Someone wrote Chinese Cash Ma Huang on the cardboard 2x2 but I can't find anything like this anywhere. It is not perfectly round but measures about 26mm diameter and from 2 to 3 mm in thickness. It weighs about 5.5 grams. Is it real? Is it real old? Anyone have any idea what it could be worth?
Does anyone know? I'm sure it isn't worth a million dollars but I was wondering how old is it (BC?) and how much it might be worth!
check this site, http://www.calgarycoin.com/reference/china/china8.htm also give it time for other collectors to see post
Thank you very much that link was very informative I did identify a couple other old chinese coins I have even though they are only worth a few dollars. My only thought now about the coin I posted here is: Is this coin even a real coin? It is NOT perfectly flat like a normal coin and it is not perfectly round. Like I originally posted the thickness is from 2 to 3 mm (I didn't mean somewhere in between there). One side is 2mm thick and the other side where the Chinese character is measures 3mm thick. The background field is not flat either it seems awfully bumpy and almost as high as the characters in some points. But then again I have seen ancient coins 3 or 4 thousand years old that had similar qualities as this one. I have no idea if I have something that is that old though. I doubt that this coin is gold even though it is gold colored (it only weighs 5.5 grams) probably just brass. Is this coin worth a dollar or a hundred dollars or maybe even more??? I'm not thinking of riches but just curious. I know my brother bought this coin at a coin show about 30 years ago. He has passed so I can't even ask him what he paid for it. I have been collecting coins for over 50 years and I can pretty much hold my own but this coin has me baffled. It just looks so rudimentary to me as if a child made it or someone trying to make it look ancient OR is it? I do hope someone can see this and determine what it is and what it might be worth. Thanks
Hi Nick, The flip used may not be the original coin that was previously in there. I have a bad habit, that I will re-use a flip and not change what's on it cause I'm too busy. Just a thought.
Hi fretboard I don't think what was written on the flip was an issue for me at least, it certainly looks like a Chinese cash coin. My main concern was: Is this a real cash coin? or a fake? I know it's at least 30 years old, or is it a 2000 year old forgery? Or whatever. I know there are modern day fakes and ancient forgeries that still command a decent value but I can't find anything like this in any old Chinese coin links. I'm sorry I can't read Chinese I could only find one of the characters on this coin even listed anywhere. I have done some research looking at several links online but even though my numismatic experience covers over 50 years it is with very limited foreign coin experience. I was just hoping someone out there might know more about this coin. Thanks
Thanks George I already got that http://www.bing.com/search?q=chines...773C2072DA4DCF8E4D645CEF4FC777&FORM=QBLH&sp=2
I got an answer to what you wrote in Chinese from bing.com Chinese to English translation but NOT an answer to what my coin is. Thanks
True. I'm no authority. Your description of other Chinese cash is very much what I would expect. The piece you display appears to me to be a type of "jewelry" that 'attempts' to look like 'cash'.
I'm sure that's entirely possible, I do not know. As I stated before my brother bought this at a coin show 30 years ago. He could have been taken advantage of by an unscrupulous coin dealer. That's why I posted the coin (jewelry) here in hopes of someone possibly knowing what it could be. Thanks
That your brother selected it at a show and it's still around after 30 years... is sufficient IMHO for a serious inquiry. Good pictures!
Thanks George. I guess what I'm ultimately trying to say is this: Is my coin worth a buck or a hundred bucks? I know it's not worth a fortune and I wouldn't want to be accused of trying to sell a fake (unless it's a 2000 year old forgery) and then I would completely divulge that information. Which leads me back to the beginning of my quest. No offense to anyone I just don't know what the hell this is. I know my brother bought this as a coin NOT a piece of jewelry BUT I'm not saying it isn't a piece of jewelry either I just have absolutely no idea.
I am going a bit out on a limb here given my limited Chinese coin research, but 3 mm thickness is a bit much for a cash coin. The edge looks off and although the coin is intended to look corroded, there is still casting flash. All around, the coin is off, inconsistent with few dozens of cash coins I own on tolerances, style, and surface condition in the case of my coins with encrustation or corrosion. They simply do not age that way. These coins were cast rather than struck like European and near Eastern coins were. The fact that the characters stick up higher than the rest of the coin is not consistent with this method of production. Ma huang is the Chinese name for an herb that can be used to make an ephedra extract. I think someone put together a coin with the name of an herb up top and sold it as a charm. And it is worth keeping for the connection to family.
Thanks Matt abuckmaster147 : I posted this coin here because I wanted to know what it's worth. That IS the title of THIS forum isn't it? Now I know it's probably worth nothing therefore I don't need to repost it anywhere. I'm done with this post and this coin. Thanks to all those who posted in hopes of deciphering this matter.
You have presented a challenging mystery. Sometimes the Detective Costable won't know the COD... ...until the Medical Examiner "cuts him open". All we know so far is, "The game's afoot!"
