Mudra Utsav-2024 to showcase rare coins, tokens used during British era
Kolkata: The coin enthusiasts, for the first time in the city, will get an opportunity to witness rare coins and tokens used by common people during British rule at the 26th annual conference & exhibition titled “Mudra Utsav-2024”.
The event, hosted by the Numismatic Society of Calcutta (NSC), will be held from December 20 to 22 at Haldiram Banquet Hall in Ballygunge.
“The coins which were in use during British rule were made up of gold, silver and copper. However, the common people used copper and brass coins. Post the First World War, there was a huge crisis of silver coins, and nickel tokens were introduced instead of silver. When the Great Famine of 1876-1878 struck India, the British came out with a special grain or famine token which was given to families and when they used to produce the token, they were provided ration in lieu of it. All such coins used by the commoners will be put on display,” said Souvik Majumdar, an independent researcher of NSC who will be displaying his collection at the exhibition.
Majumdar’s collection of Conder tokens — a form of privately minted token coinage struck and used during the later part of the 18th century and the early part of the 19th century in England and Wales and tokens used by the tea garden workers will also be exhibited during the exhibition.
The theme “An Overview of Coins (Machine Struck) and Currency from 1835 to 2024” will be explored during the exhibition where the “rich tapestry of coins on display will not only showcase the diversity of our numismatic heritage but also weave together historical narratives and cultural evolution encapsulated in each coin”, said Ravi Shankar Sharma, Secretary, NSC, Kolkata. Around 60 professional numismatists will be taking part from all over India which include Tapan Kumar Seal’s collection from princely states of India (1835-2024), Riddhi Bhattacharya’s collection from Chinese zodiac banknotes of Macau, Indranath Barui’s world coin collection of different values and types (1835-2024), Debkumar Pal’s collection of odd denomination of bank notes, and Anindya Kar’s banknotes on world-famous persons of eminence to mention a few.
