J. Cribb.

Magic coins of Java, Bali and the Malay Peninsula

A catalog of the 13th to 20th centuries collection of coin-shaped charms from Java in the British Museum.

British Museum Press, London, 1999. Hardcover. 288 p., the last 80 of which are fine plates

New in plastic wrap. Rare

 ISBN 0 7141 0881 2

De fascinerende wereld van niet-traditioneel geld op Java, Bali en het schiereiland Malakka (Maleisië)

Joe Cribb is a celebrated numismatist who specializes in Asian coinage. He authored the first English-language catalog on Chinese silver ingots and is an expert on coins of the Kushan Empire. From 2005 to 2009 he served as the president of the Royal Numismatic Society. Cribb worked in the Department of Coins and Medals of the British Museum from the early 1970s until his retirement in 2010. In 2009 he was awarded the Huntington Medal of the American Numismatic Society.

ONS review

More than 125 years have passed since the publication of Millies’ catalogue of of the coinage of the Indian Archipelago and Malayan Peninsula which included a substantial number of Javanese temple coins. In those 125 years only fragmentary numismatic documentation involving magic pieces was published. Therefore the publication of the present book is a modern milestone. The book contains a wealth of documentation not only of the pieces themselves, but also of their non-currency purpose and the background of the ceremonies, symbolism and mythological figures shown. The catalogue is based on the Raffles collection of coin-shaped charms from Java in the British Museum, supplemented with data from other sources. Raffles’ activities emphasize plainly the lack of interest of the Dutch for Javanese history and culture during the preceding VOC administration that was devoted mainly to the pursuits of commerce. Only in 1847 did a Dutch publication appear mentioning Javanese temple-coins.

       The pieces are classified into 333 different types based on 1050 specimens and grouped within 19 series according to their likely date and place of production.

       The catalogue is preceded by a number of introductory sections. These include:

1.     Content and Arrangement,

2.     Collections and Scholarship,

3.     Classification and Designs,

4.     Dating and Function.

5.     Magic coins

       The 4^th section contains an interesting table on their metallic composition. This gives strong support to the idea that were made from melted down Chinese cash.
       After the catalogue and following the bibliography are two appendices. Appendix 1 lists the origin or whereabouts of the pieces; appendix 2 gives the translation of the various Arabic and Malay inscriptions. The two appendices are followed by three indexes: designs, design elements and general.
       There are 64 plates illustrating 464 specimens and 16 comparative plates with 48 figures.

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Weight: 1,400 kg. (packing material included)