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Live in groups and interact with each other. From bartering to now, different coins have appeared in every era, and there are not only one kind, but many kinds. The naming of some coins also influenced the literary origin, such as Kong Fangxiong in the Qin Dynasty. At that time, coins symbolized imperial power, so as long as there were many coins at that time, the power was great. Others are named after weight, such as the five baht money of Han, which was chosen as a widely used coin at that time because of its suitable weight. In the Qing Dynasty, because many foreign countries always thought of China, they opened their ports for trade and introduced many foreign things, including coins ... So the Qing Dynasty imitated foreign coins and called them copper coins, but copper coins were not popular at first, and it didn't become a common currency until the late Qing Dynasty and the early Ming Dynasty. Like modernization, these coins also represent the evolution of the ancient monetary system in China. The coins mentioned above are only popular in contemporary times, but there are other coins with very significant value and special value in these dynasties. These coins also let us know the contemporary customs and social atmosphere.
First, Babe
The earliest currency in China is a shell currency made from natural shells, which was unearthed from 19 BC to16th century BC, about 3,500 years ago, in Muhao Tomb in Yinxu, Henan. The processed natural shellfish has teeth on one side, and the shell coins are smooth and beautiful, small and exquisite, durable and easy to carry. These shell coins are mainly produced in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, reflecting the commercial exchanges in the Shang Dynasty.
Before the middle period of Shang Dynasty, the value of Beibi was very high, and it would be a great honor for my lieutenants to get the reward from the Shang King by using Beibi. With the development of commodity economy at that time, the supply of natural shell coins was in short supply, so many imitation shell coins appeared at that time, such as stone shells, bone shells, mussel shells and pine shells. These shell coins are very small, about 1.2 cm to 2.4 cm long. In the late Shang dynasty, copper coins appeared again, which were also shaped like seashells. Copper shells were unearthed in late tombs in Anyang and Baode, Henan Province, from about 14 BC to 1 1 century BC. Copper shell is the earliest metal coin in China, among which there is a kind of gold-coated copper coin used as a large amount of money, and there are very few existing coins.
As a historical currency, "Coin" not only made great contributions to the ancient economy of China, but also had a far-reaching impact on the culture and customs of China. From the current Chinese characters in China, we can see that most things or behaviors related to coins have one side, such as goods, tribute, trade, Jia, bribery, wealth, greed, poverty, expenses, compensation, redemption and so on. In the rural areas around Jiangsu and Zhejiang, parents hang up Pei Bei for their children, hoping that their children will grow up healthily, exorcise evil spirits and make a fortune. Some parents simply call their children "babies". Although small, "North Coin" has multiple meanings in economy, history and culture, and is favored by coin collectors, thus becoming a major category in today's collection.
Second, pre-Qin coins
The so-called pre-Qin coins are the currencies that appeared before Qin Shihuang unified China, including primitive currency, metal weighing currency and metal coinage. It experienced three important historical stages: primitive society, slave society and early feudal society. It is a link from primitive social economy to slave social economy and then to early feudal economy. It is also an important period from the emergence and development of currency to the unification of Qin and China. If it is counted from the time when there are signs of exchange, it has experienced a time span of more than 10 thousand years. It has been thousands of years since the appearance of the original currency. Therefore, to understand and study the monetary development and economic changes in China, the pre-Qin currency is an extremely important part.
In the pre-Qin period, the main currencies were shells, knives, cloth, round money and ant nose money. Most knives and cloth coins are extremely thin (cloth coins in some areas, cloth coins in Gaoyi square feet and Jimo knife coins are thicker), and the gate of knife coins is at the head end. A large amount of copper is often squeezed out of the mold at the gate and edge of the knife and cloth, which is in a natural state because it has not been polished.
Cloth coins are mainly popular in the Yellow River valley in northern China, and originated from agricultural tools and shovels. After the Spring and Autumn Period, it gradually became a special currency. The early cloth coins had handles, that is, shorts, so they were called shorts. The shape was close to practical tools, which was popular in the Spring and Autumn Period and disappeared in the early Warring States Period at the latest. In the Warring States period, empty cloth gradually evolved into flat cloth, which could not be fitted with handles. Shoupingbu is an advanced form of cloth coins, which was very popular throughout the Warring States period. Cloth coins can be divided into short and flat heads, and each can be subdivided into many kinds according to the changes of head, shoulders and feet.
Knife coins originated in the eastern state of Qi, and then gradually spread to Qi, Yan and other places. Knife coin, also known as knife making, is evolved from cutting by hand tools, and consists of cutter head, cutter body, handle and cutter ring. Knife heads are the main basis for the classification of knife coins, which are divided into needle knives, pointed knives, truncated knives, round-headed knives and flat-headed knives.
The origin of money shape is the jade wall or spinning wheel of ancient textile tools, which first appeared in Sanjin area during the Warring States Period. The earliest coins were "* *", "Yuan" and "* * * Tun" minted by Wei State, which were mainly popular in Sanjin and Tuesdays. Money was the most progressive form of metal coins in the Warring States Period. It is small in size, easy to carry and simple in casting process. Therefore, coins in all countries have a tendency to be shaped after the mid-Warring States period.
Third, Qin and Han coins
The most important currency in the Qin dynasty was "half Liang" money, which was recorded in history as "the first time that King Huiwen made money in the second year (336 BC)". It is generally believed that this is the first time that the State of Qin minted half a penny. After Qin Shihuang destroyed the six countries, he abolished the old money such as knives and cloth in various countries and used "half Liang" as legal tender. The appearance of half-taels of money unified all kinds of primitive monetary forms in the pre-Qin period under the square hole round money, and the monetary form of China was fixed from then on, and it has been used for more than 2,000 years in the late Qing Dynasty, with far-reaching influence.
After Qin Shihuang unified China, the popularity of various currencies in the Warring States Period ended. It is stipulated that pearls, jade, shellfish, silver and other property can not be used as money except gold and copper. The Qin Dynasty earned half a penny. Coins at this time were minted by local governments, so what we see now is different. Qin Banliang adopts the form of square hole round money. After that, the currency form of China was fixed, with square hole and round banknotes for more than 2,000 years. The square hole represents the place, and the outer circle represents the sky circle. Therefore, the square hole round coin symbolizes the world view of ancient round places.
Copper coins in the Western Han Dynasty are still named after weight, but this name has gradually begun to break away from weight. For example, Qin Banliang's original weight was half of A Liang, and his weight was the same as his name, but it changed in the Han Dynasty. At this time, copper coins are still locally cast, and the weight often does not match the name. Five baht is the longest used coin in history, so it has a large amount of casting and a large number of coins, which is very worthless compared with other rare coins. Except for coins with special shapes, you can buy one for a few dollars, while the three baht that stopped circulating a few years later is several hundred dollars. So someone changed five baht into three baht.
All the money minted in the Eastern Han Dynasty was five baht. At this time, Lingdi has cast a four-out five-baht coin, that is, on the back of the five-baht coin, there are four twill lines, from the four corners of the perforation to the edge. At that time, some people said that there were four ways to die in a money regime. Later, as expected, the Yellow Scarf Uprising overthrew Liu Han's rule.
Wang Mang's ring of fire was used in the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and it was not until the 16th year of Jianwu of Guangwu Emperor (AD 40) that the use of five baht was resumed. Prior to this, Liu Wang Zhu of Huaiyang made five baht, which was called "restarting five baht" in history. Gongsun Shu made five iron coins in Sichuan. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the currency system was in chaos, and the Thai baht was trimmed five times. Commonly known as "female money." In the third year of Zhong Ping (A.D. 186), another four baht were cast. The last time the Han regime minted money was in the first year of Dong Zhuo Chuping (AD 190), which destroyed the small money minted by Wuba and Chang 'an bronze horses.
Four, the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty, the Southern and Northern Dynasties
The Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were the longest turbulent period in China's history. Most of the time, it is in division, chaos and war. The social economy has been seriously damaged, and the phenomenon of heavy currency has appeared. The circulation range of metal coins is obviously reduced, and the function of money is shrinking. Moreover, coins have different standards and shapes, and weight reduction is a common phenomenon.
The different economic bases and social forms of Wei, Shu and Wu led to different currency circulation conditions. Cao Wei is located in the Central Plains, with a large population and rich resources. The commodity economy is relatively developed, so the monetary system is relatively stable. At first, grain and silk were used as money, but it took only seven months to abolish the five baht, and then it resumed its circulation, which was similar to the system in China. Money is slightly smaller than China's five baht, with the notable feature that foreign countries are betting five baht.
Jin Dynasty was a turbulent time. Since the rebellion after the family in the first year of Huikang in the Western Jin Dynasty (AD 29 1 year), the "Eight Kings Rebellion" broke out for 16 years, which made all walks of life in the Western Jin Dynasty depressed and there was no new currency casting. In circulation, the five baht money of Han and Wei dynasties and various ancient coins were mainly used. The Eastern Jin Dynasty was in the southeast corner of An, and money-making inherited the guiding consciousness of the Western Jin Dynasty. Instead of casting new currency, it mainly uses the old currency in Sun and Wu areas. Light and heavy miscellaneous lines, both "five hundred springs" and "a thousand springs", commonly known as "wheel race"; There are also light and small "Shenyang money". Money circulates alternately or simultaneously to become money. The unit of each coin is named Wen, and 1000 Wen is a Guan.
The Northern and Southern Dynasties was a period of great turmoil in history, and it was also a period of great recession and chaos in China's monetary history. Song, Qi, Liang and Chen made their own achievements, which led to the lack of unity and continuity of the currency, the extreme weightlessness of the currency, and the private casting of bad money to benefit the market. During this period, there also appeared national currency and annual currency that were not named after weight.
Five, Sui and Tang coins
In the fourth year of Tang Gaozu Wude (62 1), a new currency "Kaiyuan Bao Tong" was minted. Qian Wen was written by Ou Yangxun, a great calligrapher. His calligraphy is dignified and rigorous. The appearance of "Kaiyuan Bao Tong" coins is of epoch-making significance. It is the earliest precious banknote in the currency history of China. Since then, the naming of coins is no longer based on weight, but mainly on age. Kaiyuan Qian originally stipulated that every ten articles should be one or two, and the weight of each article should be money, resulting in a new unit of weight "money". The decimal principle of weight units below "two" was established, which promoted the evolution of ancient weighing methods in China. Although the shape of Kaiyuan money is relatively unified, it has many formats because of its long casting age.
In 907, Zhu Wen usurped the Tang Dynasty and established the Liang Dynasty. Since then, history has entered the period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. Looking at the currency of this period, it can be said that there are many lead, iron, money and bad money. Compared with the coins of the ten countries, the coins of the Five Dynasties were much less in number and variety. There are mainly Kaiping coins cast by Zhu Wen, the ancestor of Houliang, Tiancheng Yuanbao cast by Li Siyuan, the late Jin Dynasty Tianfu Yuanbao, Hanyuan in the late Han Dynasty and Zhu Yuan in the late Zhou Dynasty. Apart from Joo Won's money, the production is not very exquisite.
Sixth, coins in the Song Dynasty.
Song Dynasty is a very developed period in China's history, far exceeding the previous generation in quantity and quality, and it is another peak after Xin Mang. It was only from the Northern Song Dynasty that the annual money really became popular, and almost every time the annual number was changed, new money was cast. Chess for money originated in the Southern Tang Dynasty and developed in the Song Dynasty. Since the heyday of Song Renzong, almost every title has been matched with money. In addition, coins in the Song Dynasty were well-cast, with beautiful calligraphy and high artistic value. Qian Wen has not only original works, but also cursive scripts, official seals and seals, and most of them are from emperors and famous artists.
Coins in the Song Dynasty are the most complicated in the history of coins in China. It is not only diverse in monetary materials, but also limited by geography, and there are many denominations and names of money. The most popular annual money in the Song Dynasty, the iron money in the Song Dynasty is a long-term monetary system, and the iron money is used exclusively in Sichuan. In the Northern Song Dynasty, the Nine Emperors changed the number to thirty-five years, casting twenty-seven kinds of annual money and three kinds of non-annual money (Song and Yuan Dynasties, Sheng Song and Huang Song); Seven emperors in the Southern Song Dynasty changed their names to twenty years, casting eighteen kinds of annual money and three kinds of non-annual money (Da Song, Song Sheng and Huang Song).
In the first year of Stegosaurus, during the Song and Yuan Dynasties, Song Taizu cast Bao Tong. This is the first kind of money in Zhao and Song Dynasties. This is not the annual money. During the reign of Song Taizu, no annual tickets were cast. Gander currency is the currency of ten countries, not minted by Song Taizu in Gander years. Taizong voted for Taiping Bao Tong. This is the first kind of annual money in the Song Dynasty. There are stars and moons on the back, and there are no fewer cards than Song and Yuan. Chunhua cast Chunhua ingot in five years. Both Song and Yuan Qian and Taiping Qian used official script, and Chunhua changed it to official script, which formally established the money system of various scripts in Song Dynasty. Chunhua money also has three styles: original, trace and cursive. Chunhua money also has iron money, but it is rarely passed down to future generations.
Seven, Liao and Jin Xixia coins
The coins in the early Liao Dynasty were influenced by the Five Dynasties, and most of them were small flat coins in the later period, with a small number of castings and rough production. Qian Wen is mostly in Chinese, and calligraphy is divided into eight parts, without a pair of coins. "Fairy", "Huitong" and "Baoning" in Liao coins are very rare.
Although there are not many kinds of coins in the Jin Dynasty, each kind of coin is exquisite and neat, especially the "Taihe Chongbao" coin with seal script. Qian Wenyu's seal script was written by a famous calligrapher's party, and the production was very regular. Many of them are "Zheng Long Yuanbao" and "Dading Bao Tong". With the support of the Jin people, the "Fuchang Yuanbao, Bao Tong and Chongbao" were cast, including Kai and Zhuan, both of which were beautifully calligraphed and beautifully cast, which were very rare.
There are two kinds of Xixia coins: Xixia coins and China coins. Xixia characters were unknown to previous numerologists and were called "house-borne characters". Influenced by the Song Dynasty, Xixia Qianfa has been numbered for many years. And the money is regular and the words are thin. Its Xixia coins were minted earlier than China coins, including Reviving Qian Bao, Da 'an Qian Bao, Guan Zhen Qian Bao, Gan You Qian Bao, Tianbao Qingqian and Da 'an Qian Bao.
Eight, yuan, Ming and Qing coins
In the Yuan Dynasty, paper money became the basic currency in circulation, and copper coins no longer occupied the main position in the circulation field. The two climaxes of coin casting in Yuan Dynasty were from Wuzong to Danian and from Shun Di to Zheng Zheng. Especially the Zheng Zheng coins in Shun Di have been handed down from generation to generation, and Guo Qian is neat and upright, with beautiful words, which is the most refined of the yuan coins. The rulers of the Yuan Dynasty believed in Buddhism, and the so-called "giving money" was unique to the Yuan Dynasty, and it was the money cast by temples to worship the Buddha. There are many kinds of facial expressions, some of which are close to money.
The Ming dynasty has been vigorously promoting the monetary system of paper money, mainly paper money, supplemented by money. Silver was widely used in the Ming Dynasty. After Jiajing, silver became the main currency in the circulation field, so there were not many coins in the Ming Dynasty. After the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, promulgated the "Hongwu Money System", in which one fifth of the money was used to cast Hongwu money. Its background was complicated, and there were several kinds of discipline, value and weight. After Hongwu, Yongle, Xuande and Hongzhi made little money, only a small amount of small flat money. When I arrived in Jiajing, I began to invest a lot of money. Mu Zong made a small coin for Qin Long Bao Tong, which was very neat. Wanli Bao Tong, which was cast during the Wanli period of Zongshen (1573- 1620), was handed down from generation to generation, divided into two types: Xiaoping and Fold, mostly made of copper. During the reign of Emperor Xizong, the "Apocalypse Bao Tong" was cast, and the bronze coins with the year number of Guangzong Taichang were added. During the Chongzhen period, the national situation in the Ming Dynasty was even worse, and the money law was extremely chaotic. During the Chongzhen period, there were fourteen kinds of coins, such as Xiaoping, Fold 2, Fold 5 and Fold 14, but there were more than 100 versions, and the characters on the back were extremely complicated.
In the Qing Dynasty, coins were generally based on the combination of silver and money, with more money and less money, but the status of silver was more important. In the first 200 years of the Qing dynasty, casting money followed the tradition of 2000, making money by casting models. At the end of the year, we began to imitate foreign countries and cast new copper coins and coins with machines.
The Taiping Rebellion in the late Qing Dynasty was the largest peasant uprising in Chinese history. In the third year of Xianfeng (1853), after the Taiping Army invaded Nanjing, it began to make coins. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is not only the title of the country, but also the title of the year. Its national character is not from "king" to "jade", and coins are called "sacred treasures" because of their religious procedures.
conclusion
The development of ancient currency in China has a long history, because people's needs and concepts have been constantly improving, making the currency constantly perfect, and the earliest livestock currency has continued to this day. There are thousands of coins in ancient China, including gold, silver, cloth, paper money and so on, and coins are just one of them. From the above information, we learned about the popular coins and their origins in different periods, and also learned about the social atmosphere at that time, because some coins would reflect the secular customs of the same time. For example, money was the amulet at that time. It is conceivable that there must have been religious beliefs at that time, and some coins with great commemorative value have been used for nostalgia and love. Such a long history describes the accumulation of life experience and ancestors' wisdom, and every change deserves our discussion and reflection.