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2 Rixdollars Trial Strike
| Issuer | Ceylon (1597-1972) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1812 |
| Type | Coin pattern |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A finely modelled Asian elephant stands in left profile upon a naturalistic ground line, its trunk curled downward and tusks rendered in high relief. The animal wears ankle fetters on all four legs, a detail characteristic of domesticated ceremonial elephants. The field is open and unadorned, allowing the central device to dominate. The date 1812 appears in large numerals in the exergue below the ground line. A bold reeded border frames the entire design, consistent with the obverse. |
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| Mint | Royal Mint, London |
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| Additional information |
Ceylon's coinage in this period was administered by the British East India Company following their takeover of the Dutch VOC territories in 1796. Trial strikes of this denomination were produced in London as the Company worked to rationalize a monetary system inherited from the Dutch, which had layered rixdollars, fanam, and stivers into a thoroughly tangled local currency. The rixdollar itself was a Dutch colonial unit, and the British debated for years whether to retain it or replace it with a sterling-based system — a question not fully resolved until the introduction of the Ceylon rupee in 1872.
The Pn4 designation confirms this piece never entered circulation. Proof trials of this type are known in very small numbers.