5 Tical Late To Type Opium Weight, Bodawpaya-Campaigns

This Late To type opium weight features an octagonal base with three horizontal lines around it, which sometimes resemble steps. The figure has a 9-rayed verification star mark, used on To weights introduced by Bodawpaya during his war campaign from 1785 to 1787 AD. These marks may symbolize the "Dharma Chakra" - the wheel of law.

The To figure has an elevated, horse-like tail with three spikes, each representing a country within the empire (Burma, Lanna, and Ayutthaya). The chest of the animal is decorated with a double chain of small circles.

Provenance: Ex. Private Collection, Netherlands.

Culture & Date: Burmese, Approx. 1785 - 1787 AD.

Literature Reference: Leif Bering Mikkelsen. Opium Weights - Old Animal-shaped Bronze Weights from Southeast Asia: Commercial, Ethnic, Symbolic, and Historical Perspectives. 2017.

Condition: Very fine.

Dimensions:

• Weight: 5 Tical (84 grams)
• Height: 4.1 cm
• Length: 3 cm
• Width: 2.5 cm

Historical Context:

The production of lion-like bronze weights largely ceased around 1826 following Burma's loss in the First Anglo-Burmese War. The To type weight lost its significance and relevance when Burma came under foreign rule, as these weights were a symbol of the ruler's authority—without a ruling monarch, their symbolic production no longer made sense.