The Puddester Collection

The Uniform Coinage of India, East India Company: Patterns, William IV, original silver Pattern Rupee, 1835 [June-August 1835], type 3, Calcutta, unsigned [by K. Dass], bust right, r.s. [Robert Saunders] on truncation, william iiii , king . in small widely-spaced lettering, rev. lotus flower above one rupee and date, all within laurel wreath with 37 berries, east india company above, yek rupiya below, edge grained, 30mm, 11.69g/6h (Prid. 178 [Sale, lot 61, this coin]; SW 1.32; KM. Pn11; cf. Fore II, 794; cf. ‘Diana’ 727). Minor hairlines in obverse field and usual weakness on iiii of King’s title, otherwise brilliant and virtually as struck, most attractive dark toning, extremely rare; one of the key coins in the entire Uniform series £10,000-£15,000

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Puddester Collection.

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Collection

A.N. Brushfield Collection, Part V, Glendining Auction (London), 2-3 November 1949, lot 194
H.M. Lingford (Bishop Auckland, UK) Collection
R.J. Ford (Detroit, MI) Collection
F. Pridmore Collection, Part II, Glendining Auction (London), 18-19 October 1982, lot 61 [from R.J.F. March 1971], ticket
Sir John Wheeler Collection, Baldwin Auction 22 (London), 2 May 2000, lot 195.

Owner’s ticket, envelope and record card.

After Metcalfe had approved the new designs as the model for the future coinage of rupees in early April 1835, further instructions were received to the effect that the value was to be expressed only in English and Persian, the date 1835 was to be frozen until further notice and the word ‘King’ was to be omitted. The last of these orders was disputed by James Prinsep, who was able to demonstrate to the Mint Committee, via a series of sketches, that the appearance of the legend on the new coin would benefit by including ‘King’. The Committee were persuaded and, once the question of whether the new coins would have plain or grained edges had been resolved, a small number of final patterns were prepared between 29 June and 17 August