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1 Ratti Vimsatika
| Issuer | Mauryan Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 321 BC - 187 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 0.15 g |
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| Obverse description | Irregular, roughly circular silver flan bearing one or more incuse punch marks applied by the punch-marked technique characteristic of Mauryan coinage. The punch impressions, struck with a hand-held die, create geometric or symbolic devices in the field; the surface is uneven, reflecting the primitive striking method and the extremely small module of this fractional denomination. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Plain, uninscribed reverse with no devices or legends, retaining the rough texture of the original silver flan as characteristic of punch-marked fractional coinage of the Mauryan period. The surface shows the natural irregularity of a hand-cut and hammered blank with no secondary punch marks applied. |
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| Additional information |
The vimsatika denomination sits at the bottom of the Mauryan punch-marked weight hierarchy, with the ratti — the seed of the gunja berry — serving as the base unit of measure across the subcontinent for centuries. At a fifth of a ratti, this piece represents the smallest practical silver unit the empire produced.
Mauryan coinage was state-issued but verified through a system of banker's marks punched by merchants and money-changers as coins passed through trade, meaning most surviving examples carry multiple punch sequences accumulated across decades of circulation along routes connecting the Gangetic plains to the Arabian Sea ports.