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Thirai Cash Chera Dynasty
| Issuer | Travancore, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1600-1700 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| 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 |
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| 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 | The reverse displays a highly stylized device in low relief, possibly a crude floral or zoomorphic motif, rendered in an abstract, cursory manner within a plain field. The design appears to consist of sinuous lines forming a loose, irregular pattern, consistent with debased or imitative script or symbolic markings characteristic of small copper cash issues of the Travancore region during this period. The flan is irregular with uneven surfaces and edge irregularities typical of hammered copper coinage. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
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| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The "Thirai" cash was the smallest unit in Travancore's indigenous copper coinage, functioning at the base of a denomination ladder that ran through chuckrams and fanams. These circulated across a coastal kingdom whose economy was deeply entangled with pepper and textile trades long before European factors arrived to complicate local monetary arrangements. The Chera dynastic claim embedded in the coin's attribution connects Travancore's rulers to a much older South Indian lineage — a deliberate assertion of legitimacy rather than a straightforward genealogical fact.