185 
1890.] Punch-marked coins of Hindustan, ^e. 
copper issues, and a few small silver pieces in a region where an indi- 
genous coinage of that shape was already established, Taxila for example, 
whose indigenous copper coinage, was of an archaic square type, having 
a blank reverse and a number of Buddhist emblems and occasionally a 
word, stamped in the ordinary manner on the obverse. 
Another proof of the greater antiquity of the punch-marked coins 
was afforded in 1853 by the discovery of a number of these pieces to- 
gether with coins of five Greek kings, in a pot at Kangra. The Greek 
pieces in this ‘find’ were comparatively fresh, and the weight of this 
argument is materially increased by the greater capacity for withstand- 
ing wear which these punch-marked coins with their design sunk below 
the surface possess, over coins struck in the ordinary fashion. 
As regards the weight of these coins and similar matters, I cannot 
do better than quote the words of Major General Sir A. Cunningham 
thereon. “ The Indian monetary system was essentially original, as it 
differed from the Greek and from all other systems, in its unit of weight, 
as well as in its scale of multiples. The ‘Yava’ or ‘barley-corn’ is 
not known to Hindu metrology, but the unit of the system is the 
‘rati’ the bright red and black seed of the Ahrus precatorius, the 
whole of the Indian money, whether of gold, silver or copper being cer- 
tain multiples of this well-known unit. The Assyrian, Lydian, Ba- 
bylonian and Persian systems were raised chiefly by sixes, while the 
Indian system was raised by fours with a sparing use of fives in the 
higher multiples. Its nomenclature also is quite different and the com- 
mon form of the money is not round, but square. Altogether the 
differences are so marked that I have no hesitation in stating my con- 
viction that the Indian monetary system is the original invention of the 
Hindu mind.” 
The weight of the ‘rati’ the General decided from 1000 average 
specimens to be I’823 of a grain, or for purposes of ordinary calculation 
assumed it as 1’75 grains. 
The most common of these coins is the ‘ karsha ’ or ‘ karshapana ’ 
of.Manu, (whence our term Gash for money) the proper weight of which 
should be 56 grains, though this full weight is seldom reached. The 
weight of 20 of the heaviest coins in the possession of the General was 
as high as 55 grains each, whilst the average weight of good specimens 
IS no more than 50 to 52 grains or taking an average of 700 specimens 
the average is but 48 grains. 
The value of this coin is then discussed by the General with the 
following result. “ The amount of pure silver in a full weight coin of 
56 grains would therefore be only four-fifths of 56, or 44-8 grains 
which is exactly equal to four Attic oboli, or two-thirds of a drachma! 
