2026-09-18 Fri

The elephant held a position of great importance in ancient India, representing not only strength and royal authority but also playing a vital role in warfare and statecraft. Ancient Indian texts provide ample evidence of the attention given to the capture, training and maintenance of elephants.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra devotes separate sections to elephants, their training and their deployment in battle, describing specialised training for warfare, including fighting other elephants, attacking forts and trampling enemy forces. The text also notes that elephants from Kalinga and other eastern regions were considered among the superior varieties. The Mahabharata, too, places elephants among the four principal components of an army, alongside chariots, cavalry and infantry.

This long-standing importance of the elephant is beautifully reflected in the coinage of ancient India. Among the earliest forms of Indian coinage are punch-marked coins, which were produced by individually punching symbols onto pieces of metal rather than using a single engraved die. Their designs frequently incorporated animals, plants, geometric motifs and other symbols, offering glimpses into the artistic and cultural world of early historic India.

This silver karshapana weighing 3.36 g, attributed to the Kalinga Janapada. It is a uniface, four-punch type, with the four symbols arranged in an ABBC configuration. Among these punches is a striking depiction of an elephant walking towards the right.

The solitary elephant moving confidently to the right therefore carries significance beyond its role as a decorative motif. On this small piece of silver, it recalls the importance of elephants to ancient Indian kingship, warfare and regional identity, while also providing a visual connection with Kalinga, a region whose elephants were recognised in ancient textual traditions. In this way, the coin serves as a miniature record of the economic, artistic and cultural world of early India.