1/2 Anna - Edward VII Pattern

Pattern issues for British India were typically struck at the Royal Mint in London or the Calcutta Mint, and 1908 falls within a period of active re-evaluation of the fractional anna series — the colonial administration was weighing proposals to replace the existing copper coinage with a lighter, cheaper alternative. White metal patterns from this period represent trial strikes in aluminum or a tin-based alloy, produced to test the visual and mechanical viability of a potential redesign that ultimately did not advance to circulation.