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1/2 Liang Type 3
| Issuer | China (ancient) |
|---|---|
| Year | 182 BC - 175 BC |
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| Composition | Bronze |
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| Obverse description | Cast bronze cash coin featuring two Chinese seal-script characters flanking the central square perforation, read from right to left: 半 (Ban, meaning 'half') to the right of the hole and 兩 (Liang, meaning 'ounce') to the left. The characters are rendered in archaic seal script in low relief against a flat, unbordered field. No inner or outer rim rims are present, consistent with the lightweight Ban Liang coinage of the early Western Han dynasty issued under Empress Lü. The coin displays an olive-brown patina with areas of green verdigris and red cuprite encrustation typical of excavated Han bronzes. |
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| Obverse lettering | 半兩 (Translation: Ban Liang - Half ounce) |
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| Additional information |
This type falls within the reign of Empress Dowager Lü, who governed the Han court as regent following the death of Emperor Gaozu. Her administration systematically debased the bronze coinage, reducing the half-liang through successive reforms — this type represents one of the lightest authorized issues, a fraction of the weight originally mandated under Qin and early Han standards. The reduction was policy, not accident.
After Lü's death in 180 BC, the Wen Emperor moved to stabilize currency, eventually issuing the heavier four-zhu coins. The years covered by this type bracket her final reductions and the immediate interregnum chaos that followed.