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1 Rupee
| Issuer | Imperial British East Africa Company |
|---|---|
| Year | 1888 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | KM#5 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | A finely detailed balance scale occupies the centre of the field, its ornate beam suspended from a decorative finial, with two hanging pans in equilibrium, symbolising justice. Beneath the scale, the Arabic word عدل (meaning 'Justice') is inscribed in the field. The circular legend IMPERIAL BRITISH EAST AFRICA COMPANY runs along the periphery within a beaded border, with the Heaton mint mark H and date 1888 positioned in the lower exergue flanked by pellets. |
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| Additional information |
The Imperial British East Africa Company received its Royal Charter in September 1888, and coinage rights came with it. These rupees were struck at the Calcutta and Birmingham mints as the Company moved to displace Indian Ocean trade currencies — particularly the Maria Theresa Thaler and various Indian issues — that had dominated the East African coast for generations. The experiment was short-lived. The Crown revoked the Company's charter in 1895, absorbing its territories into the British East Africa Protectorate and rendering this entire coinage series obsolete within seven years of its first issue.