Perhaps your first contact with ancient coins was Chinese Cash coins. You remember picking one up, looking through the square hole in the center and wondering, "What are those strange scribbles (one above the hole and one below the hole)?" Some of you held a coin that had four scribbles (one above the hole, one below, one to the right and one to the left). You soon learned those scribbles are Chinese characters. Two-character coins are the older forerunners of four-character Cash coins. Most two-character Cash have blank reverses while most four-character Cash have two, four or more characters on the reverse.The following photos are courtesy of Don's World Coin Gallery: QING DYNASTY CASH: Shi Zu (144-1661): http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/coine_cd.php?image=img16/42-q1&desc=Chinese%20Empire%20Qing%20Dynasty%20Cash%20-%20Shi%20Zu%20(1644-1661)&src=John%20Quest&query=Chinese%20Qing Sheng Zu (1662-1722) http://worldcoingallery.com/countri...(1662-1722)&src=John Quest&query=Chinese Qing Kang Hsi (1661-1722): http://worldcoingallery.com/countri... Cash - Kang Hsi (1661-1722)&query=Chin* Cash Yung Cheng (1723-1735): http://worldcoingallery.com/countri...(1723-1735)&src=John Quest&query=Chinese Qing Do you know all Cash coins were plucked off trees? Before China produced coins using dies (before they knew how to hammer a die or use a coin press to mint a coin) they produced coins via a casting system. Mints poured molten metal (copper, bronze, brass, nickel or other metal compositions) into a mold. After cooling, the molds were opened and the coin trees removed and given to "coin pluckers" so they termove the coins and take them to the finishing tables for final preparations (filing extra metal from holes and rims) could be completed before being released into circulation. Do you know what the molds were made of? The first molds (about 1100 B.C.) were made of fine clay (loess) garnered from the fertile Yellow River basin. Potters would prepare two brick-like molds (one holding the obverse designs, the other holding the reverse designs). One mint employee would place the two molds together and make a hole from the outside bottom center of the molds. Another mint employee would reopen the molds and cut a basic flow channel from that hole in the bottom to the top of the mold. More ducts were cut from from the basic flow channel to the first coin's impression, then to each sucessive coin impression. After all connecting ducts were cut, the clay molds were reclosed and placed into a channeling gutter bottomside up so molten metal could be poured into each one. The main negative to this casting method was "opening the mold destroyed it" (this resulted in a one-time use and is the reason early Chinese Cash coins lack uniformity). Chou Dynasty (Warring States Period), ca 476-221 B.C., Bronze Early Round Coinage. Photo courtesy of Ancient Chinese Coin (ancient-art.com): http://www.ancient-art.com/images/cc194.jpg Ch'in Dynasty, 255-206 B.C., Emperor Huang-Ti (or Qin Shihuangdi), Bronze Pan-Liang (12 Shu or one Liang, 4.6g). Photo courtesy of Ancient Chinese Coin (ancient-art.com): http://www.ancient-art.com/images/cc220b.jpg Western Han Dynasty, 206 B.C.-A.D. 25, Empress Kao Hou, Pan-Liang worth 8 Shu. Photo courtesy of Ancient Chinese Coin (ancient-art.com): http://www.ancient-art.com/images/cc228.jpg Here's some later examples of clay molds (photos courtesy of Sea Eagle Coin): http://www.seaeaglecoin.com/mold1/1.jpg After the Zhou Dynasty, an improved technique was developed. Positive bronze mother molds were made and these were then used for making negative clay molds. Positive molds were pressed into the soft clay before the clay molds were fired and hardened. These negative clay molds were then used for the actual casting process and destroyed after each use . However, utilizing these positive bronze mother molds, created the ability to mass produce Cash coin molds which matched each other resulting in coins more alike than earlier coin production. During the Han Dynasty (B.C. 206 - A.D. 220), negative bronze molds came into use, resulting in greater economy, more identical coins and increased quantities. Here's a photo of bronze molds courtesy of Sea Eagle Coin: http://www.seaeaglecoin.com/mold1/2.jpg During the Han Dynasty (200 B.C. - 220 A.D Period, Stone Molds were tried from time to time in attempts to facilitate coin production bringing even more uniformity to the coinage. Those attempts were discontinued because of unfavorable results. Here's photos courtesy of Sea Eagle Coin: http://www.seaeaglecoin.com/mold1/3.jpg Wooden molds were occasionally tried during the Six Dynasties period (A.D. 420 - 589). As wooden molds weren't very durable, coins made with this casting technique weren't uniform. Even so the sporadic use of wooden molds lasted until the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618 - 907). I couldn't locate photos. Instead of using artisans to create coin designs in molds one by one, Coiners of Ancient China sought a better way. Coiners, once foundry workers, discovered thast better results (whatever the mold composition) would be obtained by creating "Mother Cash" to impress the coin cavity in the molds. "Mother Cash" (Mu-Chien), usually made of wood, tin or copper, were created to impress coin cavities into sand molds. Sand molds allowed the molten metal to flow more freely produing finer features than clay. This proved so successful all Asian Countries (i.e., Annam, Japan, Korea, Viet Nam, and others) adopted the process. The sand mold uses two frames filled with fine-grain (foundry) wetted sand, and a set of carefully manufactured "seed coins" or "Mother Cash." A mint employee places the "Mother Cash " on the sand in one mold. He also lays down rods to create a basic canal for molten metal to flow the length of the mold. The second frame is laid on top. A trained employee walks on the paired frames to compress the sand tightly to the "Mother Cash" so as to produce a fine image. The frames are separated. Small channels are cut from the basic canal to each adjoining coin then to each successive coin. Rods are removed. The two frames are placed one atop the other. Clamps are applied to the frames which are placed, recieving hole up. Molten metal is then poured. After cooling, the sand molds are split apart, the resulting tree of coins is lifted out and taken to the finishing tables where some workers carefully pluck (twist) the Cash coins off the tree. Other coin-finishers file excess metal from the rims and holes of the coins. Here's a Japanese coin tree casting produced with "Mother Cash" impressions in sand (42 coins: count-em!) Obverse: http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/roberts/images/bunkyucointreer.jpg Reverse: http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/roberts/images/bunkyucointreev.jpg A great question to ask oneself is, "What Cash should I collect?" Let me suggest: "How about a type set of square center hole Cash coins produced during one Dynasty?" "How about a type set of square center hole bronze (or copper, brass, silver, gold, nickel or any other metal) in Cash, Liangs or other denominations?" "How about a type set of square center hole Cash coins from one particular Chinese Province (Anhwei, Chekiang, Chihli, Honan, Kansu, Fukian, Kwangsi, Szechuan, Yunnan or any other)?" "How about a type set or complete set of square center hole Cash coins from Assam, or Burma, Japan, Korea, Laos, Viet Nam or another Cash producing country?" "How about collecting Rosette center hole Cash coins?" 'How about collecting Molds or entire coin trees?" I'm not going to prolong the end of this post, but will provide a link to a website belonging and maintained by a numismatist who collects only Cash coins which have a Rosette center hole. Another name for these octagonal hole Cash coins is Flower (Chinese Hua or Hua Dua). Some English numismatic historians refer to these as Star center holes. Click this link to view the Chinese character for Flower: http://www.formosa-translation.com/chinese/f/ff117.html To view the Rosette center hole collection only, scroll down page past the text: http://primaltrek.com/flowerhole.html Thought you might enjoy knowing... By the way, there is a 6-sided (hexagon) center hole, you may want to think about too. It's called the Turtle Shell (Bie Jia) center hole: Clinker
Hi, Clinker! Small world. I live in Cape Coral. The only thing I know about China is that there are some very talented players on the Women's Pro Billiard Tour. Chris
Great post, as always. But why the holes? After being broken off the "tree", the coins were stacked on a rod to keep them stationary while the nubs were being filed off. (That's why the holes are square, or otherwise shaped to prevent rolling of the coins.) Especially before paper money came along, large quantities of coins were required for many purchases, so coins were strung in groups. (Hole shape wasn't important for that purpose.)
I try to collect molds. They're not easy to find. Wang Mang Xin Dynasty Ceramic coin mold, AD 10-14 For "Da Bu Heng Quan", valued at 1 liang Cf. Hartill 9.29
To cpm9ball: "Small world. I live in Cape Coral." Chris... Iv'e lived in Fort Myers since February, 1961. In times past I was a member of the Fort Myers Coin Club and the Cape Coral Coin Club. In the late 80s and early 90s participated in Coin Shows at the Coralwood Mall before the rennovations took place. Nice to hear from you. Clinker
