1⁄16 Karshapana

The fractional copper karshapanas of the Mauryan period remain among the least studied denominations in the series, partly because their tiny size led to systematic misidentification in early colonial-era collections. The empire's punch-marked silver coinage has attracted the bulk of scholarly attention, leaving the copper fractions underrepresented in reference literature despite their obvious role in everyday low-value exchange during a period when Pataliputra was among the largest cities on earth.