JORHAT, Sept 10 � Who can tell how glittering was the coffers of the British? Yet, following the unearthing of a few silver coins of that period at Hulunguri Tea Estate under Mariani Police Station yesterday, it can be assumed that they indeed had to be quite sparkling.
It was the assistant manager of the tea estate, Kamal Kali Das, who managed to recover as many as 12 coins from the hands of the labourers who had unearthed an earthen pot with the coins in it.
Yesterday, the labourers, while digging the soil for plantation, discovered a pot with a large number of silver coins and some showpieces. According to an eyewitness, some of them had tried to hide the coins, but Kamal Kali Das, however, reached the spot in the right moment and managed to save 12 of them from the workers.
The size of the earthen pot in which the coins were found also indicated that it could easily shelter much more than just 12 coins. All the coins were Re 1 sikkas. The oldest one of these coins was of 1840, where the seal of Queen Victoria was quite obvious. Some coins were of the years 1885, 1886, 1887, 1889 and 1900, during the reign of Victoria in England.
On the other hand, the rest of the coins were released during the reign of King Edward VII. The years of release of these coins were 1907 and 1909.
When contacted, Gautom Bordoloi, District Museum Officer, Jorhat, told this Correspondent that the coins would be formally handed over by the tea garden authority on Monday to the district museum authority. He further said that the frequent recovery of relics of the British era in the Mariani area near the Assam-Nagaland border during these days bears great significance.
He also hinted at the past existence of colonial civilisation in the area, which in those days was quite remote from the town at Jorhat.
Earlier, in the middle of August last, a boat belonging to the British era was recovered from the Gangapur Ghat of river Bhogdoi at Mariani.
Some of the local people feel that a bungalow of the British sahebs was near the place where the coins were recovered yesterday.
�People should be aware of the historical value of such recovered relics rather than considering them some objects of great economic value,�� Bordoloi told this Correspondent.
