Owner Comments:
As noted by Doty (1998), 720 of these coins could be produced from a single pound of metal, and they were too small to be wrapped for shipping. Instead, they were placed loose in the casks. In line with the predominate ill-fate of the entire Madras affair, several of these casks split in shipping, and over 10,000 pieces were lost. Today, it can be challenging to find a nicely preserved example, and one needs to be careful not to unknowingly purchase a reasonably deceptive modern fantasy piece. Some of these modern fantasy pieces have been graded as genuine examples by all of the major grading companies. Please see the notes section for additional information.
Obverse: Compared to the other East India Company coinage struck by the Soho Mint, the obverse design is very plain. I assume the tiny size of the coin prevented any intricate design. The obverse design consists of a left-outward-facing lion perched on top of a tightly knotted and curved ribbon. The lion’s left foot is resting upon a ball above the ribbon, while the right foot is flexed pushing off the ribbon. The lion is holding a regal crown upright to the left side of the coin from the viewer’s perspective. The date “1803” appears immediately below the ribbon and just above the relatively thick raised rim.
Reverse: The denomination " KAS" or “CASH” appears in Persian above two parallel lines. Immediately below the denomination, the legend "I. CASH." appears just above a decorated divider with a flower in the center and radiating branches bisected by progressively smaller balls. The entire reverse design is contained within a relatively thick raised rim.
Edge: Plain
Notes: This is one of the nicest currency strike examples I have encountered. It is fully struck, retains some original red color, is fully lustrous, and free of any major imperfections relative to most of its counterparts. The only downside is that PCGS placed the coin in the holder at an angle, which makes it very difficult to photograph. I plan to reach out to have this issue corrected. As I previously mentioned, some caution is warranted as modern fantasy strikes exist. One of the easiest ways to distinguish between a genuine and modern restrike is by the weight. The modern fantasy pieces were struck on thick flans and typically weigh 1.3 grams compared to the average 0.64 grams of the genuine pieces. Beyond this diagnostic, there are numerous differences in the design, which I illustrate below.