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1 Kasu - Meenakshi
| Issuer | Madurai, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1732 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Reverse description | Reverse displays a stylised representation of the goddess Meenakshi rendered in a schematic, abstract manner characteristic of South Indian copper kasu coinage. The central device appears to depict a seated or standing figure flanked by subsidiary circular pellet elements, all executed in low relief within an irregular flan. The overall artistic style is emblematic of the Madurai Nayak hammered copper tradition, with bold but rudimentary iconographic forms. A Tamil inscription reading 'SRI VIRA' is present in the field. |
| Reverse script | Tamil |
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| Additional information |
The Madurai Nayaks ruled as nominally independent sovereigns under the Vijayanagara Empire and then as outright autonomous rulers following Vijayanagara's collapse after Talikota in 1565. By 1732 the dynasty was in its final years — the last Nayak ruler, Meenakshi, governed only briefly before the kingdom was absorbed by the Nawab of Arcot in 1736. This kasu was struck during that terminal period, making it one of the last issues of a dynasty that had governed the Tamil south for nearly two centuries.