1/2 Karshapana - Ujjain/Avanti Region

Ujjain served as one of the most commercially active cities in ancient India during this period, positioned along trade routes connecting the Gangetic plains to the western ports. The Avanti region's punch-marked copper fractions circulated alongside silver karshapanas in local markets, filling a practical denominational gap that silver alone couldn't serve at the street level. Attribution to specific issuing authority within this region remains genuinely contested among scholars — ACR#271 places it in the Ujjain group, but the punch combinations overlap with neighboring Malwa issues in ways that resist clean classification.