Collectors from all around the world have a fascination for old Indian coins. Many of these ancient coins of India were issued thousands of years ago by various kingdoms and emperors. Indian old coins from the Magadha Mauryan empire speak a lot about the richness of Indian traditions and cultures. They suggest the existence of highly civilized societies within the Indian subcontinent right from ancient times. Moreover, these ancient Indian coins also suggest that the Indian subcontinent was had some of the wealthiest kingdoms of its times.
Ancient coins of India can be classified based on the various janapadas that existed during those days. Gandhara, Magadha, Magadha-mauryan, Kashi, Kuntala and Ayodhya formed the earliest Janapadas starting from 600 BCE. Then there were invaders like Greco-Bactrian, Indo-Greeks, Indo – Scythian, Kushan, Indo – Parthian, Indo Sassanian, Huns etc. who minted coins under their regime as well. The designs, motifs, inscriptions of ancient Indian coins were unique and represented the ruling kingdom which issued them. There is so much to explore that a single lifetime wouldn’t be sufficient to learn about them.
Then there were Mighty kingdoms under the Guptas, Western Kshatrapas and Satavahanas, each of which issued beautiful Indian Old Coins. If you thought that there were powerful kingdoms only in the north, then you are wrong. Old Coin of India struck under south Indian empires like Cholas, Pandyas and Pallavas suggest that the Indian subcontinent maintained strong trade relations with foreign lands as well. There were influential city states as well like Mathura, Rajgir, Kolhapur, Ayodhya, Ujjain, Taxila etc., many of which had their own unique coinage.
Numismatics in India is really exciting. Every coin allows you to understand history at a deeper level. What we have been taught in school is nothing when compared with the number of ancient dynasties that ruled over the Indian subcontinent.
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