Ancient : Punch Marked Coin ; Magadha Janapada (600-350 BC), Silver 1/2 Vimshatika ; Archaic period ; Series 0

Description

Ancient : Punch Marked Coin, Magadha Janapada (600-350 BC), Silver 1/2 Vimshatika, Archaic period, Series 0, Obv: four punch marks consisting of a large six-armed symbol in the center, the sun (solar symbol), a fish, a spoked wheel, and other 5 important ancillary symbols around the field, Rev: uniface,
Weight : 2.66 Grams 19.4mm, (Unlisted & Unpublished), choice very fine, Exceedingly Rare.

Note: The half Vimshatika denomination is unpublished & unlisted in any major numismatic references.

A brief political history of the Magadha Janapada beginning from Bimbisara to Ashoka is mentioned in the “Mahavamsha”, an ancient Buddhist chronicle. Its expansion began with the reign of Bimbisara and grew into one of the most prosperous mahajanapadas. Its capital Pataliputra is the present-day city of Patna in Bihar. The location of this mahajanapada was bounded by important rivers such as the Ganga, Son, Champa & Vindhyan which facilitated the creation of great wealth by trade and other means.