Burmese rupee

The rupee was the currency of Burma (now Myanmar) between 1852 and 1952, except for the years 1943-1945.

In 1852, Mindon, the second last king of Burma, established the Royal Mint in Mandalay (Central Burma). The dies were made in Paris, and coins were in denomination of 1 kyat, 8 pe (half kyat, pronounced "pare"), 1 mutt (quarter kyat), 1 pe and quarter pe. The obverse bore the Royal Peacock Seal, from which the coins got their name. The reverse contained the denomination and mint date (in the Burmese era, which starts from A.D. 638).

Prior to that date, porcelain poker chips brought south by Chinese merchants had been a commonly used currency.

When the British conquered Burma in 1885, they introduced the Indian rupee as currency, replacing the peacock coin kyats. Both Indian and Burmese coins were used throughout Burma, as they were of the same weight and sizes.

Until 1937, Burma was part of British India and used the same coins and banknotes as were used in India. The notes were marked either Rangoon or Burma. The first ever note to be used in Burma was the 1911 1 rupee note, bearing the newly crowned King George V.

When Burma became a separate colony in 1937, a separate issue of paper money was made for use only in Burma but no separate coinage was issued.

When the Japanese invaded Burma in 1942, they introduced a new currency, composed of the rupee, divided into 100 cents. This currency was only issued in paper form. The rupee was replaced by the kyat in 1943. In 1945, the Japanese occupation currency was declared worthless and the Burma reverted to using Indian coinage and its own rupee paper money.

Following independence in 1948, Burma introduced its own rupee currency, consisting of coins and banknotes. One rupee was divided into 16 pe (equal to the Indian anna), each of 4 pyas (equal to the Indian pice). The rupee was replaced by the kyat in 1952 at par.