Anmol Bharti’s treasure chest has a 100-year-old coin

Tribune News Service

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Amritsar, February 17

Anmol Bharti (15), has the most prized treasure a child can dream of, something that needs a separate room space for itself. The youngest numismatic collector in the city has preserved pieces of world history, some even century old.

The young enthusiast put up an exhibition at Amrit Senior Secondary School and was surprised to find 3,000 visitors on a single day. “I always wanted to know about the history of our world in a different way, other than the text-book accounts or theoretical knowledge. I met a numismatic collector and through his knowledge, I got curious about the currency and stamps, as they too are a reflection of any civilization’s history and legacy. So began my interest in these small yet significant pieces of history,” says Anmol. His collection comprises of 200 vintage, rare currency notes and coins, some representing global history.

Starting at the age of 10, Anmol developed a liking for rare currency. While some were a parting gift from visiting relatives, others he sourced from collectors in Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai and other cities.“I have lot of post-Partition era currency, with old to new issues of one-rupee denominations. The currency issued after 1970 forms a major part of my collection and a series of one to 100 rupee notes, which is a rare set,” says Anmol. His collection also has a set of 80-year-old coins and foreign currency from Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, USA, South Africa and more. He also has an exclusive collection of currency that is over 100 years old. “I studied the currency used in India during the 1880s and the post-Partition currency in ‘aanas’ and ‘takas’. Once I got intrigued, I continued studying foreign currencies of the time,” he said. He also has special series notes.