Metal currency was minted in
India well before the Mauryan empire (322-185
BC). The first Indian coins were minted around
the 6th century BC by the Ma hajanapadas of the
Indo-Gangetic Plain. The coins of this period
were punch marked coins called Puranas,
Karshapanas or Pana. Early coins of India (400
BC 100 A.D.) were made of silver and copper,
and bore animal and plant symbols on them.