July 21, 2011 – It is with great sadness that we report the death of Nicholas Rhodes last week. Nick made a huge contribution to the study of Asian numismatics, particularly in the ‘Himalayan’ series. His knowledge of the coinages of Tibet, Nepal, Kashmir, Garhwal, Sikkim, Bhutan, Cooch Bihar and Assam, and its adjoining ‘foothill’ territories was second to none. He was also very knowledgeable on Chinese, Tibetan, Central Asian, Burmese, Acenese and Malay coinages. His publications will continue to be standard references for a long time to come.
An actuary by profession, since retirement Nick had been working on the Tibetan and Nepalese coins at the British Museum – he had completed his study of the Tibetan coins, and was still working on the Nepalese coins.
Nick held several important numismatic offices. He was the Treasurer of the Royal Numismatic Society (1973-2002), and was also Secretary General of the Oriental Numismatic Society.
Nick is survived by his wife Deki and son John.
by Shailendra Bandhare, Robert Bracey, Helen Wang