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50 Yuan First chain pumps used to draw water
| Issuer | People's Republic of China |
|---|---|
| Year | 1994 |
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| Composition | Gold (.999) |
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| Obverse description | The obverse depicts a detailed relief of the Great Wall of China, rendered in a panoramic architectural view with crenellated battlements and a prominent watchtower occupying the central field. The inscription '中华人民共和国' (People's Republic of China) is arranged in a circular legend around the upper portion of the coin in Chinese characters. The year of issue '1994' appears prominently in the lower exergue in Arabic numerals. The design is executed in a refined sculptural style characteristic of Chinese commemorative gold coinage of this period. |
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| Obverse lettering | 中华人民共和国 1994 |
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| Additional information |
Part of China's long-running "Inventions and Discoveries of Ancient China" gold series, this issue commemorates the chain pump — a continuous loop of paddles or discs running through a wooden trough — which Chinese farmers were using to lift irrigation water as early as the 1st century AD. The device allowed controlled water transfer against gravity at a scale that transformed lowland rice cultivation across the Yangtze delta and beyond.
The series, issued through the 1990s in both gold and silver, was aimed squarely at the international collector market rather than domestic circulation.