Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1 Cash Kaiyuan Tongbao, Xing, with number
| Issuer | Southern Han Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 917-971 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Cash (907-971) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Cast lead cash coin with a central square hole. The four-character inscription 開元通寶 (Kaiyuan Tongbao) is disposed in clerical script (lishu) reading top-bottom-right-left around the central perforation, with one character in each quadrant. The characters are rendered in shallow relief with broad, flat strokes characteristic of Southern Han lead coinage. The rim is relatively narrow and the fields are plain and unadorned. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain reverse with a central square hole, featuring a two-character inscription 興二 (Xing Er) positioned above the central perforation, rendered in regular script (kaishu) in shallow relief. The character 興 (Xing) refers to the Xingwangfu mint, while 二 (Er, meaning '2') denotes the second emission number of this series. The remainder of the reverse field is blank, with a narrow flat rim. The surface displays the characteristic granular texture typical of cast lead alloy coinage. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The Southern Han, ruling from Guangzhou, was among the most prolific issuers of debased coinage during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Their decision to mint in lead rather than bronze reflected both chronic copper shortages in the Lingnan region and a deliberate policy of keeping bullion within the kingdom's limited borders. Lead cash circulated at a severe discount against bronze issues from rival states, and contemporary sources record persistent complaints about their purchasing power.
The Xing mint mark, combined with a numerical notation on this type, points to an administrative system for tracking die batches — a practical response to the volume of output required to sustain a lead-based monetary economy.