Water Lily 5 Poisha Bangladesh Authentic Coin Money for Jewelry and Craft Making (Lotus) (Blue Lotus) (Star Lotus)

Water Lily 5 Poisha Bangladesh Authentic Coin Money for Jewelry and Craft Making (lotus) (blue lotus) (star lotus)

Obverse: The National Emblem of Bangladesh (a water lily bordered on two sides by rice sheaves and a three-leaf clover of tea leaves above and four stars representing the four principles of the first constitution of Bangladesh in 1972: nationalism, secularism, socialism, and democracy)

Reverse: A gear, a swing plow and a tractor pulling a plow with the country name above and the denomination above the date to the right and the face value below

Lettering:
বাংলাদেশ
৫
১৯৯৪
পাঁচ পয়সা

Translation:
Bangladesh
5
1994
Five Poisha

Features
Issuer Bangladesh
Period People's Republic (1971-date)
Type Standard circulation coin
Years 1977-1994
Value 5 Poisha
0.05 BDT = USD 0.00054
Currency Taka (1972-date)
Composition Aluminium
Weight 1.4300 g
Diameter 22.4 mm
Thickness 1.5 mm
Shape Square with rounded corners
Technique Milled
Orientation Medal alignment ↑↑
Number N# 1978
References KM# 10, Schön# 10

Wikipedia:
Nymphaea nouchali, often known by its synonym Nymphaea stellata, or by common names blue lotus, star lotus,[citation needed] red and blue water lily, blue star water lily or manel flower is a water lily of genus Nymphaea. It is native to southern and eastern parts of Asia, and is the national flower of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. In Sanscrit it is utpala. This species is sometimes considered to include the blue Egyptian lotus Nymphaea caerulea. In the past, taxonomic confusion has occurred, with the name Nymphaea nouchali incorrectly applied to Nymphaea pubescens.

This aquatic plant is native in a broad region from Afghanistan, the Indian subcontinent, to Taiwan, southeast Asia, and Australia. It has been long valued as a garden flower in Thailand and Myanmar to decorate ponds and gardens. In its natural state, N. nouchali is found in static or slow-flowing aquatic habitats of low to moderate depth.

N. nouchali is a day-blooming nonviviparous plant with submerged roots and stems. Part of the leaves are submerged, while others rise slightly above the surface. The leaves are round and green on top; they usually have a darker underside. The floating leaves have undulating edges that give them a crenellated appearance. Their size is about 20–23 cm and their spread is 0.9 to 1.8 m.

This water lily has a beautiful flower which is usually violet blue in color with reddish edges. Some varieties have white, purple, mauve, or fuchsia-colored flowers, hence its name red and blue water lily. The flower has four or five sepals and 13-15 petals that have an angular appearance, making the flower look star-shaped from above. The cup-like calyx has a diameter of 11–14 cm.

Symbolism
It was also the National flower of the former defunct Hyderabad State. N. nouchali is the national flower of Bangladesh. A pale blue-flowered N. nouchali is the national flower of Sri Lanka, where it is known as nil mānel or nil mahanel (නිල් මානෙල්).

In Sri Lanka, this plant usually grows in buffalo ponds and natural wetlands. Its beautiful aquatic flower has been mentioned in Sanskrit, Pali, and Sinhala literary works since ancient times under the names kuvalaya, indhīwara, niluppala, nilothpala, and nilupul as a symbol of virtue, discipline, and purity. Buddhist lore in Sri Lanka claims that this flower was one of the 108 auspicious signs found on Prince Siddhartha's footprint. It is said that when Buddha died, lotus flowers blossomed everywhere he had walked in his lifetime.

Claire Waight Keller included the plant to represent Sri Lanka in Meghan Markle's wedding veil, which included the distinctive flora of each Commonwealth country.

N. nouchali might have been one of the plants eaten by the Lotophagi of Homer's Odyssey.

N. nouchali is used as an ornamental plant because of its spectacular flowers, and is most commonly used for the traditional and cultural festivals in Sri Lanka. It is also popular as an aquarium plant under the name "dwarf lily" or "dwarf red lily". Sometimes, it is grown for its flowers, while other aquarists prefer to trim the lily pads, and just have the underwater foliage.

N. nouchali is considered a medicinal plant in Indian Ayurvedic medicine under the name ambal; it was mainly used to treat indigestion.

Like all water lilies or lotuses, its tubers and rhizomes can be used as food items; they are eaten usually boiled or roasted. In the case of N. nouchali, its tender leaves and flower peduncles are also valued as food.

The dried plant is collected from ponds, tanks, and marshes during the dry season and used in India as animal forage.