The primary unit of money in Nepal is the Nepalese Rupee, which was established in 1932 to replace the former unit of currency, the silver Mohar. I think this is one of the prettiest and most intriguing coins ever minted by a government. The design itself is lovely, resembling a mandala, with fascinating geometry. The writing on the coin is executed in the beautiful Devanagari script, which only adds to the artistry of the coin.
So beautiful is the Nepalese Rupee, that an artist who works with pretty world coins made this one into a necklace, which I have.
This coin was minted in the Nepalese year २०३६ (2036, reckoned by the Vikram Samvat calendar) which corresponds to 1979 in the Gregorian Calendar of the Western world. Since the deity Shiva is considered the guardian of the realm, a trishula is depicted on the obverse (front) of the coin, within the mandala. It is predominately this trishula and the mandala surrounding it that attracted me to this lovely coin.
Within the mandala is lettering that mentions His Highness, Birendra Bir Bikram Shah, who was King during the time this coin was minted. He was the eldest son of King Mahendra, who was the ruler named on the 2-Paisa coin previously mentioned in my blog. Part of the Nepalaese wording reads: "म शाहदे व" (I am honored), so I am thinking His Majesty placed this message on the coin, stating that he was honored to serve the people in his position.
On the reverse of the coin, a dagger is shown. The wording includes: श्री श्री श्री गो र ख ना थ (Shree Shree Shree Gorkhanath, a reference to Shiva) stamped in an arc around the coin, श्री भवानी (a reference to Goddess Bhavani), एक रुपैयाँ ("Ek Rupaiya" = One Rupee), and नेपाल (Nepal). The rim is beautifully beaded, and the edge is reeded for a lovely finishing touch.
At current exchange rates (Nov-2018), one Nepalese Rupee (NPR) is equal to 0.0086 USD, so 117 of them would equal USD $1.
