1695 - Dutch India
Negapatnam - Stiver

One Stiver copper coin issued by the Dutch Mint in Negapatnam for circulation in Lanka. Codrington refers to as Twenty Five Cash.

SPECIFICATIONS
DenominationStiver
Alloy Copper
Type Struck
Diameter 24.5 mm
Thickness 8.5 mm
Weight Legal27.46±0.75 gms
Weight 31.59 gms
Shape Round
Edge Plain
Die Axis -15°
Mint Negapatnam
negapatnam_Stiver_cud_obverse negapatnam_Stiver_cud_reverse
Scholten #1244 ; Dutch India KM #28
Obverse : A degenerated human Facing figure of god Kali of Tanjore. Above to left OO two annulets. To right over the "left shoulder" an object commonly called the "club" and a thick dot. Sides end in dot which with the two additional rows; (3 dots and 2 dots below) form a tight 7-dot motif on the breast. Below 4 dots with tails pointing down. All within dot circle.
Reverse : Crude Tamil legend Nakapattanam divided by a horizontal line enclosed in a dotted circle.

This coin is listed as very rare in Scholten who states that a large number of die-varieties with narrow, tall or broad "body", high and round "sholders". Codrinton points out that the obverse is somewhat similer to the Viraraya Fanam. Although they bore the name Negapatnam on the reverse they were intended principally for Lanka.

Scholten computes 3.432 grams per doit, and 27.432 grams for Stiver. Mitchiner gives 28.53 grams for Grogan Auction lot 495. Scholten says a Negapatnam 1 cash = 1.3725 grams Codrington calls this coin 25 Cash, and if this is the case should be 34.32 grams, or 10 times the weight of a coin called by Scholten as a Doit.

Therefore with respect to the mean legal weight, the coin shown above is 15% over that given by Scholten and 9% under if computed from Codrington's value. I need to check the weight of other specimens in Museum collections before suspecting its Authenticity.

Text edited from
* Ceylon Coins and Currency By H. W. Codrington. Colombo 1924
  NEGAPATNAM Chapter X Dutch Page 138
The Coins of the Dutch Overseas Territories- 1601-1948 by C. Scholten, 1953,
  Amsterdam: Jacques Schulman. Chapter X NEGAPATNAM page 138.

This Fine+ grade coin was scanned at 300 dpi and displayed at 250 dpi. It was obtained in 2001 December from collector Chrysantha Goonatelleke in Lanka.