2022-08-06 Sat

The Kingdom of Travancore was a former Hindu feudal kingdom (till 1858) and an Indian princely state that had been ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from the capital at Padmanabhapuram or Thiruvananthapuram. The Kingdom of Travancore at its zenith comprised most of modern-day southern Kerala, Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of Tamil Nadu. The official flag of the state was red with a dextrally-coiled silver conch shell (Turbinellapyrum) at its centre.

The king of the state was accorded a 19-gun salute, the second-highest among the honorary gun salutes that were granted by the British Empire to honour the heads of the princely states. The state government took many progressive steps on the socio-economic front and the state was one among the best of princely states, with reputed achievements in education, political administration, public work and social reforms.

An adjoined image of the coin depicts, “Trident with a date below in Malayalam” on the front side and “Hooded serpent flanked by lotus blooms, Value in Tamil below” on the backside of the coin. The 8 Cash copper coin was issued by Rani Parvathi Bai of Travancore Princely state in the 991 Malayalam calendar.

Image Courtesy: Mintage World