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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
NOVEMBER, 1882.
Indian Silver. The origin of the Indian rupee may be traced up to very early times, in the Aryan Sataraktika, or Sataksisnala, the even one hundred rati weight, which formed the basis of the standard gold and silver pieces of the early PÅthan kings of Dehli (A. D. 1228), each of which weighed 100 ratis or 175 grains, and were conventionally termed Tankas." Muhammad bin Tughlak, in A. D. 1324, reverted to the local weight of Manu," the kársha or suvarna of 80 ratis or 140 grains for his silver standard, and raised the weight of his gold pieces to 200 grains, which seems to imply some readjustment of the relative values of the two metals. Some uncertainty in the Mint arrangements continued until Shir Shâh reformed the Indian coinages and introduced a new silver piece, now definitively called a rupee, of 178 grains." Akbar followed the same standard, in weight, but claims to have improved the fineness of the metal". And we have extant ropees of Shâh Jahân weighing 178 grains, and numerous specimens of 1775 grains." To judge by the assay of his gold coinage, these rupees must have ranged at a better average than those of his predecessors." Tavernier has a curious notice of the copper money current in India, in his day, which is worth preserving :
“The Indians have also a sort of small copper money, which they call Pecha, which is worth about 2 of our liards, a liard being the 4th part of a sous. There is also pecha, 2 pechas, and 4 pechas.
"According to the custom of the province where you travel, you have for a Roupy of silver more or less of these pechas.
"In my last travels, a Roupy went at Surat for 49 pechas. But the time was, when it was worth 50, and another time when it went but for 46. At Agra and Gehanabat, the roupy is valued at 55 and 56 pechas, and the reason is because the nearer you go to the copper mines, the more pechas you have for the roupy." (p.22.)
Cowries, too, were subject to similar laws of distance from the Maldives. Near the sea, they were rated at 80 to the pice, at Agra, they went for 50 to 55 per pice (pp. 2, 8, 22). So with the bitter almonds, which made up the small change of the Western coast, whose tariff was regulated by the productiveness of the trees in the deserts of Laristan.
Indian Gold. The value of gold, in Asia, seems to have been largely affected by geographical surroundings, proximity to sites of production, facilities of transport, and other casual laws of supply and demand." The Southern Peninsula of India had, as it appears, gold mines of its own, and Ocean commerce brought it bountiful supplies. In the North, the Baktrian Greeks were satisfied with currencies of silver and copper, whereas the Indo-Skythians coined gold in large quantities, and not only obtained directly extensive supplies of Roman gold coin, but imitated and possibly re-struck many of the Imperial dinarü." The kingdom of Kanouj continued, in modified types, an extensive issue of that metal, which lasted till the Muhammadan conquest by Muhammad bin Sâm, who indeed reproduced, in altered terms, the local devices.
Mahmud of Ghazni's mints very early utilised Central Asian gold, and the plunder of India, from time to time, contributed fresh stores of precious metal for the moneyer's purpose.
The Pathân Kings of Dehli, as we have seen, coined both gold and silver in equal weights, both being as pure as they could make them, but relative values had clearly to be readjusted as altered circumstances demanded. At first the scale appears to have been 1 to 8. In Akbar's time it was 1 to 9:4," in Aurangzeb's reign 1 to 14." And at this rate of 1 to 14 our own East India Company, in 1766, coined gold as 149.72 fine, to the rupee.containing 175.92 of pure silver. The proportion was not, however, found sufficient to secure the currency of the experimental gold Muhar, and in consequence, in 1769, a new Regulation was passed raising
0 Prinsep's Essays, U. T. pp. 43, 50. "Marco Polo gives the varying rates, in different localities, as gold to silver, 1:5:1:6; and 1 : 8.
"Jainism; or, the early faith of Asoka, Trubner, London, 1877, page 68; Journal R A.S., N.S., vol. IX, p. 220; Proceedinge Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1879, Plate iii. * Patha Kings of Dehli, pp. 232, 434. "Tavernier, pp. 20, 104; Journal, R. A. 8. vol. II, N. 8. 1868, pp. 160, 16. " I omit the allov in both CRRAR
35 Pathan Kings of Dehli, pp. 3, 134, &c. : Numismata Orientalia, "Ancient Indian Weights, London, 1874, pp. 12, 36, 70.
* Manu, vol. VIII, p. 136. 31 Pathan Kings of Dehli, p. 406.
» Prinsep's Essays, London, 1868, p. 43. Akbar's Gold Muhar of 186-60 grains is pure gold; so is the average return at p. 56.
» Maraden's Numismata Orientalia, London, 1823, PP, 644, 640, &c.
