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1 Karshapana - Ashoka Mathura mint
| Issuer | Mauryan Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 272 BC - 232 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Karshapana |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain, lightly textured silver surface bearing a single small banker's mark punch-marked at the centre of the flan, consisting of a triangular or arrow-head device enclosing a small symbol, applied by a private merchant or money-changer to certify the coin's silver purity and authenticity. The remainder of the reverse field is entirely uninscribed and devoid of further decoration. |
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| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | ND (272 BC - 232 BC) - Mathura mint |
| Additional information |
Ashoka's Mathura mint operated under the administrative reach of one of the empire's most strategically significant regional centers — Mathura served as a key node in the northern trade network connecting the Gangetic plain to the northwest frontier routes toward Bactria. Karshapanas of this period functioned as the backbone of commercial exchange across that system, not as royal prestige pieces.
The punch-marked technique used for these coins predates Ashoka by at least a century, inherited from earlier janapada coinage traditions. Mauryan imperial issues are distinguished from their predecessors primarily by the banker's marks — additional counter-punches applied at point of exchange — which complicate attribution to specific mints without die study.