Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Karshapana - Saurashtra Janapada
| Issuer | Saurashtra Janapada |
|---|---|
| Year | 200 BC - 100 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Karshapana |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Central field bears a large Srivatsa symbol positioned above a square tank enclosing two fish in opposing arrangement. The Srivatsa is flanked on each side by a dotted circle set between two taurine symbols, forming a symmetrical decorative border. All devices are rendered in the punch-marked technique characteristic of early Indian coinage. The flat, irregular rectangular flan displays the punched motifs with crisp, if somewhat shallow, relief typical of Saurashtra Janapada issues. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The Saurashtra janapada, occupying the peninsula now known as Kathiawar in Gujarat, sat at the intersection of overland trade routes moving toward the northwestern passes and maritime traffic through the Gulf of Khambhat. By the second century BC, the region was navigating pressure from both the post-Mauryan fragmentation to the north and the expanding reach of Indo-Greek commercial networks to the west. These fractional silver pieces — among the lightest in the punch-marked tradition — likely circulated in the local bazaar economy rather than long-distance trade, where heavier standardized coinages dominated.