Ancient ; Archaic Punch Marked Coinage, Ex RARE High Grade Specimen ; ’Narhan Hoard’ type, Weight : 6.72 Grams, Silver Double Karshapana ( Broad flan ), Attributed to Shakya Janapada (c. 600-500 BC) Bold punch in the centre, and Uniface on obv., Note : Perhaps some of the earliest known coins from India, these crude punch-marked coins were first found in the town of Narhan in modern-day Uttar Pradesh. The Shakya janapada (also called Vajji or Lichchavi janapada) was located on the Indo-Nepal border north of the modern town of Gorakhpur. Its capital was Kapilavastu. The birthplace of the Buddha, Lumbini, was ten miles east of Kapilavastu. The Buddha's father, Suddhodhana, was, according to Rajgor, the elected president of the Shakyas. Some of these coins may well have been minted during the time of the Buddha's life.

ANCT557/23