struck
at
t he
Murshidabad mint. In
t he
course
o f
t he
c or
respondence
relating
to
t he
debased
coinage,
reference
i s
made
t o
t he
distinguishing
marks
of t he three mints, but, for precaution's
sake,
t he nature o f
these
private marks
(recognisable wi th a
lens) i s no t
mentioned.
1796. In
February, 1796, i t was resolved that a l l t he gold bullion
sent t o t he Cal cut ta m int should, until further
Bengal. orders, b e c o ined into
quarter
mohars, inasmu ch
as t hese coins were in
much
greater req ues t
among
t he lower orders
than t he gold coins o f higher value.
In April 1796,
in consequence
o f a
report f r o m t he
Mint Master,
t h at c o nsi der ab le
l o s s
would
be
sustained
anuually
i f
Government
adhered t o t hei r o ri ginal intention o f coining
t he
who le pice
at
16
annas and
t he
half pi ce
at
8 annas sikka weight, Government was
reduced
to t he
alternative
o f relinquishing t he
establishment
o f t ho
new c opper coinage
altogether,
o r
reducing i t s value.
I t
was
accord
ingly resolved that t he
coining
of wh ole pice o f 1 2 annas
and
half
pice
o f
6 annas
sikka weight, be commenced immediately. The
Mint
Master, however, r epo rt ed t hat dies c o u ld no t be made for pice o f
smaller diameter than those then in u s e ,
as there w o u l d
no t be
a
s u f f i c i e n t
body
o f
metal
t o yield
a
bold impression. I t was thereupon
ordered t h a t , in t he
event
o f i t s
appearing
impracticable t o insert t ho
wh ole o f t he i n s c r i p t i o n , t ho Persian porti on should be omit ted instead
of
t he
Nagari as suggested by t he Mint.
1797. The
coinage
o f money at t he D a c c a and Patna m in ts ceased
o n
31st
January 1797, and December 31st
sh?d bddPatna'
MUr.
1796' 1 , e s P e ( - , t i v e l y - The
date of
t he closing
o f
t he Murshidabad m int I have no t been
able
to
f i n d , but t he
records
o f 1799
make reference
t o
assaying
materials
wh i c h may
be deposited
i n t he
l a t e mint
a t
that s t a t i o n , and t o
t ho
best
means
of
disposing
o f
t he
building
wh i c h
was
f o rmer ly u sed
for
a m int
at
Murshidabad.
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I - J
History
o f t h e East India
Company Coinage.
1800. In
a l e t t e r dated 12th December, 1800, o n t he subjec t o f
t he irregularities at
t he
Benares
mint,
t he
Collector
o f that
city
suggested t he
advisabi
l i t y o f a European being
placed
i n charge o f the mint, and o f having
rupees coined
there o f t he
same
standard
as
t he
Bihar
sikka
rupees.
1801.
In
April
1801, a Committee
was
appointed
to enquire into t he
state o f t he Benares
mint,
and report
o n
t he
Benares
expediency o f continuing
i t .
From t he Com
mittee's report i t appears t h a t , since t he abolition of t he Residency, the
mint had been l e f t witho u t t he superintendence o f a Eur opean o f f i c i a l ,
and
that
t he same species o f g o l d , s i l v e r , and copper coins continued
t o be struck
as at
t he t i me when Mr . B a r l o w
reported
o n t he mint ( p . 54).
In
recommending
a
continuation
o f
t he mi nt , t he
C o m m i t t e e
stated
that
a c o nnex i o n h as
always subsisted
between t he m int and t he
manufac
turers o f
gold
and s i l v e r wire and thread, and
t he
weavers
of ri ch
cloths
and
embroideries made at Benares,
o n wh i c h
t he
prosperity
o f t he
trade
i n these
a r t i c l e s appears so much
t o depend
t h a t ,
in
t he
event
o f t he abolition o f t he mint, t he manufacturers m ig h t require
s o m e similar establishment t o supply i t s place.
In reviewing t he
report
o f t he Committee, t he Governor- General di d no t
think
i t advi
sable
either t o abolish t he
mint,
o r t o a l t e r t he mode
in
wh i c h t he
coinage had been hitherto
conducted,
but ordered t hat t he Agent o f t he
Governor-General,
t he
Magistrate
o f
t he
c i t y ,
and
t he
Collector
o f
t he
Province o f Benares be constituted a p er m anent Co m m i t t ee for t he
superintendence and control o f t he m int .
1802. In
1802
l e t t e r s were received f r o m Madras and Bombay,
f r o m wh i c h i t
appeared
very necessary that a
Bombay, Madras. general reform
o f
their
coinage should
be
carried o u t , and greater uniformity introduced,
so
as
t o relieve
t ho
public
and individuals f r o m
t he inconvenience
arising
f r o m so great
a
variety
o f
c o i n s , and
f r o m so frequent
fluctuations
i n their
values. The
following
plan o f
a new
coinage
was submitted
by t he Calcutta
Mint :
I . That
t he
gold and
s i l v e r
coins
o f Madras, Bombay,
and
t he
Ceded
D i s t r i c t s ,
be
o f t he same
standard and
weight
;
I I . That t he gold mohar (gold rupee)
weigh 18 0
grains t r o y ,
and
contain
168
grains o f gold and 12 grains o f alloy :
I I I . That t he s i l v e r rupee weigh
186
grains t r o y , and contain
173 grains o f s i l v e r and 13 grains o f alloy;
IV.
That fourteen rupees be equal t o , and
pass
for t he gold
m o h u r .
V.
That t he
mohar and rupee o f Bombay
be
divided into
halves,
quarters,
and
eighths
(which
l a s t
c o u ld
be
milled
and
s tamped
without
trouble)
;
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History o f t h e East India Company Coinage.
13
VI. That t he Madras
quarter
mohar pass for 42 s i l v e r fanams,
and
t he
Madras rupee for 12 fanams.
In
t h i s
proposed
c oi nage t he
quarter
gold
mohar
was
of
t he
same
i n t r i n s i c
value
as t he
Madras
star pagoda,
but
t he
rupee was nearly
4 per
c e n t , better than
t he
Madras Arkiit
rupee. The
proposed
new
rupee
was
more than
5 per
c e n t , better than t he Bombay rupee,
wh i c h
had been
adopted f r o m
t he
Surat
Mint.
In a l e t t e r
dated
July,
1803,
stating that t he Governor-General
had i t i n c ontemplation t o establish a c o i nage
Baraili, Allahabad. o fame weight and staudard t hr o ughout
t he p ro vi nc es ceded t o t he Company by t he Nawab Vizier, i t was
announced that a C o m m i t t e e had been appointed f o r t he superintendence
o f
t he
m ints
stablished
at
Baraili
and
Allahabad,
wh i c h
were
to
report
to
Government their suggestions for t he improvement o f
t he
coinage
in
t he ceded provinces. I havo no t
been able t o
ascertain how
long
t he
coinage o f t he
Allahabad m int continued,
but reference
i s
made i n
December,
1805, t o base
coin issued f r o m
t he
mint
at
Allahabad a
short t i me
previously
t o t he
coinage
at
that place.
1803. In
May,
1803,
t he Collector o f
Gorakhpur
stated that
i t
i s
t he
opinion
o f s o m e sensible s h r o f f s
t h a t ,
Gorakhpur. - n e course 0 f j ^ l e ensuing year, i t may
bo
advisable to establish a mi nt at t he t o w n of Gorakhpur. In this case
i t
i s
my
op inion
t hat t he
Lucknow
sikka
rupee
o f
the
28th
san sh o ul d
be gradually introduced as t he standard currency o f Gorakhpur. On
t he other hand, t he s h r o f f s wo u ld greatly
prefer
t he Gorakhpur rupee
because
o f t he advantages always derived
f r o m
t he fluctuation
of
batta
o n rupees o f different standards.
By Regulation XLV, 1803, i t was enacted
Farrukhabad. that-
(Sect. I I . )
A s i l v e r c o i n ,
t o
be denominated
t he Lucknow sikka
rupee of t he
45th
s a n ,
struck
i n
t he
m int o f
Farrukhabad, corresponding
in
weight
and
standard
with
t he
sikka
rupee
at
present
struck
at
Lucknow, i n the
dominions
o f t he
Nawab Vizier, and
thence denomin
ated t he Lucknow rupee, i s hereby declared t o be t he
established
and
legal
s i l v e r coin i n t he pro vi nc es ceded
by
t he
Nawab Vizier
t o t he
English East
India
Company.
(Sect. IV.) A mint shall be established a t , o r in t he i mmediate
vi c ini ty o f Farrukhabad, i n wh i c h Lucknow rupees o f t he 45th san,
and o f t he
prescribed
weight and standard, and half and
quarter
rupees
o f
t he
same standard and proportionate
weight,
w i l l
be coined.
( S e c t . V.) The
Lucknow
45 t h san sikka
rupee, as
established
by
t h i s
regulation,
shall
bo
o f
t he
same
s i z e
and
f o r m
as
t he 19t h
san
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14
History of
t h e
East
India
Company Coinage.
s ikka rupee struck in t he m int at Cal c ut ta, and shall bear t he following
impression:
O b v e r s e .
R e v e r s e .
gLi^b pl U i s L i c X i i *jU
i } b f
(
S e c t . VI.)
The half and quarter
rupee s h a l l
be
proportionately
l e s s than t ho r up ee,
and
bear t he
same
impression
as
t he rupee.
(
Sect.
XII.)
The Mint Master at Calcutta shall cause a private
mark t o be put o n a l l dies wh i c h may
be
prepared for t he m int
at
Farrukhabad,
but
in
such
a
manner
as no t
t o
be
distinguished
by
t ho
naked e y e , or by persons unacquainted wi th
i t .
1804. In 1804 t he Comm issi oner o f Cu tta ck pointed o ut that
Cuttack great
inconvenience
was experienced in t he
Province o f
Cuttack
f r o m t he want o f a c ur
rent
coin of
small
value,
esp ec ial ly f or
t he
use
o f
t he troops, and
pilgrims resorting t o t he
temple
o f
Jagannath, and
proposed
that
t he
coin
should
bear o n o ne face
t he figure o f
Jagannath, and
o n
t he other
t he value o f t he coin in
Persian
and Uriya, and t he date. This coin
was
never
struck.
In this year t ho Assay Master o f t he Benares m in t expressed a
wish that
a
c o ining, m i ll ing,
and laminating
mach ine may
be sent
up
t o
Benares
t o
enable
me t o ascertain
by
experiments what
advantage
there
m i gh t
be in
introducing
t he mode at present
used
i n Calcutta,
o r
i n c o nt i nu i ng t h e
native
method
of coining
with
t he hammer only, t h o ugh t he
who le
figure o f t he
die i s
no t
impressed o n
t he
rupees
that
are made
i n
any
of t he nat ive mi nt s. The Riwa
rupees,
t h o ugh of i n f e r i o r value,
have t o an
inexperienced person very
much t he aspect o f
Benares
rupees,
and
are
sometimes
passed
as
such.
The Mint Comm i t tees in t he Ceded Provinces (Baraili and
Allahabad) were called o n , in 1804, t o report
Alf^h^bad their views as t o t he introduction o f a new
c opper coinage. The Allahabad C o m m i t t e o
recommended that a new copper coinage should
be
i s s u e d , bearing tho
same
impression
as
t he Luckuow
rupees struck
at
Allahabad. T h c r o
are,
t he C o m m i t t e e
s t a t e d , t wo kinds
o f c opper
coinage i n currency.
The
above
i s
q u o t e d from t h e
t ex t o f
t h e
R e g u l a t i o n . M r . Rodgers
( J .
A . S
B . ,
V o l .
LVII,
P a r t
1
f o r
1 8 8 8 ;
g i v e s
a
s l ig ht l y d i ff e re n t
v e r s i o n .
Ed.
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History o f
t h e
East India Company Coinage.
The
average
exchange
o f
t he
f i r s t
i s t wo
t o
an anna, and o f
t he
second
four
t o
an anna. We recommend
t h a t , f o r t he present, t he new coinage
be limited t o
t he
f i r s t s o r t .
In
their
report
t he
Baraili
C o m m i t t e e
gave
t he following d e t a i l s
Baraili
concerning
t he history of t he
copper
coinage
at
t hat m int . At
Baraili
no
copper
coinage
was known until
about sixteen
years ago, when i t
was
introduced
by
Mahdi 'AH
Khan,
t he amil, who coined pice called shamsher shahi
f r o m their having t he figure o f a swo r d st am ped upon them. They
were general l y c o ined o u t o f o ld pi ce o r c opper u t e n s i l s . This
coinage
continued two
years,
after whi c h t he same
amil
substituted
another
species
of
pice
called
machhlidars f r o m their having
t he
figure o f
a
f i s h
stamped
u p o n
them.
A
f ew
years
after
an
i mpr oved
coinage
was
introduced by
t he
then amil
o f Rohilkhand,
whose pice were termed
ka(ar f r o m their being s tamped with a dagger. After
t h a t , when
Mahdi
'AH
Khan
became
amil for t he second t i me in
1205
(1790),
t h o u g h t he name and appearance remained t he same, t he weight was
reduced
f r o m 18 10 17
and
even 16 niaskas. In t h i s diminished state
t he
coinage o f t he ka^ar
shalu
s continued until t he
cession
o f t he
provinces t o t he Company in November, 1801. They are s t i l l current in
t he so ut her n and east er n p ar ts o f Ro hi l kh and, b ut never obtained
circulation equal
to that
o f t he naji b k h i i n i s , wh i c h
are
current at
Rampur.
The op inion expressed by t he C o m m i t t e e
was
t h at t h er e wer e no
special
circumstances
o f
a
l o c a l nature
wh i c h urgently
demanded t ho
introduction
o f a c o pper coinage, but
that i t appeared advisable,
o n
general p r i n c i p l e s , t o
introduce a sort
o f pice
whi c h wo ul d be
intrin
s i c a l l y valuable f r o m i t s purity,
and d i f f i c u l t
o f imitation, and wh i c h
s ho u l d b ear t he same prop ortion t o t he
l o c a l
s i l v e r
currency wh i c h
t he
pice
i n t he Lower Provinces bore t o t he Calcutta
sikka rupees.
I t appears f r o m a report
by
Mr.
Seton
that t he system of farming
t he Baraili m in t was abolished i n 1802. No alteration was introduced
into
t he
standard
of
t he
rupee,
except
t h a t ,
t o
mark t he
period
at
wh i c h
t he change o f system t o o k p l a c e , t he Persi an l e t t e r ^ (the f i r s t l e t t e r o f
t he l a t e Subah Hussain 'AH Khan) was discontinued, and j (W) substi
tuted i n c o m p l i m en t t o t he Lieutenant-Governor.
1805.
In
February 1805, t he authorities o f t he
Farrukhabad
mint
recommended
t he
coinage o f milled
in
place
Farrukhabad. , , 1
o f hammered money as a measure tending t o
correct several existing
abuses
and imperfections.
In
Jul y a
l e t t e r
f r o m Government stated that The Governor General i n Council has
determined
o n
the
i mmediate
introduction
o f
a
new
s i l v e r
coin into
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History
of
t h e
East
India Company
Coinage.
t he p rovinces ceded by t he Nawdb Vizier t o t he English East India
Company, and
into
t he conquered
Provinces o f t he Nawab
and o n t he
right
bank o f
t he
river
Jumna including t he Zillah o f Bundelkhand, t o
be
denominated t he Lucknow
sikka rupee
of t he
45 t h
s a n , struck
at
Farrukhabad, corresponding
in weight and standard with
t he sikka
rupee at
present
struck
at
Lucknow in t he dominions of t he Nawab
Vizier ; and has i t i n
c ontemplation
t o establish
a
new copper coin i n
t he
provinces
above-mentioned, o f an un i f o rm weight, t o
consist
o f pure
copper.
1806. In 18 06 t he Mint Master at Benares, in a repo rt o n t he
c o pp er c ur renc y o f t he Benares Province, s t a t -
ed t hat t her e i s no regulation for t he weight,
s i z e ,
or
impression
o f
pice
that
c an
be
t he
l e a s t
check
o n
any
person
making them privately witho u t fear o f detection.
A
great
part
o f t he
pice
now
i n circulation have been made
in
Oudh, t he
Riwa
Raja's
country, and other
p l a c e s ,
and
smuggled
into circulation.
He,
accord
i n g l y , suggested for
t he
consideration
o f
Government
a new c opper
coinage ( o f wh i c h
specimens
were forwarded)
t o
consist
of
:
Number t o t he
rupee.
Weight : Grains
t r o y .
Diameter,
Inches.
alue.
D o u b l e
P i c e .
3 2 240
1 1 -
Single
64
120
1
Half
128
60
f
Quarter
25 6
3 0
I f , t he Mint Master
wrote,
t he machinery
of
t he Calcutta mint
c o u ld b e u sed
in
laminating
t he
derabs, i t wo u ld greatly
reduce
t he
expense
o f
making
t he
p i c e ,
but
1
wo u ld
by
no
means
advise t he
impression
being stamped in
Cal c ut t a, as
t he
prejudices o f
the
Natives
i n
Benares should
be conceded
t o .
In
a l e t t e r
dated
10th
December,
1806, t he Governor
General,
i n
forwarding
a
l e t t e r f r o m t he Court o f
Directors
General.
concerning
a plan for
o ne
general
coinage
for
t he Company's
possession,
expressed h i s opinion that t he coins should
be struck in t he name o f t he king o f Delhi, and no t o f t he Company
with their arms, a s proposed by t he
Court.
In t he l e t t e r referred t o ,
of wh i c h the following i s a p r e c i s , t he Court o f Directors wrote as
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Hixtory o f t h e
East
India Company Coinage. 1 7
follows
:
We
think t he
Earl o f
Liverpool* has established
the
prin
ciple that
t he
money o r coin wh i c h i s
t o
be t he principal
measure
o f pro pert y, o ught t o
be of
o ne m et al only. In
applying t he
argu
ment
t o
a
c oi n fo r
general use
i n
India,
there
cannot
be
any
doubt,
in o ur
opinion, that
such
coinage m u s t
be
of s i l v e r . The standard
weight o f t he s i l v e r coins issued f r o m t he m in ts o f
o ur
several Presi
dencies we
f i n d
t o be as f o l lo ws :
Calcutta sikka rupee. T r o y g r s . . . . 179|.
Madras Arc o t . . . . . . 176f.
Bombay . . . . . . 179.
We think i t w o u l d answer a
g o od
purpose t o f i x t he gross weight
i n who le
numbers,
and should prefer
t he
weight o f 180
g r s .
t r o y . The
British
standard
f o r
gold coin
i s
- J y alloy
and
^ - i nne. There
i s no
doubt that - j L alloy o f c opper
w o u l d
be equally proper for s i l v e r c o i n ,
and
we
arc
o f
opinion
that t h i s
proportion
should be ado p ted, i n wh i c h
case t he new rupees
w o u l d
have
165
grains o f f i n e s i l v e r
and
15 grai ns
of a l l o y .
S h o u l d
t he new rupee
be
ultimately adop ted,
there
may
be
coined a l s o :
Half rupee weighing troy g r s . . . . . . . 9 0 .
Quarter . . . . . . 4 5 .
Anna
. . . . . .
t l j .
A
c opper coinage
should
a l s o
be
determined o n for general
c i r c u l
a t i o n ,
and
i t
i s
o ur
o p i ni o n t hat
i t
should
consist
o f
6
pice
o r
half
anna,
3 pice o r quarter anna, and 1 pice p i e c e s .
We
ar e desi ro us of establishing
a
gold coin
o n a principle
f i t t e d
for general
u s e .
This coin should,
in
o ur
opinion,
be
called
a gold
rupee,
and
be made o f t he
same standard
as t he
s i l v e r
rupee,
v i z . , 18 0
grains gross weight
and
165
grains
f i n e , and be divided into halves
and
quarters. The quarter gold rupee appears well f i t t e d t o supply t he
place o f t he Madras star pagoda in t he payment o f t he Madras army.
We have t h o ught t he adoption o f a
new
coinage for British India
a f i t opportuni ty for giving a new impression
to
o ur currency, and t he
m o s t
appropriate, in
o ur
esteem,
i s
t he
Co m p any 's ar m s
wi th
an
i n s
cri pti on English East India Company,
as
also t he denomination and
value
o f
t he coin
with
t he year
of
coinage, and for
t he r ever se
a
Persian
inscription expressing
t he
E ngl i sh o ne o n
t he
obverse wi th
t he
date o f coinage
and value and
denomination o f t he
c o i n . I f
t he smaller
gold and s i l v e r
coins
(perhaps
a l l below t he half
rupee) do
no t p resent
surface
s u f f i c i e n t f o r
a clear impression, i t w o u l d be
proper to substi
tute f o r t he Company's arms t he Company's
c r e s t ,
t he
inscriptions
t o
remain alike i n a l l .
*
L e t t e r
t o
t h e
King
on
t h e
c o i n s o f
t h e
r e a l m .
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IS
History
o f t h e
East
India Company
Coinage.
1807. A
l e t t e r
f r o m
t he
Mint
Master at
Farrukhdbad dated
24th
October, 1807, asks for new milling
dies
f o r
s , t * i * i i l c h & b i \ d
rupees,
and
s t a t e s
that
t he
m int
had
no t yet
been furnished
with
dies
f o r t he
half and quarter rupees,
t he expe-
doncy
o f
introducing wh i c h
had been
suggested by
t he
Mint
Com m i t tee.
In
t h i s year, and early
in 1808, proclamati ons
were issued by
, t he
Government
o f
Madras
respecting a new
Madras. ,
coinage
for
t he Madras
Presidency,
o f wh i c h
t he
following
i s
a r e s u m e .
A
Silver
Coinage.
Al l t he s i l v e r
coins
o f t he Presidency coined at the
Madras
mint
shall
be
coined direct
f r o m dollars
when imported, and be o f dollar
f i n e n e s s .
The double rupee will contain double t he quantity, t he half rupee
half t he quantity, and t he
quarter
rupee a
quarter
o f t he pure s i l v e r
whi c h t he rupee contains.
There
ar e
a l s o
coined
and
issued
t he following small coins :
Five
fanams,
o n wh i c h i s
inscribed
their denomination
in English,
Persian, Gentoo (Telugu), and Ma labar (Malayalam).
Three*
, ,
Two
, ,
, ,
Single
B. Copper Coinage.
The
Governor
General i n Council has been pleased t o i s s u e a new
coinage o f t he following numbers, values, e t c .
D o u b l e Dubs. . . . 24 to t he rupee.
Single . . . 48
Half . . . 96
Quarter . . . 192
In case t he above coins
are
issued
at t he
Presidency, e t c . , they
are t o measure with
t he star
pagodas :
8 4
double
dubs
to
o ne
pagoda.
168 single
3 3 6 half
672 quart er
There are also i ssued t he
following
coins with their denomination
inscribed o n
them i n English, Persian, Gentoo, and Malabar:0 cash,
20 cash, 10 cash, 5 c ash.
* The f i v e fanam p i e c e s a r e
no w
v e r y s c a r c e .
Double
and s i n g l e
fanams
a r o
f a i r l y c o mmo n. The t h r e e
fanam
p i e c e s I
have never
s e e n ,
and
have met wi th no
o t h o r
r e f e r e n c e
t o
t h e m .
I
am
i n c l i n e d
t o
t h i n k
t h a t
t h e
mention
o f
them
i s
a
m i s t a k e .
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History o f t h e East
India
Company Coinage. 19
In t h i s Proclamation, wh i c h i a dated 22nd August, 1807, i t i s
stated that
t he Governor i n Council has a l s o deemed i t expedient t o
issue a s i l v e r
coinage
o f half and quarter pagodas o f
dollar f i n e n e s s .
This
Proclamation
was
repeated o n 28th
N ovember,
1807,
with
t he
addition of a 2
cash
piece as
being
a l s o
issued.
C. Gold Coinage.
The Governor i n
Council,
having deemed
i t necessary
t o establish
a new gold currency, has resolved t o
coin
a gold pagoda o f
22 carats
f i n e , and
a
double pagoda o f t he
same
f i n e n e s s , with English, Persian,
Gentoo, and Malabar inscriptions.
In
August,
1807, t he
mint
master
at
Benares
received
a
l e t t e r
f r o m Calcutta respecting a new copper coinage
for t he province o f Benares, wh i c h was t o be
prepared in
the
Calcutta mint. This coinage should, i t was thought,
consist o f :
Number t o a Cal cu t ta s ikka
rupee. weight.
D onb le pice
. . . . . . . . .
3 2 1-1-6
Single
. . . . . . . . .
64
0-8-9
Half
. . . . . . . . .
128 0-4-4|
1809.
By
Regulation
X ,
1809, t he
Calcutta
mint
was
directed
t o
coin pice for t he province o f
Benares,
valued
Benares. . aA
at
64
per rupee.
1810. In
a
l e t t e r dated 11th September, 1810, reference i s made
to London made copper coins at F o r t S t .
George, o f wh i c h there i s stated t o b e 8 0, 000
pagodas
in
s t o r e , and wh i c h cannot
be brought into
circulation
at that
Presidency. We
are
o f op inion that
the
20
cash
pieces m i gh t
be
circu
lated here
at t he
value o f
o ne
and
a
half
o f t he Bengal p i c e ,
and
t h a t ,
in t he present scarcity o f
copper,
i t
wo u ld be
advisable t o
send
t he
who le
o f
t h em
t o
Bengal.
1811. A l e t t e r
dated
16th
September, 1811, s t a t e s
that Govern-
_
ment
having
been
pleased t o
determine
that
no
change shall be
made i n t he l o c a l currency
of t h e p ro vi nc e o f Benares, but that i t s h a l l be recognised as t he legal
currency o f
that
portion o f t he Company's t e r r i t o r i e s , we entirely
c oncur as t o t he expediency o f placing t he m int o f that province under
t he
immediate
control o f t he Supreme Government, and o f assimila
ting
i t i n every respect t o t he mints o f
Calcutta
and Far r ukhabad,
by
wh i c h
means
t he coin
wh i c h
may
hereafter
be
struck
i n
t he
Benares
m int w i l l
be much
i mpr oved i n point o f fabrication and appearance.
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20
History
o f t h e East India Company Coinage.
The same
l e t t e r
states that t he
quantity
o f gold wh i c h has been
coined in t he
Benares m int since 1782 only amounted t o
121,949
mohars
or about
1,768,260
rupees,
whilst,
during
t he
same period,
t he
silver
coinage
has
amounted
t o
rupees
51,631,000,
and
i t
i s
accordingly
proposed by t he
B oard
o f
Commissioners
that t he Benares m int shall
no t be
open
f o r t he coinage o f gold bullion in future.
A
Regulation for t he future
management
o f t he Benares
mint,
(the
date* o f wh i c h i s no t
given
i n t he records),
has, among i t s c l a u s e s , t h e f o l lo wi ng :
Preamble. Whereas i t has been deemed advisable t o continue t he
mint
at
Benares, and t o assimilate t he internal management
of
i t t o
t he rules
already in
force i n t he Mints
of
Calcutta and Farrukhabdd,
t he
following
rules have been
enacted
t o
be
in force f r o m their pro
mulga t i on :
I . The
s i l v e r
coin
now current i n t he
Benares
province
under t he
denomination o f t he
machhlidar rupee,
commonly called t he
Benares
rupee, shall
coutinue
t o
be
t he established
coin
o f the province,
and
shall
be received
as
such
i n
a l l public
and private
transactions.
I I . The
Benares rupee
i s t o continue o f t h e f o l l owi ng wei gh t , and
half
and q uar t er r up ees are t o
be
coined of t he
same standard and
proportionate weight :
T r o y grains . . . . . .
. . .
175
P u re
s i l v e r
. . . . . . . . . 168-875
Al l oy
. . . . . . . . . . . .
6125
I I I . The Benares rupee shall hereafter
be
struck o f
t he
same s i z e
and f o r m a s
t he
19t h san rupee struck i n t he m int o f Calcutta, and
s h a l l bear
t he same impression as i s
now
i n use ;
IV.
The half
and
quarter
rupee
shall be
proportionately
l e s s
than
t he rupee,
and
s h a l l
have
t he
same
impression
as
t he rupee
;
V . The edges
shall be
milled,
and
t he dies
( t o
be c ut in t he
Calcutta mint) shall be made o f t he
same
s i z e
as
t he c o i n , so t hat t he
wh o l e impression may appear;
VI.
The
m int
master
at
Calcutta
shall
cause
a
private
mark
to
t o be put u p o n a l l t he dies wh i c h may be
prepared
for t he Benares
mint.
1812. In 18 12 t he Lieutenant-Governor o f Java asked
that
a
supply o f copper
coinage
m i gh t
be
sent f r o m
* ^ a V a Bengal t o
Batavia,
as t he want o f a small
currency
was
f e l t
t hr o ughout
t he colony. The
coinage,
i t was
sug
gested, should consist
o f
165
coins to
o ne Du tc h p ou nd
weight,
and t he
device be
either t he
f i g u r e o f
a
buffalo or
elephant,
and
o n t he reverse,
Java
and
t he d a t e .
I t was
p r o b a b l y
1 8 1 0 , a s
i t r e f e r s
t o
F r o m
and
a f t e r t h e
f i r s t
day
o f
1 8 1 1 .
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22
History of
t h e East
India
Company Coinage.
forwarded
a number of
coins as
showing their views
with
respect
to
manner i n
wh i c h
t he coinage
should
be
executed.
1816. In September,
1816,
t he B oard o f Commissioners, Farrukh
abad,
po int ed o ut
that
for
s o me
t i me
only
a
small quantity o f s i l v e r had been brought to
t he m int by individuals for coinage, and suggested t he expediency o f
employ ing t he establishment in t h e c o i nage o f copper pice o n account o f
Government.
The
following draft Resolution was subm i t ted by t he
Commissioners :
I . That S e c t .
XLIII,
Reg. XLV, 1803,
prescribing
a s p e c i f i e d
weight for t he copper pice t o be struck at Farrukhabad be rescinded
I I .
That such copper coin be struck
at
Farrukhabad, weighing
200
grains
troy
for
t he who le,
o r
double
p i c e ,
and
100 grains
troy
for
t he half o r
single
pice ;
I I I .
That such
c opper
coin shall
be
issued f r o m
t he
mint
at t he
rate
o f
3 2
wh ole
and 64 half
pice
for
each rupee.
In
November,
1816,
the
Mauritius
Government
wr ote
t o t he
Governor General that
t h i s Colony i s subject
Mauritius.
^ consi(ierakie
inconvenience
and d i f f i c u l t i e s ,
especially since t he great f i r e , f r o m t he want o f a small money f o r t he
ordinary dai ly t ransac t i ons o f common l i f e . I t would, therefore, be
m o s t desirable t o obtain f r o m t he mint o f t he Supreme
Government
a
coinage
for
t he
use
o f
t h i s
land.
A
decimal
division
o f
t he
Spanish
Dollar, wh i c h coin i s here equivalent t o t wo sikka
rupees,
w o u l d be
t he m ost convenient money for
accounts.
The books
o f
t he
merchants
and
traders
being kept
in l i v r e s , ten o f
wh i c h
are in t h i s Col ony
equal
to t he Spanish Dollar,
i t w o u l d be desirable that each
o f t he s i l v e r
coins
sh ou ld b e
marked ONE LIVRE.
By
Regulation
XXV, 1817,
i t was
enacted
Bengal,
that:
I The c opper pice struck at t he Cal cut ta mint shall be o f pure
copper, and o f t he weight o f
100
grains troy
;
I I .
The inscription
shall
be o n o ne
side
o ne
pie
sikka
i n
Bangali, Persian, and Nagari, and t he date o n t he obverse.
I T I . That t he pice s h a l l be
issued
f r o m t he m in t and public
treasuries
at
t he rate o f 64
to
1 sikka rupee , and be l e g a l tender
a t t he rate o f 64
to
a rupee o f t he l o c a l c u rr enc y t h ro u gh o ut t he pro
vinces subject t o
t he
Presidency o f F o rt Wi l l i am .
IV. The
pice
struck
at t he
mints
o f
Benares and F a r r u k h . - i b a d ,
agreeably t o t he
provisions
o f Regulation
Benares. ^ X , 1809, Reg. VII, 1814, and Reg. XXI, 1816,
Farrukhabad. s h a l l be a l s o
considered
as circulating
equally
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History o f
t h e
East India Company Coinage.
23
wi th t he
pice
o f Calcutta coinage t hr o ughout t he above-mentioned
provinces, and shall in
l i k e
manner, be received as l e g a l tender i n
payment o f t he fractional parts o f a r up ee o f t he l o c a l currency at t he
rate o f 64 pice for each rupee.
By Regulation
XXVI,
1817, i t was enacted
Farrukhabad. ^ t .
I Whereas i t
may
f r o m t i me
to
t i me be f ound expedient t o coin
rupees o f
t he weight and standard
o f t he
Farrukhabad rupee at
t he
mints
o f Calcutta
or Benares, i t
has seemed
advisable t o
rescind so much
o f
section II
o f
Reg. XLV,
1803, as
tends
t o limit t he c oi nage of
Farrukhabad
rupees t o t he
mint
o f
Farrukhabad, and
t o direct that t he
following
enactment be
henceforth
i n
force :
I I .
The
s i l v e r
coin
denominated
t he
Farrukhabad
rupee,
and
o f
t he weight and standard
prescribed
by
section
II o f Reg. I l l ,
1806,
struck at t he m in ts of Calcutta, Farrukhabad, o r Benares, or at any
other mint established by order o f t he Governor General i n Council,
i s hereby
declared
t o be t he established and legal s i l v e r c o i n in t he
ceded and conquered provinces.
In
1817 t he weight o f t he pice struck i n t he
Calcutta
mint
was
fixed
a t
100
grains,
and they
bo re t he
i n s c r i p -
Calcutta.
tion o ne pio sikka ; >
1818. In
June, 1818, t he Vice-President in Counci l expressed hi s
concurrence
with
t he
Resident
at
Delhi
as
t o
, ^ e - . t he
inexpediency
o f maintaining t he Delhi
mint,
and t he Resident
was
accordingly directed t o
discontinue
i t s
operations, s t i l l
causing, however,
suc h a number of coins to be struck
as
m i gh t
be necessary for t he purpose o f satisfying t he feelings of t he
king.
In August, 1818, t he Calcutta Mint Master submit ted for t he consi
deration
o f Government specimen coins o f t he
weight and standard o f t he proposed new c ur
rency, and stated t h a t ,
as
t he
difference in
s i z e and
weight
o f
t he new
coins m ig h t no t be considered s u f f i c i e n t
t o
enable a l l persons t o
at once
distinguish them f r o m t he
old ones, he had th ough t i t
expedient
t o
a f f i x
such further distinctive
marks
as
wo u ld be obvious t o t he
m o s t
ordinary
observer. Tho
specimens,
wh i c h
were distinguished f r o m t he
existing
currency by
a
raised r i m and
perpendicular
milling, wer e ado p
t ed as t he pat t er n f o r t he new coinage.
In
1818 t he Calcutta Mi nt Co mm i t tee stated that
they
were no t
aware o f any objection t o t he inscription o n t he rupee undergoing an
a l t e r a t i o n , and that i t wou ld be moi'e consistent with t he dignity o f t he
British
Government
o f
India
t o
authorise
i t s
own
cunencies
by
i t s
own
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24
History of
t h e East India Company Coinage.
Benares, Farrukha
bad.
peculiar stamp and
impression
; and suggested
t h a t ,
i f any
alteration
- w a s made,
no
date should be
inserted,
as an
arbitrary
batta o n coins
of
various
issues wo u ld t hus be obviated
witho u t having
recourse to any
f i c t i t i o u s
i n s c r i p t i o n .
1819.
By
Regulation
X I,
1819,
i t
was
enacted that :
1 The coinage o f t he
Benares
rupee
s h a l l
be discontinued ;
I I . The Farrukhabad rupee shall be c onsidered the legal currency
o f t he province o f Benares ;
I I I . The Farrukhabad rupee shall be a legal tender
in
a l l t he
t e r r i t o r i e s under
t he
Benga l Go vernment , wf th t h e ex cep ti o n o f Bengal,
Bihar,
and
Orissa,
whether
struck
at
t he
mints
o f
Calcutta,
Benares,
or
Farrukhabad, or any other mint that may
be
hereafter established
within t he
aforesaid limits under
t he
authority
o f t he British
Govern
ment
;
IV.
The Farrukhabad
rupee
to be struck at
any
o f t he
mints
before
mentioned, shall
be o f t he
value
of t he p resent Farrukhabad
rupee, and o f t he standard o f t h e p resent Cal c u t t a rupee,
v i z .
:
Weight T r o y g r s . . . . . . . 180-234
P u r e s i l v e r . . . . . . 165
215
Alloy . . . . . . 15019
In
addition
t o
t he
substitution
o f
t he
new
Farrukhabad
rupee,
t he
Mint
C o m m i t t e e recommended t he tem p orary establishment
o f mints
at
Ajmere and Sagar,
to convert t he
existing
Ajmere, Sagar.
currencies
into t he new
c o i n .
The
Sagar
mi nt was
a t that t i me
issuing
rupees
called
Saugor
o r
Balashaie.
The Government expressed
their opinion
t hat t he rec o mmendat i on o f
t he C o m m i t t e e
was
judicious.
I c an
f i n d no further reference t o t he
Ajmere
m int i n t he records.
1821. The
Bombay
coinage consisted in
Bombay.
Gold.
n
,
S i l v e r .
V
Copper.
,
T >
1
1821 o f t he
f o l l ow ing:
Mohar
Panch ia (5 rupees)
Rupee
Rupee
Half Rupee
Quarter
E i gh t h
Anna
Half Anna
Quarter
Pi ce
T r o y g r s .
. .
18 0
. . 60
. . 12
. .
180
. . 90
. . 45
. . 22-5
. . 400
. . 200
. .
100
. . 3 3 - 3 : 3
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History
of t h e East
India Company
Coinage. 25
In
t h i s year t he
Mauritius
Government, being
put
t o incon-
, . . venience by t he use o f paper money for t he
Mauritius.
small
change
of
t he
colony,
asked
that
t he
Calcutta mint
m i gh t
c o i n for them small tokens t o the value of 100,000
eikka rupees. The wish o f t he Mauritius Government was
acceded
t o .
1824. In 1824 an application was made by t he Resident at Singa-
.
pore
for a supply o f small coins t o
be
strnck
Singapore.
at
t he
Calcutta
m int for
t he
use
of that
settlement. In
t he Resident's
l e t t e r
i t i s
stated
t hat t he smal l money
i n
circulation t hr o ughout
t he
Malay
countries
consisted
o f copper
Dutch
du yt and pice of Prince o f
Wales' i s l a n d ,
t he brass coin o f China,
and
o f
s i l v e r D u t c h 2 , 6 , and
9
s i l v e r
( s t i v e r
? ; p i e c e s , and t he gu i l der o r f l o r i n
commonly
called
by
t he
natives
t he
rupee.
The
m o s t
universally
used
coins were t he duyt and t wo s t i v e r
p i e c e .
The duyt was t he real
money o f t he m o s t rem ote and unfrequented parts o f Sumatra and
Borneo,
and t he t wo stiver piece was t he
true circulating
medium
of t he
Celebes,
t he
Spanish dollar being only used i n foreign
commer
c i a l transactions. I t was suggested that
t he duyt
and t wo s i l v e r piece
should
bo
struck wi th
t he same i n s c r i p t i o n s , v i z . t he
value i n t he
English, Chinese, Malay
and
Bugies languages, and
o n
t he reverse t he
crest
o f t he East
India
Company
without
t he supporters,
and
with t he
date
and m o t t o
of t he Company beneath.
By
Regulation
I I ,
1824,
i t
was
decided
that
t he
Farrukhabad
rupees, t o
be
coined at t he
Sagar
mint o f
18 0
grains, 165 f i n e and 15 a l l o y , should be t he
legal currency o f Sagar and t e r r i t o r i e s o n t he Narmada (Nerbudda).
A
l e t t e r
f r o m t he Bombay Mint Committee, dated 27th September,
1824,
refers t o
a c o m m un i c a t i o n
received f r o m
Bombay. ^ne gUpreme
Government,
desi ri ng t hat im
mediate steps
be taken
for t he coinage of
a new
rupee of t he Madras
standard,
aud asking
for their op inion
o n
t he measures t o
be
adopted
for a general
reform
o f t he currency. The C o m m i t t e e suggested, w i t h
reference
to
t he
f i r s t
p o i n t ,
that
a
proclamati on
should
be
issued,
announcing t he alteration o f t he standard, and dec laring the new rupee
current at
par wi t h
t he o l d . They also recommended t he division of
t he anna into sixteen instead o f twelve p i c e , so
that
the copper currency
wo u ld consist o f : T r o y g r s .
Anna . . . . . .
400
Half Anna . . . . . . . . . 200
Quarter
. . . . . . . . . 200
D o u b le Pice . . . . . . 50
Single