Established in 1860 by the royal command of King Rama IV, the Bureau of the Royal Thai Mint is the government body responsible for the creation and production of Thai coins, medals, and royal decorations. It consists of offices and a factory, as well as a museum. It is a branch of the Treasury Department that under the Ministry of Finance. The current offices in Pathum Thani were established in 2002 and are located in a new building known as Rohng Kasahp Rangsit, built on a ca. 126 rai plot of land. It was officially opened on 2 July 2003 by Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. In the front garden are various giant statues that represent photduang bullet money from different periods, as well as a couple of Heaton presses that in 1903 were newly installed at then Royal Mint on Chao Fah Road. There are also large water ponds filled with lotus flowers, the symbol of Pathum Thani, whose name actually means ‘Lotus City’. In each of the corners of the portico leading to the entrance of the foyer are antique decommissioned machines formerly used in coin minting in Thailand, namely a Birmingham Mint pressing machine from Britain; a French engraving machine from V. Janvier in Paris; a Birmingham Mint balance scale from Britain; and a British blanking machine from Taylor & Challen Ltd. in Birmingham. The foyer of the Mint has a small shop with books and coins, a scale model of the complex, and quite creative, the handrails of the staircases consist of elongated metal wire baskets filled with near baseball-sized replica photduang. 回