HISTORY, LEGENDS & MYTHOLOGY

Two-day coin exhibition brings many numismatists to Indore
by Rajni Khaitan

     Indore: Several numismatists from across the country had a special time when they got an opportunity to attend a two-day coin exhibition here, as many coin collectors of various age groups also joined them for a gala time. Organised by the Indian Coin Society, the exhibition witnessed more than 10 participants showcasing more than 50,000 coins. Organisers hoped to make the event an annual affair to encourage more numismatists to participate. "We will try to organise it every year and new coin collectors to participate," said Girish Sharma, organiser of the Coin exhibition.

    Belonging to the era of Before Christ, Anno Domini and modern times, these coins had images and inscriptions that reflected the history of respective times. Coins during the time of Muslim rulers like Wazid Ali Shah, Ali Adil Shah II, Tipu Sultan and Mughal rulers such as Aurangazeb, Babar, Humayun and others were also displayed. The special exhibition witnessed a good number of participants arriving not just from all parts of Madhya Pradesh but also from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chennai, West Bengal, Delhi, Chhatisgarh, and Rajasthan too. Coin collectors feel that coin collection is a useful source to learn more about the culture, rulers and the conditions prevailing during a particular time in history. "To know the history, coins are a very useful source," said Umrao Singh Babal, a coin collector from Indore. Visitors, especially youngsters, were amazed to watch such a wide range of vintage coin collection made of gold, silver, brass and aluminium. Some of the coins weighed between 78 to 170 grams. "After seeing the coins, I understand how the transaction took place during that period and its importance even today," said Namrata Sharma, a visitor. Coins belonging to the princely States like Coorg, Cochin, Hyderabad, Mysore, Karnataka, Chandragupta II (coin with the inscription of a king with bow and arrow), Yadavas of Devigiri, and the Indo- Greek period were among the major attractions. The first post-independence Indian coins with inscription of horse, bull and the emblem, issued on 15th August 1950, were also on view. Numismatists are sometimes differentiated from coin collectors, as the latter chiefly derive pleasure from the simple ownership of monetary devices, whereas the former are more concerned with acquiring knowledge about monetary devices and systems. In fact, many numismatists are also collectors and vice-versa. Numismatics is the scientific study of money and its history in all its varied forms. While numismatists are often characterized as studying coins, the discipline also includes a much larger study of payment media used to resolve debts and the exchange of goods.
-Nov 27, 2006    

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