I have a friend who is returning to China for a visit for a couple of weeks. He was born and raised there and was here in Canada going to school. He has offered to shop for coins and paper money for me while he is there. With all the controversy about counterfeits, if you had someone who was semi-knowledgeable about Chinese currency/coins, what would you ask for? I'm assuming, but may be wrong, that it would be safe(r) to buy Chinese coins and paper money because of their strict laws regarding counterfeiting of their own money. He said he could get me some 17th century coins at a relatively good price and may be able to find some early paper money as well. Is there anything else that one should ask for?
Sorry but this section made me laugh. I collect ancient Chinese, and the thought that it is safer in China to buy Chinese coins is funny. The Chinese perfected the art of counterfeiting money back when most Europeans were running around with clubs and loin cloths and the US was 2000 years away from existence. Trying to buy coins in China is the classic case of swimming in a shark infested pool. I know a few dealers in China I would trust, but would never recommend trying to have a friend buy for you unless he was a true expert in the field. I have bought coins there, and will tell you half of all coins in "coin shops" are fakes, and almost 100% in other locations are fakes. If your friend is an expert, then by all means you can have him buy for you. Btw, 17th century coins should be relatively cheap, as most cash coins for the past 1000 years are cheap for common ones.
Not to mention that the Chinese are the market makers on their more modern coinage at this moment. Some modern Chinese sets are going for multiples of catalog from US sellers to Chinese buyers. This means your probably going to be able to get that kind of stuff cheaper in the states.
Thanks. His father is a big collector of ancient Chinese coins and I'm hoping he would assist in the purchases. He's a director of some sort with one of the banks in Beijing and has sent me packages of current currency for my collection but was thrilled to hear that I was interested in the older coins as well. I'll take a chance. It won't be a big investment and who knows, I might get something interesting.
Hello ikandiggit, I have been traveling to different areas of Mainland China every year or so since 1979. IMO the posts from medoraman & lostdutchman are right on. Do you know the name of the cities where your friend may be visiting? You might ask him to take some pictures of the coins he finds offered for sale. Please post what you get.
Thanks Collect, its nice that someone agrees with me every once in a while. Ikandiggit, you are probably safe if your friends father can recommend sources and you are buying common items, like Northern Sung cash, Ming, Qing, etc. They are low value and widely available. You are in a somewhat enviable position, but make sure you mark where these come from so when you become more advanced in Chinese you can reevaluate them for yourselves. To us, it makes no sense to fake a $.30 coin, but I have seen it done, by the millions. I would recommend David Hartill's book if you wish to get more serious about collecting these. Its very fun, even for us who do not read Chinese!
I'll get them to do the documentation. They'll be doing extensive traveling and covering a lot of ground. I know he'll be in Beijing for a week and then he goes to Zhengzhou for a couple of days and from there to Hangzhou. After that I don't know where but he said they would be traveling around visiting relatives. He comes from a very wealthy family so I imagine it will be all the bigger cities. He'll only be gone for a few weeks. When he returns I'll post the pics with the information as well. I asked him to take pictures of the shops so I can get an idea of what they look like. I'm putting together a small collection of older Canadian and U.S. coins (five cent silvers, large cents, wheats and a couple of merc dimes) and a few things like shinplasters, a couple of King George dollar bills and and a U.S. silver certificate for his father. He should be thrilled with it because he has only current North American coins and notes in his collection.
My thoughts have already been echoed by many others on this thread. Even though the Chinese are indeed strict with their own currency, there has been an increase in counterfeiting with their own money as well. We see more examples of fake Panda`s making appearances on ebay every year. I think medoraman is right in saying that the more common currency would be a safe bet.
I agree. I'm not going after the Pandas or anything like that. I just want a nice variety of older items. The budget is a couple of hundred dollars.
A couple hundred will go a LOOOOOONG way with Chinese coins! I advise you get a copy of David Hartill's Cast Chinese Coins to go with it. Available online for only $60 or so.
Thanks! I'll shop for that....I have a few discount coupons from some recent on-line book purchases that I'll apply to that.
ANA Member dealers must adhere to the ANA Code of Ethics. This firm is very well known with an international reputation. Taisei Stamps & Coins (HK) Ltd Tak-Wo Ma Dealer Information UG 45-49 Wing on Plaza 62 Mody Rd TST E Kowloon HONG KONG Phone: (852) 311-1699 Other ANA members include: Asiacoinsnotes Y. Shen Dealer Information 388-11-902, Hai-Yue Garden Lu Ban Road, Lu Wan District Shanghai 2000023 CHINA Phone: (0086)139-1680-5746 Good luck.
