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Karshapana Magadha Janapada
| Issuer | Nanda Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 350 BC - 300 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Rectangular (irregular) |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain. |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | ND (350 BC - 300 BC) |
| Additional information |
The Nanda Empire's punch-marked coinage represents one of the earliest standardized silver currency systems on the Indian subcontinent, predating the Mauryan conquest that extinguished the dynasty around 321 BC when Chandragupta Maurya, advised by Chanakya, overthrew the last Nanda ruler. The karshapana weight standard had already been in use across Magadha for generations, but the Nandas — reputedly of low-caste origin and legendarily wealthy — are credited by ancient sources including the Arthashastra with centralizing its production.
Attribution of specific punch combinations to the Nanda period versus earlier Magadhan issues or the immediately succeeding Mauryan phase remains genuinely contested among specialists.