2017-03-17 Fri

Mining companies searching for granite discovered a huge hoard of ancient coins at Tonk, Jankipuram. Rajasthan in September 2016. Treasure hunters from 20 villages came down to find more. The private excavation of coins is illegal and local authorities restricted access to the area as per Section 144.

158 coins have been confiscated from villagers by 1st March and an effort to find the actual count and for handing it over to the Government. State Archaeology and Museum Department analysed the coins and a statement was released.

Before the analysis, it was believed that the coins belonged to the Samudragupta era (336 – 380 CE). But the coins were struck under the reign of different emperors.

106 coins belong to the Gupta dynasty and were minted under emperors like Samudragupta (335-380 CE), Chandragupta II (380-415 CE) and Kumaragupta (415-455 CE). Two of the coins and a terracotta bull from Kushan dynasty of the 1st century CE was also found.

Ancient Brahmi and Greek inscriptions were translated by researchers by following the standards laid down by the International Core Data Standard for Archaeological Sites and Monuments.

Experts stated that the Kushan coins feature an image of a king giving ‘ahauti‘ (inflammable item) to the fire on one side and an image of Greek god and goddesses on the other. A Greek inscription reads Shao Nano Shao, Kanishka Kushan,” or “Emperor of the emperor, Kanishka Kushan.”

Gupta coins feature Hindu deities like Saraswati the goddess of knowledge, music, and the arts.

The rarest Gupta coins feature a goddess sitting on a chair, wearing a sari, with the hair falling down over the shoulder. The image and inscriptions indicate independence and empowerment of women in ancient times. The Gupta-era coins feature a Brahmi inscription as well. It is likely that the site was used for hiding wealth.