Which part are you confused?

How did they buy the currency of that state? Also, since they were going to that state to do business, they would do their planning of their trade beforehand (ie market research, info gathering) and then do their buisness there. So they would definitely would not be ripped off in that sense, since they had the info all done out, right?

For issues relating to currency systems (paper money, copper coins, silver ingots) in the Ming dynasty, see my essay at http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/index.php?showtopic=1370

I wonder how much 1 tael of gold ingot and 1 tale of silver ingot would be worth in today's context? What about 1 string of coins? What about 1 coins? What about 1 'chip' of silver "pebble"?

How much would each of these be worth in today's context? Be it in US dollars, British pounds and Singapore dollars (these are the 3 currencies I am most familiar with) only please. Thanks

I do not have all answers to your questions but i have some juicy bits from my reading, 1 tael of silver = 1000 coins. Qing dynasty fixed this exchange rate. And the following might interest you:

.........He estimates that books such as anthologies of examination essays would cost less than 1 tael (about 37 grams of pure silver, worth roughly $9.50 today), many popular genres a tenth of that, and small, cheaply produced booklets such as lyrics of musical plays perhaps a hundredth of a tael or so. He suggests that a book in the middle range (in an unspecified city) cost about the same as 3 kg of pork, 1.5 kg of peaches or plums, six porcelain soup bowls, or the "cheapest, decent folding fan"; "an average prostitute" would cost more than twice as much..... Source : http://eh.net/bookreviews/library/0866

........In China, silver was used as currency, while gold was intended primarily for decoration. A tael of gold was worth about four or five tael of silver. Yet, in Japan, a single tael of gold could purchase ten times as much of silver. Thus, the Dutch could earn immense profits simply by exchanging Chinese gold for Japanese silver. It was just like modern international trading......... Source: http://www.npm.gov.tw/exhbition/formosa/english/06.htm

Lastly, in Qing dynasty not all silver ingots are created equal. Each province might have different ingots of different shape and purity (with filler). Ancient banks perform conversions for travellers all over China and issues bank notes that are readily accepted by their respective branches in the country. Bank notes are often used and are much more convenient than tael of silver and coins.

I watched a show, silver is made using moulds. The factory i watched is not making silver from silver ores, rather from silver ingots, silver pieces collected from banks. Reason for making new ingots, because of wear and tear from these silver exchanging hands and different standards of silver purity in different provinces.

Silver are melted and more silver or filler (other metals) are added as per required to reach the desired standards. Silver when cooled is broken up and remelt again. Finally poured into wooden moulds. Once cooled, the wooden moulds are broken apart and there, silver ingots are formed. The one i see are 50 taels, size of a small orange.

Someone need to verify this process, my memory is abit fading.

Okay, beejan, but I was concentrating more on the Spring & Autumn Period and Warring States Period instead of from Qin dynasty where China was under one centralised government.

I notice that there isn't any discussion devoted to ancient chinese coins.

I'm a total beginner to chinese coins, but I found a good website on ancient chinese coins

http://www.geocities.com/belewfripp/ancientchina.html

It provides many photos and info on ancient casted chinese coins starting from Shang dynasty till 3 kingdoms period.

I wonder what the coins are for Sui, Tang, Sui, Ming and Qing dynasty. Were they casted as well? What were the materials?

Coins from those periods were casted as well and usually have the reign name of the emperor along with the words tong bao 通寳 or yuan bao 元寳 on it. The ones from the Qing dynasty also has the mint mark on the back showing which province it came from.
They were made from iron, copper or brass and the occasional lead. The Qing dynasty coins are almost all made from brass.

Chinese coinage: http://www.calgarycoin.com/reference/china/china1.htm
Western coinage: http://rg.ancients.info/lion/

IMO both quality articles of authors who know their trade.

Can anyone tell me if there is such a legend about the chinese panda bear ring and if so what is it, my bf gave me a ring and my sister said there is a legend but I can not find it anywhere, you can email me if you have this information to blueeyedgyrl_33@yahoo.com.....thanks

I discussed ancient Chinese coins a little on a thread; ancient coins & features of age
http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/index.php?showtopic=7769

This was from photographs of some of my own coins, but dwelling mostly on alterations/crystalisation and features of ancient coins rather than the history or reign marks on them. (I am not a coin collectors as such, they were just for study of bronze).

Thanks for the link. Good pictures. One thing I like to mention is that knife money can be very fragile and easily broken. Also when casted coins come out of a mold they are connected to each other like branches of a tree and need to be separated and the edges sanded smooth.

Yeah, I have seen the stone molds for casting bronze coins a few times before. There was a fragment of one in an antique shop when I was in Taiwan last week. When hundreds of millions of coins were cast a year there will of course be a number around!
In Wudi's time local rulers with copper mines were also casting their own coins illegally which was a situation the Imperial government tried to restrict by creating wierd types of cash and compelling local rulers to buy them, yet the Wushu coin of the type that existed at that time was used for centuries after the Han and was still very successful. The ancient Han forged coins tend to be thinner and use less bronze than the official versions. They are still artefacts of the period however.

Yeah, the sword money is fragile. One I have is broken and is different to the type I showed on the thread. My dealer friend in Taiwan has plenty of ancient coins but I am happy with just one example. I tend to collect weapons and other items now anyway when I have spare money.

We do have a long general-purpose thread for ancient Chinese money:

http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/index.php?showtopic=14425

Suggest merging with that thread?

* * * * * *

Another useful site for information on Chinese coins is: www.zeno.ru which is mainly a database of images of coins, plus comments from the members. Some very useful information can be found there, plus good photographs of genuine and fake coins. Chinasmith

Shang Dynasty? seems a bit too early as coinage began around 1000 BC if not later. Earlier items might have been used as barter or had purposes other than currency

A good source about Chinese currency by a private collecter...

Source :

http://www.thecurrencycollector.com
http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/chinesebanknotes.html

Ancient Chinese Cash notes

http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/pdfs/A...ey_-_Part_I.pdf
http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/pdfs/A...y_-_Part_II.pdf

Shanghai Wartime Emergency Money

http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/chinesebanknotes.html

Money of Communist China
http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/pdfs/T...949_-Part_I.pdf
http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/pdfs/T...49_-Part_II.pdf
http://www.thecurrencycollector.com/pdfs/T...9_-Part_III.pdf

I think this is a misleading first, many Neolithic cultures around the world used shells, and natural articles for trade and tokens of trade.

China is the first to use paper money as currency.

So how many different types of ancient coins were ever produced in China?
Maybe some Chinese coin collectors might have an ideal.

There is one good chinese website on ancient chinese coins and its history at http://www.china.com.cn/chinese/zhuanti/zggqb/729553.htm

Just for a list for various types of chinese coins:

Pre-Qin period:

贝币 Bei-Bi
刀币 Dao-Bi
齐刀 Qi-Bi
赵刀 Zhao-dao
郢爰 Yin Ai
圜钱 Huan Qian
尖足布 Jianzhu Bu
空首布 Kong Shoubu
圆足布 Yuanzhu Bu
方足布和釿布 Fanzhubu and Jinbu

Qin Dynasty


"Qin Liangban" coins 秦半两

Han Dynasty

1. Western Han Banliang 西汉半两

榆荚半两1 (Yujia Banliang)


榆荚半两2 (Yujia Banliang)


四铢半两 (Shi Zhu Ban Liang)


2. Han Wuzhu 两汉五铢钱


西汉五铢 (Western Han Wuzhu)


东汉五铢 (Eastern Han Wuzhu)

2. Wang Mang Coins 王莽钱币


Qiaouan Zhiyi 小泉直一


Qibu Babai and Cibu Jiubai 第布八百和次布九百


Dabu Huanqian 大布黄千

3 kingdoms and Age of Fragmentation


Taihuo Liuzhu 太货六铢


Taihe Wuzhu 太和五铢


Buquan 布泉


Wuxing Dabu 五行大布


Yongtong Wanguo 永通万国

Sui Dynasty


Sui Wuzhu 隋五铢

Tang Dynasty


Kaiyuan Tongbao 开元通宝


Qianfeng Quanbao 乾封泉宝


Qianyuan Chongbao 乾元重宝


Qianyuan Chongbao (Beizhuque) 乾元重宝（背朱雀 ）


Qianyuan Chongbao (Beixinwen) 乾元重宝（背星文）


Dali Yuanbao 大历元宝

Song Dynasty


Chunhua Yuanbao (Chaoshu) 淳化元宝（草书）


Chunhua Yuanbao (Kaishu) 淳化元宝（楷书）


Daguan Tongbao 大观通宝


Huangsong Tongbao 皇宋通宝


Zhidao Yuanbao (Xingshu) 至道元宝（行书）


Zhidao Yuanbao (Chaoshu) 至道元宝（草书）


Shaosheng Yuanbao (duiqian) 绍圣元宝（对钱）


Taihe Tongbao 泰和通宝


Puchang Tongbao, Puchang Zhongbao 阜昌通宝、阜昌重宝

Yuan Dynasty


Zhizhen Zhibao 至正之宝（权钞钱）


Tianyou Tongbao 天佑通宝


Dayi Tongbao 大义通宝


Dazhong Tongbao 大中通宝

Ming Dynasty


Hongwu Tongbao 洪武通宝


Hongwu Tongbao Dashiqian 洪武通宝当十钱


Tianqi Tongbao 天启通宝


Yongchang Tongbao 永昌通宝


Longwu Tongbao 隆武通宝


Yongli Tongbao 永历通宝


Chongzhen Tongbao 崇祯通宝

Qing Dynasty


Daoguang Tongbao 道光通宝


Tongzhi Zhongbao 同治重宝


Xianfeng Yuanbao 咸丰元宝


Xianfeng Tongbao 咸丰通宝


Xianfeng Daqian 咸丰大钱


新疆红钱

Thanks GZ.
I really like some of the more chunkier ones like the Xianfeng Daqian 咸丰大钱 (second last picture)

However, I am still puzzled by the value of each coin? Each coin is worth how much? Like now, there are 10cents, 20cents etc, what about those times?

great quality photos, thanks!

why did china stop producing coins with a square-hole in the middle?

China stops producing coins with a square-hole in the middle, largely because today's coins were produced by mint machine (stamping of metals).

In ancient times, the chinese coins were produced by casting instead of by stamping. Because casting produced a lot of burr (i.e. rough edges), very often the casted coins would need to be polished (burnished) in order the make the edges smooth. To speed up production, a square hole is made in the coin. A square stick is passed/penetrated through many coins with such square holes and then the entire stick of coins were brought together to the polishing stones for polishing at one go. This helps to increase production efficiency. Such is the reason why ancient chinese coins have square hole.

Another reason why there is a square hole could be that they help to be fixed onto square fixture for polishing. It also coincide with the ancient chinese thoughts of "round heaven and square earth". Having a square hole in the coins also help the fact that coins can be tied together easily by strings.

These ancient chinese coins with square hole were known in chinese as "Fang Kong Qian 方孔钱" or "Kong Fang Xiong 孔方兄".

There is also one detailed chinese article about ancient chinese coins at http://baike.baidu.com/view/79760.htm

When did banks come into the picture for people to deposit their money?

The current claim of the Bank of China is that it is the oldest Chinese bank established in 1912. Foreign Banks operated in foreign zones like Hong Kong before this.