Rare ancient silver coin with hexagonal holes found in Jiangsu
From： NetWriter：Date：2010-12-01
Many ancient coins, including a rare sliver coin with a hexagonal hole, were found at a construction site in Jiangyan, Jiangsu Province on Nov. 27.
Dou Yaping, the director of the Cultural Heritage Division of the Jiangyan Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Press and Publication, immediately rushed to the site together with archeologist Chen Wei and local police to protect and clean the coins.
Dou told reporters on Nov. 29 that after cleaning and sorting, they found altogether 432 ancient coins of 56 types bearing 25 reign titles, with 21 coins issued in the Tang dynasty and all the rest issued in the Song dynasty. They include Kaiyuan Tongbao coins, Xiangfu Yuanbao coins and Xining Yuanbao coins.
The coins were finely made and have a good luster, with inscriptions on most of them still legible. Their diameters range from 2.2 centimeters to 2.5 centimeters, and their thickness is between 0.5 millimeters and 1 millimeter. Most coins have square holes with a side length of around 5 millimeters in the center. They may have been stored underground for the past thousands of years, which may explain why they have not lost their luster.
Of the 432 ancient coins, there is a slightly damaged silver coin, the inscription of which has become illegible, though it has not lost its luster. In addition, there is another coin with a hexagonal hole in the center, the inscription of which is illegible.
Dou said that silver coins with square holes issued in the Song Dynasty are very rare, and this is the first time that this kind of coin was found in Jiangyan. In addition, the ancient coin with a hexagonal hole is also called a "Guijia Chuan," which is one kind of the "Huachuan Kong" coins, namely coins with mistakenly made non-square holes. Just like rare misprinted paper money, these flawed coins have become very collectable because of their rarity.
The website chinanews.com contributed to this report.
By People's Daily Online
Dou Yaping, the director of the Cultural Heritage Division of the Jiangyan Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Press and Publication, immediately rushed to the site together with archeologist Chen Wei and local police to protect and clean the coins.
Dou told reporters on Nov. 29 that after cleaning and sorting, they found altogether 432 ancient coins of 56 types bearing 25 reign titles, with 21 coins issued in the Tang dynasty and all the rest issued in the Song dynasty. They include Kaiyuan Tongbao coins, Xiangfu Yuanbao coins and Xining Yuanbao coins.
The coins were finely made and have a good luster, with inscriptions on most of them still legible. Their diameters range from 2.2 centimeters to 2.5 centimeters, and their thickness is between 0.5 millimeters and 1 millimeter. Most coins have square holes with a side length of around 5 millimeters in the center. They may have been stored underground for the past thousands of years, which may explain why they have not lost their luster.
Of the 432 ancient coins, there is a slightly damaged silver coin, the inscription of which has become illegible, though it has not lost its luster. In addition, there is another coin with a hexagonal hole in the center, the inscription of which is illegible.
Dou said that silver coins with square holes issued in the Song Dynasty are very rare, and this is the first time that this kind of coin was found in Jiangyan. In addition, the ancient coin with a hexagonal hole is also called a "Guijia Chuan," which is one kind of the "Huachuan Kong" coins, namely coins with mistakenly made non-square holes. Just like rare misprinted paper money, these flawed coins have become very collectable because of their rarity.
The website chinanews.com contributed to this report.
By People's Daily Online