I am a history teacher In California. A few days ago I was on a field trip with my students to Calico ghost Towne. Calico was a silver mining boom town created about 150 yrs ago. As with most California mining towns, a Chinese population settled in and offered support services and cheap labor. I was walking around some building ruins in the Chinese area of town and found this coin in the dirt. It appears to be a Qing dynasty coin as it shares characteristics with those coins but beyond that there is little more available for identification. There is a barely visible Chinese character on the coin but as I am unfamiliar with them I want to avoid chasing shadows. If anyone can help me to better identify it I would be very greatful. I surrendered the coin over to a park ranger who will be adding it to the parks museum display.
Wow! It's amazing that you found it sitting on the ground after so many years... Unfortunately I know next to nothing about Chinese coinage but I bet there is someone here who could help. You came to the right place By the way, I wish my history teacher took me on field trips like the one you went on! I'm a high school student so I understand how hard teachers work. Keep it up.
Qing dynasty, Kangxi emperor, 1661-1722CE In China, minted cash coins would stay in circulation for centuries, and immigrants would bring over these coins back in the day. Here's what the coin would look like less circulated.
Nice. I had been looking at this coin as a match and you just confirmed it. Thanks. It’s super cool for me. As a Historian and teacher finding something like this is very exciting. Especially when the find is going into the museum and will be displayed with our name next to it.
