The year was 2000 and everyone was obsessed with technology stock…everyone except for me that is. I was frantically researching another class of investments: ancient Greek gold coins. You see, the ancient Greeks were renowned for minting remarkably beautiful coinage with images of rulers, deities, animals and mythical creatures. Regardless of their subject, these coins were invariably struck in exceedingly fine style and with a three-dimensionality that was not mastered again in Europe until the late Renaissance. And none of these ancient works of numismatic art are more desirable than those struck in gold. They are the traditional apogee of fine coin collecting – the very same gems that were ravenously acquired by European nobility during the 17th and 18th centuries as they embraced all things Classical.
But in the year 2000 no one cared about ancient coins because they weren’t technology stocks. Consequently, these miniature works of Classical art could be purchased dirt cheap at the time. A mere $500 to $1000 per coin was sufficient to purchase a wide range of stunning examples in excellent condition. I desperately wanted to own some. There was only one problem. I had just graduated college and although I had landed a white collar job in the financial services sector all my money was going towards rent and student loan payments with precious little left over for coins – regardless of how beautiful they might be. But then my research took an interesting turn.
I had started thinking to myself, “What makes ancient Greek gold coins so desirable?” In my opinion, it was a combination of their subject matter (the human form, animals, mythological creatures, etc.), their fabric (small and thick globular flans, hand-struck in gorgeous high relief) and their exceedingly fine, three-dimensional style. I began feverishly researching the complete 2600-year history of global coinage until I stumbled upon a revelation: medieval gold coins from the native Hindu dynasties of South India.
These South Asian masterpieces are not ancient Greek coins, but they share almost all of the same characteristics. Struck in captivatingly high relief, these coins feature gods and goddesses, rulers, animals and the occasional mythological creature. The only difference is these coins draw on Hindu rather than Classical Western mythology for their subject matter. The Indian pieces – every bit as alluring as their ancient Greek counterparts – are rendered in a distinctly curvaceous and seductive South Asian style. Unlike Christianity in the West, medieval Hindu culture had no moralistic hang-ups surrounding the portrayal of the human form, whether man or anthropomorphic deity, and it showed. Medieval southern India was a little bit of the ancient world that time forgot, complete with war elephants, grand stone temples and powerful empires and its coinage gloriously reflected this fact.
Almost unbelievably, these undiscovered jewels were only a tenth of the price of similar ancient Greek examples. In the year 2000, $50 could buy you a gold 1/2 pagoda (1.7 to 1.8 grams) while $100 would get you a full gold pagoda (3.4 to 3.6 grams). Even I, as a semi-starving former college student, could afford prices like that!
So why did I title this article “The Coin Article I Wish I Could Write”? Because, unfortunately, the market supply of these wonderful little medieval South Indian gold coins has largely dried up. eBay typically only has a handful of examples for sale at any point in time and they are usually overpriced, poor quality specimens. Although prices are certainly higher than they were in 2000, Medieval South Indian gold coins are still beautiful little coins that provide an amazing opportunity for connoisseurship when you can find them in good condition for reasonable prices. But good luck finding them. My sincere hope is that one day more supply makes its way to the market so that others can come to appreciate these hidden gems.
