Edward Thomas (antiquarian) facts for kids
Edward Thomas (born December 31, 1813 – died February 10, 1886) was an important English civil servant who worked for the East India Company. He became famous for his many writings about ancient Indian history and artifacts.
Life Story
Edward Thomas was born on December 31, 1813. His father was Honoratus Leigh Thomas. Edward went to school at the East India College at Haileybury, which was a special college for people who wanted to work in India.
In 1832, he traveled to India to start his job with the East India Company. He worked in the Bengal region. However, Edward often had poor health. This meant he had to take several breaks and return to England for sick leave. In 1852, a very important person named Lord Dalhousie offered him a high-ranking job as the foreign secretary for the Indian government. But because of his health, Edward had to turn down this offer.
For a short time, Edward worked as a judge in Delhi. Later, he became the main judge for the Saugor and Nerbudda territory. In 1857, he retired from his job and received a pension. For the rest of his life, Edward focused on his passion: studying ancient history and artifacts, especially from Asia. He attended meetings of groups that studied these topics and wrote many papers.
His hard work was recognized when he was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1871. This is a very high honor for scientists and scholars. In 1884, he was also given the title of Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire. Edward Thomas passed away in Kensington on February 10, 1886.
His Important Works
Edward Thomas made huge discoveries in several areas of study. He was especially good at numismatics, which is the study of coins. He studied old coins from places like Bactria, Indo-Scythia, and Sassanian Persia. He also studied Indian metrology, which is about ancient Indian systems of measurement. Another area he explored was Persian gems and old writings.
His important work was recognized by many groups. Besides being a Fellow of the Royal Society, he became a correspondent for the Institute of France in 1873. He was also an honorary member of the Russian Academy.
Some of his most important books include:
- Chronicles of the Pathan Kings of Delhi (first published in 1847, then a bigger version in 1871)
- His edited version of James Prinsep's Essays on Indian Antiquities and Useful Tables (published in two volumes in 1858), where he added his own notes.
- Jainism or The Early Faith of Asoka
Other books and papers he wrote were:
- Coins of the Kings of Ghazni (1847, 1858)
- Initial Coinage of Bengal (1886, 1873)
- Early Sassanian Inscriptions (1868)
- Ancient Indian Weights (1874), which was part of a new series called Numismata Orientalia that he helped edit.
- The Revenue of the Mughal Empire (1871, 1882)
Edward Thomas also wrote many shorter articles. A lot of these appeared in a magazine called the Numismatic Chronicle between 1847 and 1883. Even more of his writings were published in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. He was a member of this society for 40 years and served as its treasurer for 25 years.
