Rama V — Chulalongkorn — introduced this copper coinage as part of a deliberate modernization of the Siamese monetary system, replacing the older bullet (pod duang) coins that had circulated for centuries. The transition was not merely technical; it was a political signal to European colonial powers that Siam was a modern state capable of managing its own fiscal infrastructure, at a moment when both Britain and France were pressing hard on its borders.
The Att denomination sits at the base of a decimal-adjacent hierarchy that Chulalongkorn imposed in stages throughout the 1870s. Royal Mint records indicate the Bangkok mint struck these domestically.
Rama V — Chulalongkorn — introduced this copper coinage as part of a deliberate modernization of the Siamese monetary system, replacing the older bullet (pod duang) coins that had circulated for centuries. The transition was not merely technical; it was a political signal to European colonial powers that Siam was a modern state capable of managing its own fiscal infrastructure, at a moment when both Britain and France were pressing hard on its borders.
The Att denomination sits at the base of a decimal-adjacent hierarchy that Chulalongkorn imposed in stages throughout the 1870s. Royal Mint records indicate the Bangkok mint struck these domestically.