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Is Pune sitting on more pots of gold? |
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By: Kaumudi Gurjar |
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Date:
2008-11-10 |
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Place: Pune |
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The discovery 847 ancient gold coins here have fuelled rumours about the possibility of more such finds.
Kaumudi Gurjar finds out what the experts have to say
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O mere Sona re Sona re... 847 ancient gold coins were unearthed at the construction site of a swimming pool in N V Gadgil School of Shanivar Peth area. pic/mandar tannu | Though the city has been buzzing with excitement over the find of 847 ancient gold coins and the possibility of some more, city-based experts have warned that the chances of another discovery in the vicinity are thin.
Said Amol Bankar, an expert on ancient coins, "There was a practice of hoarding coins to deal with any financial or political crisis. So, the chances of another discovery in near-by areas are rare. If we consider past excavations, such discoveries end up being stand-alone incidents. It is unlikely that Pune is sitting on a pot of gold."
Of the 847 coins, 34 are mohars weighing about 11.5 gm each, dating back to the time of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. The remaining 813 are Venetian ducats, which were used between the 13th and 18th century.
Their value
Though the police have pegged the value of the coins at Rs 42 lakh, senior historian Gajanan Mehendale said, "That's the intrinsic value. The value from the point of view of antiquity is entirely a different matter."
According to Baldwin Auction catalogue, the value of the ducats, which weigh 3 to 3.5 gm, is 95 to 150 pounds, said Bankar.
Shedding light on how these coins must have travelled to Pune, Mehendale said since there were trade links between India and Britain, it wasn't surprising that Venetian coins had found their way to Pune.
The coins were found by three construction workers deployed at the construction site of a swimming pool in N V Gadgil School of Shanivar Peth area. They attempted to steal the gold coins, but were arrested.
The police seized 425 coins from them and the remaining from a Khadki-based jeweller, Surajbhan Agarwal, to whom they had sold the rest.
Before this...
There have been only two such discoveries from Pune district:
1945: 460 silver and copper alloy coins dating back to the 12th century were discovered at Urali Kanchan.
1974: 1,519 sliver coins from the 2nd to 4th century AD were found at Rajangaon. |
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