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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;manymore, post: 1666282, member: 17118&quot;]This &quot;amulet&quot; is actually a modern fantasy piece that is based on a Ming Dynasty coin and a Song Dynasty &quot;horse coin&quot;.</p><p><br /></p><p>The inscription on the obverse side is difficult to read because the image is very dark and the first (top) character did not cast well.</p><p><br /></p><p>However, I am certain that the inscription is <i>chong zhen tong bao</i> (崇禎通寶) which is the same as that used on cash coins cast during the reign of Emperor Si Zong (1628-1644).&nbsp; Examples of these coins may be seen <a href="http://primaltrek.com/chinesecoins.html#chong_zhen_tong_bao" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://primaltrek.com/chinesecoins.html#chong_zhen_tong_bao" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p>There are versions of this coin which have a &quot;running horse&quot; on the reverse side but your piece is not based on these versions.</p><p><br /></p><p>Your piece is based on a type of game piece known as &quot;horse coins&quot;.&nbsp; You can read a little of the history and see old examples of &quot;horse coins&quot; in <a href="http://primaltrek.com/horse.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://primaltrek.com/horse.html" rel="nofollow">this article</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p>This inscription on the reverse side of your piece is <i>wang yun</i> (望雲) which was the name of a horse from ancient Chinese history.</p><p><br /></p><p>An example of an old &quot;horse coin&quot; with the <i>wang yun</i> inscription may be seen <a href="http://bbs1.chcoin.com/read.php?tid=5288661&amp;page=e&amp;fpage=1" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://bbs1.chcoin.com/read.php?tid=5288661&amp;page=e&amp;fpage=1" rel="nofollow">here</a>.&nbsp; The name (<i>wang yun</i>) translates as &quot;gazing at the clouds as they pass&quot;.</p><p><br /></p><p>Your very large piece (100 mm) is of modern design and is not &quot;old&quot;.&nbsp; <a href="http://bbs.sssc.cn/viewthread.php?tid=2139326" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://bbs.sssc.cn/viewthread.php?tid=2139326" rel="nofollow">This Chinese website</a> shows three such 100 mm pieces with similar themes.&nbsp; Your piece is similar to the one on the right.&nbsp; The forum members on that site all agree that the coins are &quot;fake&quot;.&nbsp; They state that (in China) these pieces can be bought for about 2 <i>yuan</i> (US$0.32) each.</p><p><br /></p><p>Gary[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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