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!
2 Cash - Zhenguan Baoqian, Tangut script
| Issuer | Western Xia Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1101-1113 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| 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 | Round cast bronze coin featuring a central square hole (cash-type) surrounded by four Tangut script characters arranged in the four cardinal positions around the perforation. The four characters reading clockwise from the top read 'Zhenguan Baoqian' (貞觀寶錢), rendered in the distinctive angular Tangut script. The field is flat and relatively plain, with a raised rim encircling the coin. The casting shows moderate detail with light patination consistent with age. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 貞 錢 觀 寶 (Zhen Guan Bao Qian) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| 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 Western Xia state, established by the Tangut people in the Ordos region and northwestern China, maintained a dual-script monetary policy throughout much of its existence — issuing coins in both Chinese and Tangut scripts, sometimes simultaneously. The Tangut script itself was a deliberate political creation, commissioned by Emperor Jingzong in 1036 to give the Tangut people a writing system distinct from Chinese, roughly sixty years before this coin was struck.
Zhenguan was the reign title of Emperor Chongzong, who came to the throne as a child under the regency of his mother, Empress Liang. The heavier 2 cash denomination saw irregular production under Western Xia and surviving examples in identifiable condition are considerably scarcer than the standard 1 cash issues from the same reign.