General Study is the major and important section for SSC CGL, Banking, Railway and other exams. In every exam, 2 or 3 questions are asked about this topic. Following we are giving a list of some important Coins from Ancient Indian history.
Brief History About Coins-
- We got about 2000 seals in the Indus civilization. But the articles written on him have not been read yet.
- In the Rigvedic period, some gold piles like Nishka, Mana etc. were used in the form of coins. In Vedic literature, the words “rayi” and “shataman” are mentioned for silver coins.
- The origin of genuine coins in India is believed to be in the 5th or 6th century BC. These were called “aahat coins”. These were made of silver and copper.
- The Indo-Greek rulers are credited with being the first to issue gold coins bearing inscriptions.
- The Saka ruler Rudradaman had issued silver coins called “Rudradamaka”.
- The Kushanas issued pure gold coins of 124 grains in the imitation of Roman coins.
- The Kushanas also issued coins mostly from copper.
- During the time of the Parthian ruler Gondophernes, three-language coins were issued.
- Gold coins of the Gupta rulers were issued, these were called Dinars.
- During the Gupta period coins called Kauri were used in everyday transactions.
- There was a shortage of gold coins in the post-Gupta period. Only copper coins of Harshavardhana have been found.
- The Huns issued only silver and copper coins.
- The Satavahana rulers were the first to issue lead coins.
- The coins of Pallava rulers have been found in copper only.
- The Chola rulers issued coins of gold, silver, copper and brass. Their gold coins were called “kasu”
| Ruler/Dynasty | Coin with their Attributes |
|---|---|
| Harappan Civilization | Most of the currencies here are made from the cellar |
| Vedic Period | In the Vedic period, “Chatman” was a silver coin |
| Vedic Period | “Nishka” was a gold coin or necklace |
| Maurya Dynasty | “Suvarnarupa” was a Gold coin in Maurya Dynasty |
| Maurya Dynasty | “Mashak” was a copper coin in Maurya Dynasty |
| Maurya Dynasty | “Dharan” was a Silver coin in Maurya Dynasty |
| Maurya Dynasty | “Mashak” was a Copper coin |
| Maurya Dynasty | “Gage” was a silver coin |
| Satavahana Dynasty | Satavahana Rulers used coins of lead and putty |
| Kushan Dynasty | The Kushana Rulers issued maximum copper coins The Kushanas issued gold coins in the Roman style |
| Satakarni I | He issued silver currency in the name of his wife |
| Yajna Sri Satakarni | He issued a currency bearing the image of a ship |
| Kujula Kadphises | He had a picture of the Greek king Herms on his coin He issued copper coins. |
| Vima Kadphises | The credit for issuing the first gold coins in India goes to this ruler On his coins, the image of Lord Shiva is made with Nandi |
| Kanishka |
He issued coins bearing its own shape. On his coin, the shape of the Greek god, Sun and Moon is made. He issued coins depicting Buddha and Shiva. |
| Huvishka | Skandakumar, Visakha and Mahasen have the shape on their coins. He performed the posture of Harihara holding a wheel and a linga in his hand on a mudra. There is no picture of Buddha on his coin. |
| Menander | He issued bronze currency with Dharma Chakra. He issued a currency with the picture of a camel. |
| Chandragupta I | He issued silver currency |
| Samudragupta | He issued the Kumaradevi style of currency. He issued the Garundhwaja-style posture. He issued the Ashvamedha-style currency. |
| Kacha | He issued the Chakradhwaj-style currency. |
| Chandragupta Vikramaditya | He carried a lion-style posture, in which it is depicted hunting a lion. He introduced tiger-style silver currency after its victory over the Shakas. |
| Kumaragupta I | He issued silver currency with the shape of a peacock. Horse and yup have been made on the front part of a gold coin and Ashvamedha-Mahendra is written on its back. He issued coins bearing the idol of Skanda riding on a peacock. |
| Ramagupta | He issued copper coins. |
| Skandagupta | He issued Garuda-style silver coins. He introduced coins with bull and Shiva images in India. |
| Buddhagupta | He issued an archer-style gold currency. He gets his title Shri Vikram. |
| Narasimhagupta | He also issued archer-style currency. On the front side of the mudra is the king with an archer and an eagle. On its reverse, there is a picture of Lakshmi Ji seated on a lotus. |
| Mihirakula ( Hune ) | The pictures of Nandi and Trishul are inscribed on some of its postures. |
| Chola Dynasty | The main gold coin of the Chola was Kashu. Another coin of his was Kalanju. |