Antique coins of India have always been the favorites among numismatists and coin collectors all over the world. From ancient coins to rare coins of British India, each one of them has a lot of historical value and significance. Today, let us take a brief look at the colonial coins that were issued when the Indian subcontinent was under the reign of different foreign powers. Rare coins in India that were struck during this time period have been sold at auction houses for handsome amounts. If we have to broadly classify these antique Indian coins, then we can categorize them as follows: Dutch East India Company, Danish East India Company, French East India Company, British Colony, Madras Presidency coins, Bengal Presidency coins, Bombay Presidency coins, British India, Indo-Portuguese, Kingdom of Portugal, Republic of Portugal and Ceylon. Surprised to know about so many categories? Many collectors have a misconception that colonial coins are the coins that are issued only under British India, which is incorrect.
With so many options available, you can look towards enhancing your collection of antique Indian coins by making it more diverse and unique. Rare coins of British India produced during the East India Company days can be broadly classified as those that were issued under Queen Victoria (1838 to 1853) and the ones that were issued under William IV (1837 -1837). After that, India was divided into presidencies for administrative purposes. These three presidencies, namely Bombay, Bengal and Madras, started issuing their own coins. These were followed by British India coins that were issued under various rulers like Victoria Queen, Victoria Empress, Edward VII, George V and GEORGE VI. Indi-Portuguese old coins of India were struck under the regime of various kings and emperors like, Alfonso VI, Joao, Pedro IV, Pedro III, etc. There is so much to explore really.
Yes, it is very difficult to own the rarest coins of India as they have a high demand and are extremely expensive. However, you can definitely keep growing your collection by adding other coins that belong to various other rarely-known and unique categories. Once you start reading about the above mentioned categories, you will definitely know what to look for!
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