Pattern issues for the 1861 Indian coinage reform are among the more systematically documented of British India's trial pieces, produced as the Crown took direct control of the subcontinent following the transfer of authority from the East India Company in 1858. The 1/12 Anna denomination was tested in multiple compositions and die combinations during this period, with many survivors now traceable through the Pridmore census.
The Spink-Withers reference places this among a cluster of copper patterns that never advanced to circulation — the denomination itself saw limited uptake even in its approved form.
Pattern issues for the 1861 Indian coinage reform are among the more systematically documented of British India's trial pieces, produced as the Crown took direct control of the subcontinent following the transfer of authority from the East India Company in 1858. The 1/12 Anna denomination was tested in multiple compositions and die combinations during this period, with many survivors now traceable through the Pridmore census.
The Spink-Withers reference places this among a cluster of copper patterns that never advanced to circulation — the denomination itself saw limited uptake even in its approved form.