A Change of Pace

Money comes in all shapes and sizes, and these coins are not the usual 3-4 grams of silver in the form of a Roman denarius, nor a Roman AE, or a Greek drachm or tetradrachm that I have more often posted. Here are three "coins" that are all unusual in size and some in shape (with a U.S. quarter for scale):

The Chinese "Spade Money" was issued during the Interregnum of Wang Mang (王莽), between Great Western and Eastern Han Empire in China. This Huobu (貨布) coin was issued in 14-23 AD. The word "貨, Huo" means "Money" and "布, bu" means "Spade". Size: 58 x 23 x 2 mm, 15.0g. Wang Mang was a usurper and founder of the Xin dynasty. Wang Mang's monetary reforms were at least contributing factors to rebellion and his death at the hands of rebels in AD 23.

Below is an even larger "coin" - a 98g Silver "Tiger Tongue" Lat, 2 Tamlung (8 Baht), from the Kingdom of Loas in AD 1591-1707. Obv: Two rows of raised ovoids down each side. The silver content varies, mixed with copper, this one particularly good silver.

The third coin is from the Ptolemaic Kingdom, Ptolemy IV Philopator, 221-205 BC, AE 43 (Drachm), 72.0g, Alexandria, Egypt
Obv: Head of Zeus Ammon facing right, wearing a diadem with floral ornament above the forehead, dotted border
Rev: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ, eagle with closed wings standing to left on thunderbolt. Between legs, ΔΙ. In left field, cornucopia adorned by fillets

What other unusual coins, large or small, might show up in this thread?

 

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The Tiger Tongue is impressive.

 

I really like the tiger tongue.

Here’s another coin type from Asia that’s a bit odd and curious, the Japanese Bu:


Japan, 2 Bu-ban-kin

Edo mint 1868-69 AD (Meiji year 2-3).

Obverse: Kiri crests top and bottom, in the center the value

Lettering: 分 二 Translation: 2 Bu

Reverse: Characters for the Mint Official and his signature

Lettering: 光 次 Translation: Mitsutsugu

Size: 19.8 x 12.0mm Weight: 2.98g

Composition: Electrum Conservation: gVF

The obverse has Kiri crests above and below. These crests represent the flower of the Paulownia tree, which is significant in Japanese religion and culture. There is a link between Japanese trees and deities (isn’t that lovely?). Deities Miwa and Ise are identified with the Paulownia cedar. These ever green trees also symbolize the eternal return of time, and represent the Shinto festivals.
It’s often planted when a girl is born, and will mature at the same time as her. It also summons a Phoenix that brings good luck to the house where it is planted, and the flowers can be used for medicine. It’s called «the tree of life».
Now that’s one heck of a tree.



Japan, 1837-54 AD. 1 Bu Gin, Tenpō.
Obverse: Incuse stamp 定 (= Jo) over 4 kanji in rectangle surrounded by 30 sakuras (cherry blosoms) one of them inverted.
Bottom left 2 strokes of 是 cross.
Lettering:
定
常銀
是座
Translation: Guaranteed Ginza (Silver Mint) Joze (Mint Official)
Reverse: Three vertical kanji in rectangle surrounded by 30 sakuras (cherry blossoms), one of them inverted.
Lettering:
一
分
銀
Translation: 1 bu silver

Size: 24.6 x 16.9mm Weight: 8.73g
Composition: Silver Conservation: EF

Reference: # 16, JNDA# 09-50, DHJ# 9.80 Pos: P o

 

@Sulla80 those are absolutely beautiful examples!

The only "unusual" coin in our collection is our dolphin olbia that we bought from the Harlan J. Berk "junk box" at the last Baltimore Whitman show before Covid hit.

 

I've got a non-conventional one! I believe this is a Bamboo token or tally, from ~1895. It's about 3" long.



I’m told that the front face (forward one in the photo, with the inscribed characters) shows the denomination (“200 cash = 10 cash coins”) and on the side is handwritten, “If lost, not registered.” The reverse has both handwritten and inscribed characters. The handwritten part is some form of serial number and the inscribed part is the name of the issuing bank. The printed two-character symbol stamped on the edge side is an unknown mark.

 

You noticed the inverted sakura! One is always inverted and its position indicates the year and origin mint (or so I've read).

 

I would never have guessed they are dolphins. But now that you mention it, I see it!

 

Yes. Hartills «Early Japanese coins» has a good overview of this, with tables that helps you to date the coins. The 1 Bu has position P o, which places it in the Tenpo era. There are also slight variations in calligraphy. It’s a quite interesting area.

 

I will check it out. When I first read about it, I was amazed. But I never got beyond that, to the whats and hows. So thanks for the reference.

 

Ours is admittedly not a great example

 

@Sulla80 , way cool on the post, and the Tiger Tongue is wonderful. I have seen a few, but I do not have one... yet.

Here is a Spade:


CHINA - ZHOU Dynasty, 1122-255 BC square foot spade 350-250 BC AN YANG - 3 lines rev bronze 31x52mm 7.45g H3.184 S13+


Bead Money


China Zhou Dynasty 1122-255 BC AE Chuan Bead Money 40mm

 

Those are always cool...

Here is mine:


Japan Meiji Era AV-AR Ingot 1868-1869 Nibu Kin Samurai Shogun Paulonia Chrysanthemum

 

Does this count?

There is actually an interesting story behind this piece. Back in the '80s, when I was living in Europe (and regulations around metal detecting weren't as strict in some countries as they are today), I found this one-sided lead "token" near a Hanseatic fort in northern Germany. The piece is stamped "1712" and has a cast coats of arms as well as a stamped "8" in the upper left corner.

For 25 years, this piece sat in a drawer without being identified. Recently, I made a concerted effort to figure out what it really was. Was it siege coinage? This looks similar, but siege coinage is usually cut from silver plate, not lead. Or was it something else?

I finally got closer when I found a picture of a similar piece that was found near Rotterdam. Then I stumbled across this site, which has literally catalogued thousands of these pieces: http://www.loodjes.nl/

They're actually known as "loodjes", and were lead tokens used as "toll" payment within the Netherlands to pass through certain waterways. My example shows the coat of arms of Alphen and Oudshoorn, and the 8 is for the 8 stuivers toll to be paid for crossing the "Heimansbrug". These tokens were often cut into a variety of different shapes; mine is in more of a conventional lozenge form.

Who would have known? Unravelling this 25-year old mystery opened up a whole new world of payment that isn't formal coinage to me.

 

Apologies if it doesn't pass the "ancient" test, but I thought it made for an interesting story / writeup which some of our European members might enjoy.

 

Cool thread @Sulla80 . I also really like to venture outside of my norm from time to time into coins that are different in some way.

My Wang Mang Spade.

Ancient China
Xin Dynasty
Emperor Wang Mang (AD 7 - 23)
Huo bu spade.
Dim.: 57 mm x 22.5 mm
Wt.: 16.09 g
Obv.: HUO BU (“Money spade”).
Rev.: Blank, as made.
Ref.: Hartill 9.30
Ex Sallent collection

Chinese coins with the square hole count as outside the normal for me but I’d like to start picking up more eastern coins.

Ancient China
Qin to Western Han
AE Ban Liang, cast ca. 220-180 BC
Wt.: 4.62 g
Dia.: 27 mm
Obv.: Ban Liang
Rev.: Blank as made
Ref.: Hartill 7.8
Ex Sallent Collection, Ex AMCC 2, Lot 372 (Nov. 9, 2019)


This coin is from Bactria and is intentionally square which I think is neat.

Indo-Greek Kingdoms
Apollodotus I
AE Hemiobol, mint in northwest India, struck ca. 175-164 BC
Dim.: 22x22 mm
Wt.: 9.27 g
Obv.: BAΣIΛEΩΣ AΠOΛΛOΔOTOY ΣΩTHPOΣ; Apollo standing facing holding arrow in right hand and bow in left.
Rev.: Karoshthi legend; tripod and monogram surrounded by square of dots.
Ref.: BMC 17, SG 7594

 

No need to apologize - it’s a very interesting story and “coin” - thanks for adding.

 

Love it !!

The only odd shaped coin I have is this silver japanese shu

 

Lots of variety in this thread already, from Japan (@iameatingjam, @Alegandron, @svessien), China (@Curtisimo,@Alegandron, @JeffC), Bactria (@Curtisimo)Olbia (@furryfrog02), and the unusual Netherlands "loodjes" from @romismatist...I'll add another unusual "coin" - this one unidentified and possibly a modern creation. Cowrie (or cowry) shells were used for millennia as fertility symbols, protection from evil spirits, and a form of money. Cowrie shells were objects of value during the Shang dynasty (c. 1766-1154 BC). The cowrie shell also known as Cyprae moneta or more formally classified:
Superfamily: Cypraeoidea
Family: Cypraeidae
Genus: Monetaria
Species: M. moneta

this copper/bronze artifact imitates the cowrie shell

The whole in the top allowed shells to be strung together as necklaces called "p'eng". I don't know if this is ancient or modern fantasy - interested if anyone on CT knows more.

Here are two articles describing the use and exchange rates of cowries in West Africa into the 20th century:

"During the economic crisis of the early I930s, when cash receipts from the sale of cash crops dropped enormously, cowries were reported to have reappeared in some Nigerian markets."
- Johnson, M. (1970). The Cowrie Currencies of West Africa. Part I. The Journal of African History, 11(1), 17-49

See also (more on exchange rates and inflation):
Johnson, M. (1970). The Cowrie Currencies of West Africa. Part II. The Journal of African History, 11(3), 331-353.

 

Another unusual shape that has not been posted yet, even though it is quite commonly seen. Those are often called "Ming" knives, but also "Yi" knives. They were made in ancient China, by the Yan kingdom during the warring states period, between the fourth and third century. The obverse character meaning is debated but the Yi reading seems to be the most prevalent, as it was the capital of this kingdom. There is a large variety of reverse characters and combination, but their meaning remain unsure, some are even undeciphered.

Notice that the first one has a bent spade, compared to the other one that is straight, indicating it is an earlier type.

Obv.: 易 (Yi)
Rev. : 左 (Zuo = left)
136mm /18,45g.



Obv. : 易 (Yi )
Rev. : 中 昌 二 (Zhong Chang Er)
140mm / 15,8g.

 

While still a round coin, this one represents a change of pace for me as I focus on Roman Imperial, Provincial, and Byzantine coins. This is from the Kushan dynasty...picked up from @John Anthony a couple of weeks ago for $40. (The following historical write-up also from John Anthony.) Note the presence of Nandi the Bull and Shiva, both Hindu figures on the reverse...and a Greek legend on the obverse. One can only imagine the syncretic/heterodox culture of the empire composed of Indian, Chinese, and Greco-Bactrian influences. Certainly a time that is far removed from the politics, extremism, and squabbles of the region in our time.

The Kushan Dynasty was a syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi peoples of China, who migrated into Bactrian territories in the 1st century AD. The empire’s expanse spread to encompass much of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India. Kushan trade and culture flourished because of the kingdom’s proximity to the Silk Road. They had diplomatic contacts with the Roman Empire, Sasanian Persia, the Aksumite Empire, and the Han Dynasty of China.

Vima Kadphises ruled from c. 95 to c. 127 AD. He added to the empire’s territory by his conquests in Bactria, and issued an extensive series of coins, including the introduction of gold issues. Much of the coinage is bilingual, as one would perhaps expect from a civilization at the crossroads of so many cultures.




KUSHAN DYNASTY
Vima Kadphises, 95-127 AD.

AE Tetradrachm, 28mm, 16.5g, 2h.

Obv. BACIΛEΥC BACIΛEωN OOHMO MEΓAC OOHM KAΔΦICHC; Kadphises, standing facing, head left, sacrificing over altar to left and holding hand on hilt; to left, filleted trident behind, tamgha and club to right.

Rev: Siva with three heads standing facing, holding trident in raised right hand and resting lowered left hand on bull Nandi standing to right, behind; tamgha above to left.with kharoshthi legend maharaja rajadhiraja sarvaloga isvarasa mahesvarasa.
Mitchner 3040