China. Late Qing Dynasty early Republic period silver sycee ingot. Yunnan saddle shaped variant. Circa 19th to early 20th century AD. 5 taels (approx 220g). Issued by a financiers Li Yuansheng. Ex Teutoberger, Germany. Silver sycees were large valued mediums of exchange and Commerce for centuries. Measured in the Chinese weight age system of taels which roughly translates slightly over a troy ounce, these sycees were often issued by financiers, banks or other monetary institutions for trade, high valued transactions or taxes. These saddle shaped sycee were indigenous to the Yunnan region bordering Burma and was likely used primarily for cross border trade. The shape remained largely unchanged and so is their relative weight although issued by different financiers.
This is INCREDIBLE @Loong Siew ! This represents an iconic symbol of Chinese trade! I would love to capture one of these!
Thanks @Alegandron . These are by no means rare but highly desirable. Sycees come in many shapes but these saddles are one of the more popular ones..
Don't understand. Was the saddle cast and the characters struck into it? I see no evidence of this. It looks like the characters were in the mold.
The saddle itself is cast. But on the top, the moneyer's or Caster's brand is stamped or struck on. To see It, check the surrounding area around the characters. They are smooth and flat. Secondly, notice the misalignment on some of the narrower margins on the obverse.
So the characters on the top of the raised bars are struck on to them and the lower characters in the large squares are cast into the piece?
