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ANCIENT CHINA
Shang Dynasty 1766-1154 BC
Actual cowry shell money
Earliest Coin
Authenticity guaranteed for all items!
Reference: Hartill 1.1
Size: 25 mm; Material: Actual
cowry shell
COWRY AND COWRY
IMITATION COINS
By the Shang Dynasty and continuing into the Zhou Dynasty,
actual cowry shells were used as a form of money but they
fall more into the category of "primitive money" than true
coins. Their use far pre-dates the first true coins as shown
by Wang on pages 64 and 65 of his book "Early Chinese
Coinage" where he describes a bronze Tsun vessel bearing the
inscription.
Cowry shell money
Inscriptions and archaeological evidence
shows that cowrie shells were regarded as important
objects of value in the Shang Dynasty (c. 1766-1154 BC).
In the Zhou period, they are frequently referred to as
gifts or rewards from kings and nobles to their
subjects. Later imitations in bone, stone or bronze were
probably used as money in some instances. Some think the
first Chinese metallic coins were bronze imitations of
cowrie shells found in a tomb near Anyang dating from
around 1200 BC, but these items lack inscriptions.
Similar bronze pieces with inscriptions, known as Ant
Nose Money (Chinese: 蟻鼻錢; pinyin: yǐ bí qián) or Ghost
Face Money (Chinese: 鬼臉錢; pinyin: guǐliǎn qián) were
definitely used as money. They have been found in areas
to the south of the Yellow River corresponding to the
State of Chu in the Warring States period. One hoard was
of some 16,000 pieces. Their weight is very variable,
and their alloy often contains a high proportion of
lead. The name Ant [and] Nose refers to the appearance
of the inscriptions, and is nothing to do with keeping
ants out of the noses of corpses.
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