Ajay Seth’s coin collection: Intrinsic evaluation of civilization through time

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, August 23:Former Indian Air Force Officer, Ajay Kumar Seth (57) who retired from service in 1996, joined the Indian Railways where he continues to give his disciplined and dedicated service. A resident of Shankarpur under Parsudih police station, Ajay continues to nurture his unabated passion for coin collection that is a treasure-trove of history providing an intrinsic evaluation of civilization through time.

Seth’s collection includes extremely ancient coins that are invaluable parts and parcels of his ‘Solomon’s Mines.’ He has procured and curated a unique collection of coins from India and other countries among which feature India’s oldest currencies – Cowrie, Dhamri, Dhela and Ana. A passion nurtured through childhood, the 57 year old Ajay Kumar Seth has an impressive collection of ancient coins from early times, which he takes great care of. He believes, “Very few people possess such a unique collection. I ardently urge politicians, officials and social activists to showcase this collection in the right place so that people get an opportunityto learn and understand their cultures that have passed through the ports of time. India was once a land of affluence, with a lifestyle and prosperity that was entirely distinct from the rest of the world. This is reflected in our ancient coins. The significance of currency has changed entirely in modern times. The youth of today are largely unaware of these historical testimonials. Only those over 50 years of age might be familiar with old coins, while those under 50 might have only heard of them in passing or through word of mouth.Children of the present era are only familiar with paper money and dollars. I would suggest that if you want to defy age, keep your hobbies alive, as hobbies have no age limit.”

This multi-faceted man has another pursuit, that of story writing. This passion may not be as compulsive as his passion for coin collecting but Ajay does take this side of his pursuit seriously. One of his stories, ‘Betrayal’ found a pride of place in a collection of short stories entitled ‘Infidelity’ which received the 2022 Literary Award. (w/gsd)