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1 Chuckram - Ayilyam Thirunal Rama Varma
| Issuer | Travancore, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1860-1880 |
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| Composition | Silver |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse features a crescent, horns upward, below which floral sprays or lotus blossoms are displayed, commonly associated with the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, though some scholars suggest a connection to the pepper vine reflecting Travancore's prominence in the black pepper trade. Above the crescent, twelve pellets are arranged in an arc, symbolizing the Rasi — the twelve signs of the Hindu zodiac. As with the obverse, the small flan results in some design elements being partially or fully off-flan on many examples. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Travancore maintained its own coinage well into the British Raj period through a combination of treaty rights and administrative inertia — the East India Company, and later the Crown, tolerated autonomous princely coinages provided they caused no commercial disruption. Ayilyam Thirunal's reign ran from 1860 to 1880, and the chuckram denominations in silver were struck in enormous quantities relative to their tiny physical size, feeding a local economy that resisted British currency standardization longer than most southern states.
The 7 mm diameter makes this among the smallest silver coins produced by any Indian princely state, and handling losses in trade were reportedly significant enough that mint records frequently show production runs adjusted mid-cycle.