page_title: Ancient Chinese coinage
section_title: Gold
hierarchical_section_title: Ancient Chinese coinage / Pre-Imperial (770–220 BCE) / Gold
caption_attribution_description: English: Gold coins inscribed with the characters "ying yuan" from the state of Chu 中文: 楚国郢爰
context_page_description: Ancient Chinese coinage includes some of the earliest known coins. These coins, used as early as the Spring and Autumn period, took the form of imitations of the cowrie shells that were used in ceremonial exchanges. The Spring and Autumn period also saw the introduction of the first metal coins; however, they were not initially round, instead being either knife shaped or spade shaped. Round metal coins with a round, and then later square hole in the center were first introduced around 350 BCE. The beginning of the Qin Dynasty, the first dynasty to unify China, saw the introduction of a standardised coinage for the whole Empire. Subsequent dynasties produced variations on these round coins throughout the imperial period. At first the distribution of the coinage was limited to use around the capital city district, but by the beginning of the Han Dynasty, coins were widely used for such things as paying taxes, salaries and fines.
  Ancient Chinese coins are markedly different from their European counterparts. Chinese coins were manufactured by being cast in molds, whereas European coins were typically cut and hammered or, in later times, milled.
context_section_description: The only minted gold of this period known is Chu gold block money (Chinese: 郢爰; pinyin: yǐng yuán), which consists of sheets of gold 3–5 mm thick, of various sizes, with inscriptions consisting of square or round stamps in which there are one or two characters. They have been unearthed in various locations south of the Yellow River indicating that they were products of the State of Chu. One of the characters in their inscription is often a monetary unit or weight which is normally read as yuan (Chinese: 爰; pinyin: yuán). Pieces are of a very variable size and thickness, and the stamps appear to be a device to validate the whole block, rather than a guide to enable it to be broken up into unit pieces. Some specimens have been reported in copper, lead, or clay. It is probable that these were funeral money, not circulating coinage, as they are found in tombs, but the gold coins are not.
caption: Gold coins marked with "Ying yuan". "Ying" being the name of the Chu capital.
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