Struck to mark the coronation of Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah on April 11, 1956 — a ceremony held in Kathmandu after a four-year delay following his father Tribhuvan's death, during which Nepal was navigating the immediate aftermath of its 1951 transition away from Rana oligarchic rule. The new king would go on to dissolve Nepal's first elected parliament in 1960 and impose the Panchayat system, concentrating power back in the crown for three decades.
Gold coronation issues of this type saw limited distribution and were largely retained as presentation pieces. The asarphi denomination itself traces to Mughal-influenced weight standards that persisted in Nepalese coinage well into the twentieth century.
Struck to mark the coronation of Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah on April 11, 1956 — a ceremony held in Kathmandu after a four-year delay following his father Tribhuvan's death, during which Nepal was navigating the immediate aftermath of its 1951 transition away from Rana oligarchic rule. The new king would go on to dissolve Nepal's first elected parliament in 1960 and impose the Panchayat system, concentrating power back in the crown for three decades.
Gold coronation issues of this type saw limited distribution and were largely retained as presentation pieces. The asarphi denomination itself traces to Mughal-influenced weight standards that persisted in Nepalese coinage well into the twentieth century.