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Johor Sultanate Tin Coin Katun (now a part of Malaysia)

Started by mnfadzlyaj, April 07, 2013, 06:04:18 PM

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mnfadzlyaj



Category    Coin > Malay Sultanate Coin > Johor
Country Of Origin    Johore (Now a state, a part of Malaysia)
Date    Unknown
Grade    about Very Fine
Denomination    One Katun
Shape    Hexagonal
Weight    
Diameter    
Thickness    -
Composition    Tin
Population    Unknown
Reference    SS30 in Saran Singh's The Encylopedia of Coins of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei 1500-1967
Mint    -
Category    Normal Circulation Coinage
Demonetized    Yes
Engraver/Designer    -
Variety    Several die varieties with different writing style, numbers of dot and symbol has been reported
Edge    Plain
Obverse    In Jawi, "Haza Al Masruf" - This is petty money
Reverse    In Jawi, "Dar al Johora" - Of the City of Johor
Edge    Plain



Just sharing!   

Figleaf

This coin is quite difficult to find in bad condition and yours is very well preserved. Congratulations. It seems to have more pusat than the coin illustrated in Saran Singh. It would be interesting to have its weight (SS mentions 1.71 grams and suggests a wide variation in weight) and diameter (SS: 18-20 mm).

Would "dar al Johora" not suggest that the coin was produced in Johor city?

I think "katun" is a general name for small tin coins, not a denomination.

In Indonesia, such coins were not used individually. They were bound into packages with rattan with a value expressed in silver coins, such as Spanish colonial pesos. Do you know if these coins were used individually or in packages in Johor?

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

mnfadzlyaj

Hi Peter.

Yes. This is considered top grade for the katuns that can be found. I believe the reason my specimen is in better condition can be traced back from the method of its discovery. I believe at the time of Saran Singh compiling these tin coins, these tin coins are very scarce and if available, I believe they are discovered from the ground surface. Due to properties of tin that are prone to atmospheric condition, these 300+ hundreds years old coin corrodes easily. In case of my specimens, they were acquired beneath the river, trapped inside a thick mud. I guess may be it was under this condition that it was preserved in such good condition.

About the "dar al Johora" I personally thinks that it refers to "belong to Johor" and maybe this could have bring the same context of "made from" "for" etc.

Several Malay Sultanate numismatists in Malaysia and me believes that the denomination of this coins is already lost in history - due to unavailability of literature reference from those eras. I am unable to quote reference from past literature works such as by Gardner and Pridmore, but I believe the word Katun were adapted after consulting with the local people, as adapted by M.Pridmore and Saran Singh. Hence the work katun may refer to a denomination, or may refer to only a small tin coin.

But problem arise if the katun were only attributed to small tin coins as I have discovered many new tin coins in many shapes and sizes.

Indonesian coins is not in my interest area, except some Indonesian coins that were found in Johor. So far many Aceh tin and gold coins were found in Johor, and some Makassar and Bantam coins, but no Palembang coins. So sad that there are no source, evidence, or reference to trace how they used the coins, the exchange rate even the name of it. So far I believe this coin is used individually, except some were found being holed - probably to imitate Chinese coin for their ease of use.

By the way, this coin is measured 1.9g and having diameter of 20mm.

I will post more Johor coins to share here.


mnfadzlyaj



This is another tin coin from Johor Sultanate. As there are no ruler's name inscribed nor date, I cannot say the exact date of when this coin circulates.

From Saran Singh's, it is coded SS31. At obverse, in Jawi, "Malik al Adil" surrounding a central dot, meaning The Just Ruler. Reverse is blank.

The holes in the coins is due to insufficient metal flow during its casting. Probably there are air trapped or the casting die was not hot enough.

mnfadzlyaj



This one is coded SS25 by Saran Singh. Currently I am researching about this type.