Siamese Coins: From Funan to the Fifth Reign by Ronachai Krisadaolarn and Vasilijs Mihailovs

Siamese Coins: From Funan to the Fifth Reign by Ronachai Krisadaolarn and Vasilijs Mihailovs.

As new hardback. Fine. First (and only) edition. Black cloth hardback with gilt, and inset metal coin replica, housed within a slipcase. 272 pages with 2,103 colour illustrations. Includes DVD on inside rear mount for Mac and PC with over 1,000 colour images.

Published by River Books, Bangkok, 2012. Now out of print and scarce. Primarily in English, with some Thai.

This is the first ever comprehensive book about Thai coins and ethnographic monies in English. It covers the time period from the earliest proto-state up to the introduction of the baht currency system. It describes the development of Thai money through a continuous economicohistorical review with excerpts from a variety of sources, including the Sukhothai inscriptions, the Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya, the records of individual Dutch, French and Portuguese travellers and unpublished documents from the Royal Archive.

Also featured are over 1,000 specimens of the coins which have circulated in modern-day Thailand and its tributary states. Included are a selection of Thai documents from Rama IV's reign dealing with the emission of new currency, counterfeits and money reforms. 

A unique feature of this publication and the enclosed DVD are the high-resolution photographs, which catalogue over 1,000 specimens of coins and other forms of money. These photographs include images from the National Museum and leading private collections, which have circulated in Siam and its tributary states up to the Fifth Reign.

Weight 1.9kg unpacked.

Dimensions in slipcase: 298mm high x 226mm wide x 30mm deep.