A large quantity of Tang Dynasty kaiyuan tongbao (开元通宝) coins were recently unearthed at an 1,100-year-old temple in Quanzhou (泉州), Fujian Province (福建省), according to a local newspaper report.
Fuhaiyuan Temple in Quanzhou where Tang Dynasty coins were unearthed
Construction of the Fuhaiyuan (福海院) Temple in Anxi Prefecture (安溪县) began in the year 900 AD.
The temple still has such ancient cultural artifacts as a horse-trough, a medicinal vat, and a stone bathing tank.
But during a recent renovation of one of the rear halls, a buried jar containing 27.5 kilograms of ancient Chinese coins was discovered.
Kaiyuan Tongbao coins totaling 27.5 kg discovered at Fuhaiyuan Temple
All the coins have the inscription kai yuan tong bao (开元通宝) which were first cast during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD).
Experts are not sure as to why the coins were buried.
Ms. Lin Meilian (林美莲), a local official, speculates that although Fuhaiyuan would have been considered one of the larger temples during the Tang Dynasty, the coins may have been buried “to provide for a rainy day”.