I am wondering how Europeans coming into Surat port dealt with Indian money. They had to, as trading silver was one of the principal reasons for the Europe - India - China/Japan trade. Would they have delivered themselves to a shroff, who intermediated at the mint? Would they have their own agent in Surat, who'd speak the language, knew the prices and which palms to grease? Or would they have tried to figure it out themselves?
The VOC ships had a captain and a merchant on board, but the merchant was often more powerful than the captain. Some of these merchants were quite capable of reading and speaking Asian languages. One of them became an esteemed aide to the emperor of Japan. Still, local circumstances must have been a challenge...
Peter
