Was given this from an old student of mine, not too sure, can't really find anything on it... :headbang:
Updated with a better picture!!! the very top picture & very bottem one are the same. The 2 middle ones are the same... 2 pics of each side.
Though I am not an expert I was comparing the symbols on this coin to a chart of Chinese characters and found a character that matched.
The English translation is atrocious, but I have located your coin at this Chinese web site: http://translate.google.co.jp/trans...ction.artxun.com/paimai-55970-279845593.shtml P.S. The characters are read from top to bottom, right to left. P.P.S. The coin is apparently dated 1856.
Well now I want to know what it says!!! LOL Kinda like saying you have a secret but can't share it... hahaha Will you P.M what it means or a site where I can decode it? Which one do you think is in better condition? The one on the site or this one? You rock btw for finding that!!! Kinda hard if you can't translate it... lol:thumb:
I'll have my husband get that when he gets home, more excitement for him When this was given to him, he was told by the person that is was a chess piece of the Ching dynasty. We never really looked into it, just thought it was a cool silver coin
Here's a website about your coin in a little more understandable English. If your coin is real (and that's a big IF), it might be worth a considerable amount of money. http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/7012774
You're right, there are some characters that are different. I will have to take a better look at your coin.
Wasn't sure if you saw this? http://translate.googleusercontent.....shtml&usg=ALkJrhju0_pPnezooFchGCt4bjCFAk5OOQ That's it isn't it?
There are a couple of discrepancies I can't reconcile On one side of your coin, there is 商郁森盛 and on the other side, there is 重壹両銀 I can't yet find a coin that has this combination of front and back. I'm at a little disadvantage right now because I'm at work and can't do a proper search at this time.
That's cool! I"m glad your helping.. hard from here not knowing how to read it! So just your comments are helping me find more sites then I was! Thanks for everything you've done so far!
Unfortunately, I am not an expert on Chinese coins. I basically used my knowledge of the Japanese pronunciations of the Chinese characters to track down your coin. If you want to determine whether it's real or not, you can hope that an expert on Chinese coins can help you (there are at least a couple here at CoinTalk), or you can send it to a grading service for authentication. Good luck!