I am trying to find out information on this coin I came across. The symbols are clearly Chinese and I have seen similar coins as collective items, but I have also seen them as decorative things of no true value. Trying to find a similar coin, I came across the "shun zhi tong bao" and beyond that, I know nothing about it. So my questions are simple: Is this a real coin or a decorative replication? And, if it is real, what sort of history is behind it?
Looks real but im no expert with chinese coins here is a link, what is the size and weight? http://www.sportstune.com/chinese/coins/shunchih.html
It is about 27.5mm in diameter and 1mm thick. As far as the most accurate thing I have to weigh it with, not quite an ounce. It is unresponsive to magnets. EDIT: I should note that the scale I have is old and likely inaccurate. US Pennies are heavier and its weight is similar, if not a little lighter, than a dime.
Looks like a Chineese Cash from the late 1800s to early 1900s, Kuang-hsu ruler, but the images in my Krause pdf catalog leave alot to be desired. I'll see if i can narrow it down
On further research, I can't find the symbols on the obverse in my Krause. I cannot read chinese and comparing an actual photo with the "text" in the book is tough. I do know the reverse (the side with only 2 symbols) says boo-ciowan lol. It may be a token meant to resemble a 1900ish cash or I may just be missing it in my book.
Emperor Sheng Zu, 1662-1722, Hartill 1285 or 1286 depending on weight. Board of Revenue mint in Peking, (Beijing). I do not see it as a forgery, rather a common emperor and the most common mint Qing coin. Many of these are used for jewelry due to how common they are. Chris
Not quite an ounce!! My god it must be made of some new unknown element more than twice as dense as Osmium! It is about the size of a quarter (slightly larger, slightly thinner and with a hole in the middle) A silver quarter weighs 6.25 grams. An ounce (standard) is about 28.2 grams so this coin is 4.5 times as dense as coin silver. Coin silver has a density of 10.34 so this has a SG of 46.65. Osmium, until now the densest substance known, is only about 22. J/K I understand the weight estimate is way off.
I weighed it at work and it is more like 5.5g. Since I only have the one, I couldn't give it an average (my scale requires 10 of an item to make counting more accurate) to go with, so it was still a guess, but is it a lot closer than the food scale I have here at home. I have found more information with similar looking coins under "K'ang Hsi T'ung Pao." @Billyray - I found some websites that matched it. Here they are if it helps what you have for information: http://ykleungn.tripod.com/kanghsie.htm http://www.sportstune.com/chinese/coins/kanghsi.html @medoraman - Thanks for the information. I had a feeling it was something common being I found it here in the middle of nowhere, PA, USA. @Conder101 - LOL, I dare say if it is that dense, that substance is my mother-in-law.
chinese are so busy counterfeiting everything that it is difficult to catch the real things sometimes
