Ancient Cambodian currency

scobienz · Post by **scobienz** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 6:42 pm

PJC has put this picture of an ancient Cambodian gold coin on his FB page.

It is from the Isanavarnam of the 7th Century, and according to PJC is likely to be the last coin issued in the kingdom until the early 16th century.

This coin was found in 2012 and was believed to be stored at the National Bank of Cambodia. Not sure if it's made its way to a museum yet . . .

Does anyone else have any good images of old currency - coins and notes? Lucky Lucan?

vladimir · Post by **vladimir** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 6:47 pm

For some obscure reason, Westline School has quite a nice collection of very old notes in their library.

Rama · Post by **Rama** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 6:57 pm

NBC published this video yesterday in celebration of the 37th anniversary of the introduction of the riel.

springrain · Post by **springrain** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:02 pm

Wow! More info here:

http://www.academia.edu/9156090/First_C ... Discovered

vladimir · Post by **vladimir** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:33 pm

I lived here for years before I found out that the word 'loi' derives from the French name Louis.

Lucky Lucan · Post by **Lucky Lucan** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:39 pm

vladimir wrote:I lived here
for years before I found out that the word 'loi' derives from the French name Louis.

I'm not disputing that as I don't know where the word comes from, but why would it be called after that name?

vladimir · Post by **vladimir** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:42 pm

iirc, the Khmers pronounced the name Louis incorrectly - it was a coin long ago, during the French occupation/colonial era with a likeness of Louis on it - so..ot mien loi...I don't have Louis

ផោមក្លិនស្អុយ · Post by **ផោមក្លិនស្អុយ** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:49 pm

I can't believe that this is true...
Maybe it is but it doesn't ring true to me. Even nowadays with t'internet available Khmer folk have no idea about foreign rules. Back then, even with a colonial ruler - I can't believe they knew his name.
Jeepers, most Khmer folk don't know the name of 'Bong next door'!

springrain · Post by **springrain** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 8:12 pm

I'm no numismatist, but I do like Literature. You often find reference to Livres, Sous & deniers in post-nineteenth century Lit'. As I understand it, the Louis d'or gold coins were pretty much out of general circulation by the end of the 19th century. That the ordinary folk had had access to such currency - which would be pretty much essential for it to be assimilated into everyday usage - I would doubt.

Rama · Post by **Rama** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 8:23 pm

Headley 1977 Khmer-English Dictionary entry;

លុយ luy

1 v to walk (in shallow water only), to wade; to go across, to cross; to step on. see លយ Vietnamese lôi 'to wade, swim.'

2 n money, cent (derived from ល្វី (Louis), name of a French king).

springrain · Post by **springrain** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 9:07 pm

Then that must have been based on the rule of Emperor Louis Napoleon III, not the King Louis III, as mistakenly reported here:

While the word “Luy” dervived from the name of King Louis III of France, who introduced French currency to the Khmer Kingdom.

http://www.cambosastra.org/a-brief-hist ... -currency/

ផោមក្លិនស្អុយ · Post by **ផោមក្លិនស្អុយ** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 9:08 pm

Well done Vlad - still don't really believe it though...

springrain · Post by **springrain** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 9:26 pm

I don't trust that Headley 1977 'definition'. Can anyone find proof that there ever was a 1-cent coin in that period called a 'Louis'? I can't.

Unlikely by this piece:

Louis, also called Louis D’or, gold coin circulated in France before the Revolution. The franc and livre were silver coins that had shrunk in value to such an extent that by 1740 coins of a larger denomination were needed. The French kings therefore had gold coins struck and called after their name Louis, or louis d’or (“gold Louis”). After the Revolution, Napoleon continued the practice but called the coins “napoleons.” They had a value of 20 francs.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/louis-French-money

Lucky Lucan · Post by **Lucky Lucan** » Tue Mar 21, 2017 10:07 pm

springrain wrote:Then that must have been based on the rule of Emperor Louis Napoleon III, not the King Louis III, as mistakenly reported here:

While the word “Luy” dervived from the name of King Louis III of France, who introduced French currency to the Khmer Kingdom.

http://www.cambosastra.org/a-brief-hist ... -currency/

That was my guess too, French currency wouldn't have had images of royalty on it post revolution. Anyway, I'll look into it tomorrow, my internet is fuct. As far as I know the Indochine Piastre was the currency used during the protectorate, but I'd imagine there was a cross over period when Francs were also used. There was a Cambodian currency introduced prior to the French period. Many of the coins had chickens or the similar Cambodian phoenix type mythical creature on them. I've seen quite a few real examples, they are quite roughly stamped.