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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;manymore, post: 1788426, member: 17118&quot;]... I was lucky to obtain these a few years ago. These coins were issued during the chaotic Taiping Rebellion where inflation just blew out of control.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://omnicoin.com/coins/981054.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://omnicoin.com/coins/981053.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Unfortunately, both these coins have &quot;issues&quot;.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The first coin (Value 300) was only cast at the Prince Qing Hui Mint and only for a period of a few months.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It is extremely rare.&nbsp; According to several reference books, on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being the rarest, it is a 1.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I have a Chinese reference book describing the Xianfeng coins in the collection of <a href="http://primaltrek.com/blog/2013/01/08/the-king-of-qing-dynasty-coins/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://primaltrek.com/blog/2013/01/08/the-king-of-qing-dynasty-coins/" rel="nofollow">Mr. Ma Dingxiang</a> who was one of the most famous Chinese numismatists of the last century.&nbsp; This book includes rubbings of the two varieties of this coin known to exist.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Regrettably, your coin does not match either of these varieties.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Also, as best I can tell from your images, the color and patina are highly suspect.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I was unable to find an image of an authentic specimen on the internet which is not surprising considering how rare the coin is.&nbsp; There are many images of fakes, however.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><a href="http://epaper.dfsc.com.cn/html/2010-06/30/content_120557.htm" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://epaper.dfsc.com.cn/html/2010-06/30/content_120557.htm" rel="nofollow">This specimen</a> is probably close to what an authentic piece would look like.&nbsp; The author of the article claims it is authentic but there are slight differences in calligraphy between this coin and the rubbings from authentic coins so I seriously doubt its authenticity.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Regarding the second coin, it is so poorly cast that the denomination is essentially illegible.&nbsp; My guess is that it is a &quot;Value 50&quot; since I do not know what other denomination it could be.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>A coin this poorly cast would not have come from the official Board of Revenue mint.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It is either a contemporary or modern reproduction.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>As a matter of interest, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xianfeng_Emperor" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xianfeng_Emperor" rel="nofollow">Xianfeng Emperor</a> reigned from 1851 to 1861.&nbsp; However, he issued an enormous variety of coins during this short period of time.&nbsp; The book on Mr. Ma Dingxiang&#039;s collection of Xianfeng coins includes rubbings from 4,114 different varieties!&nbsp; I knew collectors in China who had very large collections but specialized in collecting only Xianfeng coins.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Gary[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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