Sycee
A sycee
In present-day China, gold sycees remain a symbol of wealth and prosperity and are commonly depicted during the
Name
The name "sycee" is an irregular
The name "yuanbao" is the
A yuanbao was also called a dìng (Chinese: 鋌; pinyin: dìng; Wade–Giles: ting) or "silver dìng" (銀鋌; yíndìng; yin-ting). [11]
History
Sycees were first used as a
When foreign silver coins began to circulate in China in the later 16th century, they were initially considered a type of "quasi-sycee" and imprinted with
Contemporary uses
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Chinese New Year sycee decoration
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Paper yuanbao burned at a grave
Today, imitation gold sycees are used as a symbol of prosperity among Chinese people. They are frequently displayed during Chinese New Year, representing a fortunate year to come. Reproduction or commemorative gold sycees continue to be minted as collectibles.
Another form of imitation yuanbao – made by folding gold- or silver-colored paper – can be burned at ancestors' graves during the
Even after currency standard changed in Republican times, the old usage of denominating value by equivalent standard weight of silver survived in Cantonese slang in the common term for a ten-cent and a five-cent piece, e.g., chat fan yi (七分二 "seven candareens, two cash") or saam fan luk (三分六 "three candareens and six cash").
Notable hoards
- It was reported on 17 November 2015 by the Xinjian, Jiangxi a number of gold coins had been found.[14][15] Excavations of the tomb have been conducted since 2011.[16][17] The gold objects unearthed included some 25 gold hoofs (a type of sycee) with varying weights from 40 to 250 grams and 50 very large gold coins weighing about 250 grams each.[14][15] The gold coinages were packed inside of three different boxes that were placed under a bed that was located inside of the main chamber of the tomb.[14][15] According to Yang Jie, who leads the excavation team, the gold objects were likely awarded to the Marquis of Haihun by the emperor himself.[14][15]
- It was reported on 24 September 2015 that a number of cash coins had been found in tombs located in tombs during excavation work undertaken by the Jinan City Archaeological Research Institute nearby the Zhaojiazhuang Cemetery, Shandong.[18] The tombs yielded cash coins produced during the Song, Tang, and Manchu Qing dynasties with the latest examples being Xianfeng era cash coins.[18] A tomb identified as "Grave M1" also contained silver ingots (sycees) issued under the Jurchen Jin dynasty.[18]
- In March 2017 a large number of cultural relics were discovered at the Minjiang River in Meishan, Sichuan. The findings at the river included over 10,000 individual items of gold and silver including a number of golden and silver sycees.[19][20] Furthermore a Xiwang Shanggong (西王賞功) cash coin issued by Zhang Xianzhong was unearthed at the Jiangkou stretch of the Minjiang River.[21]
See also
Notes
References
- ^ a b c "sycee, n.", Oxford English Dictionary, 1st ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1919.
- ^ a b c "sycee", Merriam-Webster Online, retrieved 22 March 2016.
- ^ a b Morse, Hosea Ballou; et al. (1908), The Trade and Administration of the Chinese Empire, Longmans, Green, & Co., p. 148.
- ^ Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies, Academy of East Asian Studies at Sungkyunkwan University, 2008, p. 133.
- ^ Louis, François. Chinese Coins (PDF). p. 226. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-15. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
- ^ "Bronze Kaiyuan tongbao coin". Explore Highlights. British Museum.
The characters Kai yuan mean 'new beginning', while tong bao means 'circulating treasure' or 'coin'.
- ^ Shaw, R.B. (1872–1873), "Miscellaneous notes on Eastern Turkestan", Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society of London, 17, Edward Stanford: 196
- ^ Bell, James (1836), A System of Geography, Popular and Scientific: Or A Physical, Political, and Statistical Account of the World and Its Various Divisions, vol. 6, A. Fullarton and Company, p. 632
- ISBN 0804729336
- ^ "Shoe of Gold" in Hobson-Jobson, p. 830
- Morse, H.B. (1907). "Currency in China". Journal of the North-China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 38. Shanghai: 36.(from 49 to 54) and, formerly called ting 鋌, is now called pao 寶 (jewel, article of value, as in the inscription on the copper cash tung-pao 通寶 = "current coin") and more commonly yuan-pao 元
The standard ingot of China weighs about 50 taels
- ISBN 978-0-88000-056-7.
the theory is that 1000 copper cash are equal to 10 silver and 1 gold.
- ^ Foreign Silver Coins and Chinese Sycee at Sycee-on-line.com
- ^ China International Publishing Group). Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d Credited as "Xinhua Net NetWriter". (20 November 2015). "Gold coins, hoofs found in 2,000-yr-old Chinese tomb". Kaogu (考古) - Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (中国社会科学院考古研究所). Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Excavation of Haihunhou Tomb in China Completed". New Historian. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
- ^ "Identity of Han-Dynasty marquis confirmed". Chinanews.com. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
- ^ a b c Credited as "Chinese Archaeology NetWriter". (24 September 2015). "Song and Yuan dynasty graves found in Zhaojiazhuang Cemetery, Shandong". Kaogu (考古) - Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (中国社会科学院考古研究所). Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ Jamie Seidel (22 March 2017). "Chinese discover legendary treasure buried in river bank". News Corp Australia Network. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ Xinhua (20 March 2017). "China Focus: Legendary sunken treasure discovered in SW China". Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ ZD (11 May 2018). "China's top 10 archaeological finds of 2017". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on April 28, 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
10. Archaeologists found artifacts at the site of a peasant uprising at the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) from the Jiangkou stretch of the Minjiang River in Meishan, southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Further reading
- Cribb, Joe. A Catalogue of Sycee in the British Museum: Chinese Silver Currency Ingots c. 1750–1933. British Museum Press, London, 1992.
External links
- Examples of Chinese silver sycee (images)
- Sycee On Line
- Chinese Sycee History at Sycee-on-line.com