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1 Kasu - Krishna Devaraya
| Issuer | Vijayanagara, Empire of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1509-1529 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Reverse description | The reverse displays a central upright sword flanked by a discus (chakra) to one side and a conch shell (shankha) to the other, forming a group of Vaishnava royal emblems arranged symmetrically in the field. A Kannada-script legend reading 'Sri Krishna Raya' surrounds or accompanies the device, proclaiming the royal name and title of the issuing ruler. The design is characteristic of the Tuluva dynasty's copper kasu issues and is executed in the flat, incuse hammered technique common to Vijayanagara coinage. The flan is notably irregular in outline. |
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| Reverse lettering | ಶ್ರೀ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ರಾಯ |
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| Additional information |
Krishna Devaraya's reign is considered the political and cultural apex of the Vijayanagara Empire, a period when the kingdom controlled much of peninsular India and extracted enormous revenue from the spice trade passing through ports like Calicut and Pulicat. The kasu was the workhorse denomination of that economy — struck in enormous, largely uncounted quantities at multiple production centers, which accounts for the significant variation in flan quality and fabric seen across surviving examples.
Die alignment and planchet preparation were inconsistent by design, not accident. Attribution to Krishna Devaraya specifically relies primarily on typological sequences rather than explicit mint records, as the empire left no centralized documentation of its copper coinage output.