Quarter rupee

Minting of Kolkata type "narrow D 1" 25 paise coin resumed in Mumbai in 1977

by Quarterrupee @ 03 Sep. 2007 – 07:59:46

I have previously mentioned that the type of 25 paise coin minted in Kolkata in 1972 ("narrow D 1") was apparently resumed at Mumbai during 1977-79. This can now be confirmed.

25 paise narrow D 1 1977 Mumbai.

This subtype/date/mint combination is rather remarkable. All "narrow D" subtypes before 1977 were minted at Kolkata, and at this point in time, the Kolkata mint conformed to the "wide D 3" type of the two other mints. However, the coin illustrated above indicates, that the "narrow D 1" subtype of Kolkata was 'inherited' by Mumbai and applied there temporarily in the late 1970s.

50 paise 1972-1983 varieties

by Quarterrupee @ 23 Aug. 2007 – 10:13:20

I have just published this entry on varieties among 50 paise coins of 1972-1983. I have defined 5 sub-types, based on varous combinations of three different obverses with two different reverses.

Ashoka sculpture on 1972-83 50 paise coins and 1962-82 1 rupee coins

by Quarterrupee @ 24 Jul. 2007 – 10:10:15

As noted earlier, a common design element on a number of coin types of different sizes may be exact reproductions of a single original design. This is possible due to the pantograph, which facilitates mechanical reproduction of the design of a single scale model onto a number of metal punches of different sizes.

Because of this procedure, we can find identical versions of the Ashoka sculpture on coins of different denominations. The six versions (a to f) of the Ashoka sculpture on 25 paise coins of 1972-90 were illustrated in an earlier entry. Some of these versions are found once again on the 'elder brothers' of the 25 paise coins: the 50 paise and 1 rupee coins.

Click image to enlarge.

Version a. Here is a comparison of the version a Ashoka sculpture on a 25 paise coin (left) and the Ashoka sculpture on a 1973 50 paise coin KM# 61 (right). This comparison shows that they emanate from a single original scale model. Note the loop below the central 'lions' chin, formed by the central part of the lion's 'beard'.

Click image to enlarge.

Version b. Comparison of the version b sculpture on a 25 paise coin (left) and the sculpture on a 1975 1 rupee coin KM# 78.2 (right). These also appear to emanate from the same scale model.

Click image to enlarge.

Version c. Comparison of the version c sculpture on a 25 paise coin (left) and the sculpture on a 1962 1 rupee coin KM# 75.1 (right). This comparison shows that they emanate from a single original scale model. Note the almost circular eyes.

Click image to enlarge.

Version d. Comparison of the version d sculpture on a 25 paise coin (left) and the sculpture on a 1970 1 rupee coin KM# 75.2 (right). This comparison shows that they emanate from a single original scale model. Note the lower mane (or 'beard') in the form of a panel.

Click image to enlarge.

Version f. Comparison of the version f sculpture on a 25 paise coin (left) and the sculpture on a 1980 1 rupee coin KM# 75.3 (right). This comparison shows that they emanate from a single original scale model. Note the ducking lions to the left and right.

Apart from the above types, we also find special types, that have not been observed among the 25 paise coins. I will refer to these as version g and h.

Ashoka sculpture version a on a 25 paise coin (left), version g on a 1974 50 paise coin (middle) and version a on a 1973 50 paise coin (right). Click image to enlarge.

Version g. The version g sculpture is similar to version a, except the bull in the base has four legs instead of three. Apparently, the extra leg has been added at some point in the production process, thus producing a new variety from the same original engraving.

Details of the Ashoka sculpture on the 50 paise coins on the previous image. In the case of version g, the bull has two hind legs, as opposed to only one on version a. Click image to enlarge.

Now for the 1 rupee coin KM# 78.1 of 1975-79. The Ashoka sculpture on some of these coins look somewhat similar to version d, while another is distinctly different. In the first case, the central lion's lower mane (or 'beard') does not appear quite like the 'panel' on the version d sculpture on the 1970 rupee (see above). However, on closer exmination, the details look strikingly similar.

The lower mane (or 'beard') on 1 rupee 1970 (above) and 1977 (below). Click image to enlarge.

In the case of the two rupee coins compared above, the lower mane consists of six 'ropes', of which the ones to the extreme left and right are shaped like a finger, the remaining are rather lumpy, of which 'lump' 3 and 4 are connected. Apparently, both depictions of the sculpture emanate from the scale model for version d. The 'panel'-like appearance of the lower mane in the case of the uppermost image may result from the design being more thoroughly embossed in the die somewhere in the production process, while the other coin may represent a more superficial impression of the image, at the expense of the depth and relief of the sculpture on the coins.

Version d sculpture on 1 rupee 1977 (click image to enlarge).

Another coin, however, is distinctly different. The sculpture reminds of version b or d, but is different from both of them. I will refer to this version as 'version h'.

Ashoka sculpture version b on a 25 paise coin (left), version h on a 1978 1 rupee coin (middle) and version d on a 1970 1 rupee coin (right). Click image to enlarge.

Version h. On version h, the lion to the left has only two fur rows immediately behind the head. This is different from the version d, where the lion to the left has three fur rows in the same position - and from version b, where the same lion has a rather blurred mane, without any rows in it.

The mane of the lion to the left on version h on a 1978 1 rupee coin (left) and on version d on a 1970 1 rupee coin (middle and right). The lion has two fur rows immediately behind the head in the first case, and three fur rows in the latter. Click image to enlarge.

Apart from the strong vs weak impression of the image, leading to a slightly different appearance, there are additional factors which may influence the appearance of any design feature on any particular coin. A large coin may receive a more precise rendering of the image than does a small coin, due to the increased amount of space improving the possibility for details to be visible. Also, the image may have been adjusted or improved during the production process, the dies will gradually wear down, leading to a more blurred image on the coins, the coins themselves will wear, sometimes leading to a significantly different look.

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Added August 25th 2007:

Ashoka sculpture version g:

Ashoka sculpture version g (click to enlarge).

Ashoka sculpture version h:

Ashoka sculpture version h (click to enlarge).

The pantograph

by Quarterrupee @ 19 Jul. 2007 – 12:23:26

In an earlier entry, I noted:

Any coin design is composed of a number of design elements. During the process of producing a coin die, each design element is engraved on individual punches. Eventually, these design elements are embossed on a matrix to form a single composite design. The matrix is then used to manufacture the individual dies employed in the minting of coins.

In pre-modern times, the artist creating the coin design would have to carry out his work on the same scale as the coins that would eventually be produced. Today, the artist prepares a much larger scale model in plaster or similar material. When the plaster piece is finished, the remaining steps in the production process are purely mechanical.

The design of the plaster scale model is transferred to the punches that will be employed in the production of the matrix. This process is made possible by the invention of the pantograph. The pantograph is a mechanical device with a pointer fixed to one arm and a cutter fixed to another arm. While moving the pointer across a scale model, the pantograph will control the process of engraving the metal body at the other end, eventually reproducing the pattern of the scale model. Through this process, a punch of the appropriate size is obtained.

This technology allows for punches of different sizes to be obtained from the same scale model, simply by adjusting the pantograph. Thus, it allows for coins with the same basic design elements, but differing diameter, to be minted from dies that have been obtained through parallel processes, all reproducing a single original design element. E.g. the Ashoka sculpture on individual coins of different denominations and sizes may emanate from the same original model.

We should remember, that there are a number of steps in the process of transferring the design from the plaster model to the coin dies, and the details of this process may vary, depending on time and place.

Apart from the obviously improved efficiency in industrialized coin production, the pantograph also makes possible a much more detailed and precise coin design, compared with pre-modern coins. The challenges for artists and craftsmen are different today from those in pre-modern times. And the outcome of their efforts should be appreciated from a different perspective.

Two 'kasu' coins from Pudukkottai (a place in Tamil Nadu in Southern India). The coin above is pre-modern, while the one below was minted in a modern mint (Birmingham or Kolkata) somewhere between 1889 and 1947. The machine struck kasu from Pudukkottai is the only modern coin from Tamil Nadu that was not issued by (although with the consent of) the British administration.

See also this Wikipedia article on the pantograph.

Gossip about 25 paise coins

by Quarterrupee @ 19 Jul. 2007 – 11:08:27

After having studied 25 paise coins in some detail, let us see if we can find some anecdotes within this field.

There has been a rumour around, that 25 paise coins are no longer legal tender. A Times of India reporter tried to spend a 25 paise coin:

Vegetable mandis , bus conductors and rickshaw-wallahs are the ones most hassled. Twenty five paise coins are still of importance here. We tried giving it at a vegetable mandi but the vendor there refused saying, "I don't accept 50 paise coins either. I have heard that RBI is banning its circulation as well !"

(The Times of India, May 25th 2004: "This rumour isn't worth even 25 paise").

Eventually, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had to clarify in a press release of November 2005, 25 paise Coins - Valid for transactions, that 25 paise coins are still legal tender.

Of course, this coin has not always been disregarded. Here is a fake quarter rupee, dated 1947. Note the somewhat shocked or surprised expression on George VIs face.

Here is a badly deformed rhino type 25 paise coin. This error is the outcome of a blank which was not correctly situated between the dies at the time of minting. Such a coin should of course have been discarded, rather than released for circulation.

Noemaun Ahmed has discovered, that you can make the customers stay longer in you booth, if you take the time to count the amount of 10 Rs in 25 paise coins when giving change:

My friend counts again and gives it back to her. With all nobility, she recounts those coins but she is disturbed that she has still not got back her precious money. So she returns the coins to us.

Now my friend secretly adds one more coin and gives it to her friend and asks her to verify. On realising that all the coins are present, she furious with her friend. ?If you can't even count a few coins properly, why do you have to do it. And you make a mockery of yourself for 25 paise ...?.

Well, so much for making a mockery of oneself for 25 paise. What are your experiences with 25 paise coins? Share them with us!

Commemorative 25 paise coins

by Quarterrupee @ 18 Jul. 2007 – 19:30:34

The Republic of India has so far issued four types of commemorative 25 paise coins. All were issued between 1980 and 1985. Click images to enlarge.

1980: Rural women's advancement:

1981: World food day:

1982: Ninth Asian games:

1985: Forestry for development:

This type comes in two varieties: minted from local blanks and minted from Korean blanks. The import of blanks from Korea has been dealt with in a previous entry.

Flat edge (= Korean blank) above and rounded edge (= local blank) below on two different 25 paise coins.

Two varieties of the 'forestry for development' 25 paise coin: minted from Korean blank (above) and from local blank (below).

All of the five coins above display the version f Ashoka sculpture.

1972-90 25 paise coins: irregular diameter and Korean blanks

by Quarterrupee @ 15 Jul. 2007 – 14:55:32

Irregular diameter
One unusual observation is that coins minted at Hyderabad are usually slightly larger than coins from other mints. I have examined 62 coins, of which 16 are from Hyderabad and 46 are from Kolkata, Mumbai and Ottawa. On an average, the Hyderabad coins have a diameter of 19.23 mm, while the average for the other coins is 18.99 mm. This difference is sufficient for the non-Hyderabad coins to drop out if you hold a stack of coins between two fingers.

Korean blanks
Some mid 1980ies coins have a distinctly flat edge, as opposed to the normal, somewhat rounded, edge. The explanation given in the SCWC 2007 (p. 993) is that the blanks resulting in the flat edge coins are Korean-made, as opposed to the usual Indian blanks. The flat edge phenomenon is to be encountered on coins of 1984-1986.

Flat edge (= Korean blank) above and rounded edge (= local blank) below on two different 25 paise coins (click image to enlarge).

In the case of the Korean blanks, the edge reeding is not very deep, and sometimes appear faint. In some cases the denticles along the rim on obverse and reverse are not fully struck up. This appears to be the outcome of poor dimensioning of the blanks.

No coins produced from Korean blanks earlier than 1984 have been recorded. Apparently, the supply of blanks from Korea was part of an attempt to alleviate the coinage crisis of the 1980ies, when the production of small change couldn't keep up with demand. As noted earlier, the mints of Ottawa, Birmingham, London and Taegu (in South Korea) were supplying coins for India during 1985-88.

Six coins minted from Korean blanks are listed below, together with three regular coins for comparison. First the edges.

Note coin no. 3, 7 and 9 from above - the coins minted from local blanks. These are clearly the odd ones in this group. The others are minted from Korean blanks. Note the faint edge reeding on some of them. (Click image to enlarge).

Now, the same coins in the same order as in the image above (click images to enlarge):

Wide D 3 1984 Kolkata, Korean blank.

Wide D 3 1984 Mumbai, Korean blank.

Wide D 3 1984 Mumbai, local blank.

Wide D 3 1985 Kolkata, Korean blank. Note the faint denticles along the edge on obverse and reverse.

Wide D 3 1986 Kolkata, Korean blank. Note the faint denticles along the edge on obverse and reverse.

Wide D 5 1986 Mumbai, Korean blank.

Wide D 5 1986 Mumbai, local blank.

Wide D 5 1987 Mumbai, Korean blank. Note the faint denticles along the edge on obverse.

Wide D 5 1987 Mumbai, local blank.

Apart from the coins illustrated above, I have also seen:
wide D 5 1986 Hyderabad local blank
wide D 5 1988 Mumbai local blank
wide D 5 1989 Mumbai local blank

Note that 25 paise coins minted from Korean blanks are encountered among coins from 1984-87, and subtypes wide D 3 and wide D 5 (corresponding to KM# 49.1 and 49.5) are both represented. Korean blanks were used at the Kolkata and Mumbai mints, but apparently not at Hyderabad.