Udupi: Meet Banker Radhakrishna - King of Coins

Pics: Inchara Digitals
Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (PS/VA)

Udupi, Mar 25: Keen interest and efforts put in by a man named Kumble Radhakrishna from past 23 years has made him own a treasure of his own.

Enthusiastically travelling around the nation Radhakrishna has collected about 1360 coins of 115 nations of pre-historic era. The variety of coins collected by him has been displayed at Museum of Corporation bank, Udupi branch for public viewing.

Kumble Radhakrishna who is an employee of Corporation Bank has had immense interest towards collection of old coins. His interest in this venture was backed by an unflinching perseverance.

He has a collection of coins ranging from pre-historical period ie 2,600 years old to that of 20th century. Out of these 80% coins are of silver, rest are of coper and black metals. Coins belong to the ruling period of Magada, Maurya, Shathavahan, Kadamba, Kushana, Chutukalananda, Gupta, Mogal, Hyder, Tippu Sultan, Krishna Devaraya, Thughalak, Gajni among others.

Coins from England, Hong-Kong, Mauritius, West Indies, Africa, Fiji, Canada, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, USA, Philippines, Portugal, Netherlands, China, Germany, Nepal, Australia, Tibet, likewise from 115 different countries’ coins are in his collection.

Though Radhakrishna is of Kumble, he was born in Chitthur of Andhra Pradesh. He finished his primary, higher education there and joined corporation bank in the year 1975. His friend Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari’s father Dr C A Rajagopalachari was fond of this hobby.

Radhakrishna says he was inspired by him and was given training from 1973 to 1987 on numismatics.

Radhakrishna, who has strong command over six languages has worked in various braches of Corp bank like Chittur, Nijamabad, Bangalore, Hassan, Mumbai, Rajkot and Mangalore. Amidst all these, he was given a special call by the RBI to work in its Monetary Museum at Mumbai for 4 years.

Indo-Greek Coins

At the Museum 2230 years old (230 BC) silver coins of Indo-Greek period attract the viewers. Coins of various dynasties such as Indo-Euthydemus, Indo- Eukrutides, Indo-Philux, Indo-Senas, Indo-Parthiyan, Indo-Danish, Indo-French and Indo-Roman among others are also displayed.

Coins depicting gods prevailed during the rule of East India Company in Ramanath (presently in Tamil Nadu) and during the rule of Vijaynagara kings, and such coins in which lord Ganesh, Hanumantha, Rama Laxmana, Narasimha have been carved are also seen in the museum.

He has a collection of 144 crown size coins of 60 different countries of 17th or 18th century, each weighing 25 grams and all of pure silver.

Support by Corporation Bank

The ardent work of Radhakrishna was supported by managing director of the Bank Ramnath Pradeep who opened the museum in Udupi for displaying the old coins. This was inaugurated by finance minister Pranab Mukharjee on March 12 (the inauguration was done in New Delhi symbolically).

For the ones visiting the museum located in the premises of Corporation Bank Udupi, Radhakrishna eagerly explains about the history of every coin in languages like Kannada, English, Hindi, Konkani, Telugu, and Tamil.

Radhakrishna says the word Rupayi is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Ruppia’. Ruppia in Sanskrit means silver. As in earlier centuries coins used to be made out of silver, hence it was called as Rupayi.

For lay people, coins are just money with different denominations, but for those with enthusiastic eyes, they explain the history of particular land.