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| Issuer | Government of India |
|---|---|
| Year | 1901-1910 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 12 Annas (¾) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Protection type | Watermark |
| Protection description | HUNDI / INDIA watermark visible in the paper stock |
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| Comments |
The hundi was a pre-colonial instrument of indigenous credit, and when British India absorbed it into formal fiscal machinery, the result was notes like this — hybrid documents that borrowed the hundi's legal form while placing it under Crown authority. The Government of India's hundi promissory notes occupied a peculiar administrative space, functioning as short-term obligations rather than circulating currency in the conventional sense.
The 12 annas denomination is unusually low for a state-issued hundi, suggesting use in smaller commercial transactions at the district level. Edward VII's reign bracketed this note's issue window tightly: he acceded in January 1901 and died in May 1910.