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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;manymore, post: 1273215, member: 17118&quot;]I&#039;m pretty sure these are not coins.</p><p><br /></p><p>The shape, proportions and round hole make me think they are what the Chinese call a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi_%28jade%29" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi_%28jade%29" rel="nofollow"><i>bi</i></a> (璧).</p><p><br /></p><p>The <i>bi</i> was originally a burial object that was often found in Neolithic tombs in China.&nbsp; No one is quite sure of their purpose or meaning but they are believed to represent the heavens or the sun.</p><p><br /></p><p>The neolithic and later <i>bi</i> were made of jade and were larger than your pieces.&nbsp; Most were plain like yours but some had ornate engravings.</p><p><br /></p><p>The <i>bi</i> is now generally considered to be a &quot;good luck&quot; symbol.&nbsp; Modern examples tend to be small like yours.&nbsp; The better ones are still made of jade but you can find examples in many types of stone and other materials.&nbsp; I would doubt that your pieces are very ancient.</p><p><br /></p><p>Bone would probably be considered a little unusual for a <i>bi</i>, if indeed they are made of bone.&nbsp; It is certainly an easier material to work with than jade.</p><p><br /></p><p>Incidentally, bone was used in very ancient times as the material to make &quot;cowrie shells&quot; which were used as money during the Eastern Zhou Dyanasty (770 BC - 256 BC).&nbsp; An example of such a man-made bone &quot;cowrie shell&quot; may be <a href="http://primaltrek.com/chinesecoins.html#cowrie_shell_money" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://primaltrek.com/chinesecoins.html#cowrie_shell_money" rel="nofollow">seen here</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p>Gary[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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