Monday, May 21, 2007

Coin Krishnappa

Friendship matters much esp. to sustain hobbies. I was fortunate to bump into an old gentleman that was to provide the needed impetus as well as fatherly affection.

Mr. Krishnappa, dhoti-clad, had set his eye on some coin at the street-hawking-coin-seller. I was there doing the same. Curiosity triggered me to know about this man. We soon ended up at his house close by to see his ‘small collection’. Little did I know that I was with a reputed numismatist and little did he know that he was to show it to the grandson of his family lawyer who had known him for 50 years and had won many cases for them. Further conversation revealed all those facts.

His ‘small’ collection, meticulously arranged country-wise in a neat table-showcase, was by no means small! Collected for over fifty years, purely for the sake of the hobby it was one of the best in the city. One great quality - he had no commercial attachment to it. Another - he was always happy to show it all those interested, but never exhibited anywhere. All these and much more impressed me.

Being his lawyer’s grandson, I got special affection during my subsequent weekly visits, which gave him as much joy as I. He used to encourage me with his extra coins and even album sheets. With the enthusiasm of a child, he would show me new releases and tell about new developments in the numismatic world. He would willingly help identify any old coins from his catalogue. Naturally, our friendship went beyond the hobby itself.

On one of my usual visits, I was shocked to see his daughter’s sad face – he had passed away just a few days before. Our friendship, though lasting for just about 8-9 years, ended as abruptly as it began on the street in 1979.

I never regret that errand to the coin-seller when a lecturer at my degree college was absent that hour. My interest in numismatics waned, with his loss, but not the memory of this wonderful, kind-hearted man. The generation gap was no matter at all.

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