Indian Antiquary Vol 42

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 94

90
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[APRIL, 1913.
&Y
av.
10
314
70
We are now in a position to set up provisionally two comparative tables; which will, however, require recasting somewhat as we proceed, thus :
Comparative Table of Malay Ingot Tin Currencies. Scale of Pagoda Currency
Scale of Sugarloaf Currency corresponding to the
corresponding to the modern British monetary scale
old Datch monetary scale centa2o to
approx. weight centes to
approx. weight name
in oz. the dollar
the dollar name
in oz. patah (small)
54 5 buaya
11) patah (large)
14 10 tampang (gajah) 30 22 (141b.
tampang(kati) 22} (1916.) 12 tali
28 12} ayam besar
28191 bidor 56 (3 lb.) viss
56 (3 lb.)
kurakura 40 buaya
90 50 jampal
112(7 lb.) 100 dollar (ringgit) 224(14 lb.) 100 dollar (ringgit) 224(14 lh.)
képingla (jongkong) 521 lb. pikul
140 bahara
420 Certain useful facts come out of this table. The small patah is the wang or half buaya; the large patah is the penjuru or half tali; the standard weight kali (usually 1f1b.) and bidor or viss (34 lbs.) are the same in both scales. The viss=10 small patah and the kurahura=5 large patah or 24 tali. The two scales constantly dovetail into each other, and it will be observed that the "pagoda” scale corresponds with the modern British monetary scale and the sugarloaf" with the old Dutch, as stated at the head of the table. (See infra, pp. 92 ff.)
Having thus established the fact that the unit of the ingot tin currenay-the dollarrepresented 14 lbs, or 10 kati (at 1 lb. the kats) of block tin, I will proceed to examine the tin money and to tabulate the Cambridge Museum specimens as follows:
Cambridge Museum. Table of Tin ("Hat "32) Money from Pahang.
Form
1 I. Pagoda Scale.
Approx. AppΥΟΣ. nominal
Actual number Museum
fraction
weight Name
Actual
of grains number
of unit in grs.
woight
represented (dollar) (onit 3120
in gre
in unit grs.)
(dollar) 241 buaya 1/20 156
160
3200 jongkong93 1/12
260
260
3120 24H bidor34
1/4 780
777
3108 29 These columns are added for the sake of olearing the comparison of the scales.
30 Thig word means elephant. The namos crocodile, elephant, tortoise, cock, have been shown to help in elucidating what follows.
31 This term means "large pook" and is supplied from the scale of " ingot animal currency" (infra, p. 92). 914 keping hero means a 'slab' of tin, 32 So called by European observers from its shape.
38 Not in the Museum catalogue, but weighed at the Museum with the other specimens. The jongkong or raman of the tin money corresponded to the tampang of the ingot tin currenoy.
36 Another piece was weighed out at 7121 krs., whioh seems to be a "light" bidor. I have in my possession two specimens of the bidor, both dated on the under part of the "rim of the hat" 1281 A. H. - 1864, with the word ampat (four)'attached to them, valued at 4 cents: and two specimens of the buaya both dated 1245 A. H. 1829, with the word satu (one) attached, valued at 2 oente, but according to Mr. Laidlaw's informant the tin buaya was worth 5 pitio or 14 cent. Much importanoo doos not attach to unsupported valuations in terms of