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February 2016

Chinese Museum Offers Reward for Deciphering Ancient Gold Coin Inscription thumbnail

The Cultural Relics Bureau of Jinshi City (湖南省津市市文物局), located in Hunan Province (湖南省), is offering a reward of $1,500 (RMB 10,000) to anyone who can decipher the inscription on some ancient gold coins in the city’s museum, according to an article published February 16, 2016 in the Beijing Daily (北京日报). The six gold coins, which [...]

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Song Dynasty Biscuit Coins

Song Dynasty Biscuit Coins thumbnail

During the reign (998-1022) of Emperor Zhenzong (真宗) of the Northern Song dynasty (北宋), a small quantity of cash coins were minted that had very broad rims and/or were very thick.  Chinese coin collectors refer to these coins as bing qian (饼钱) which translates as “biscuit” coins or “cake” coins. This was not the first [...]

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Shun Tian Yuan Bao Charm

Shun Tian Yuan Bao Charm thumbnail

This beautifully engraved and gilded shun tian yuan bao (顺天元寶) charm dating from the Tang Dynasty (唐朝) appeared at an auction in China in 2015. Shun tian yuan bao coins were issued during the years 759-761 by Shi Siming (史思明), a rebel leader who seized control of the Tang dynasty capital of Luoyang (洛阳).  Luoyang [...]

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