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1 Cash - Frederik III
| Issuer | Danish East India Company |
|---|---|
| Year | 1648-1670 |
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| Currency | Royalin (1730-1818) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | A stylized crown occupies the upper half of the flan, rendered in a crude, primitive manner consistent with cast lead coinage of the period. Below the crown, a horizontal bar divides the design, beneath which appears the royal cypher 'F·3' in the field, denoting King Frederik III of Denmark. The lettering is flanked by pellets on either side. The entire design is crudely executed, reflecting the utilitarian nature of this low-denomination colonial issue. |
|---|---|
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| Mint | Tranquebar (Tharangambadi) Mint |
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| Additional information |
The Danish East India Company's Tranquebar settlement on the Coromandel Coast used lead cash as fractional currency because copper supplies were unreliable and local merchants were accustomed to the low-denomination lead pieces already circulating in South Indian trade networks. Frederik III reigned from 1648 until his death in 1670, which brackets this issue precisely — no subset dating has been established. Lead's softness means survivors in any meaningful condition are genuinely uncommon; the alloy was never intended for longevity, only for transactions measured in handfuls.