Thursday 12 January 2012

Chinese Coin Mirror Discovered in Song Dynasty Tomb

Song Dynasty bronze mirror with Chinese coin design 

From "Primal Trek" by Gary Ashkenazy

 An ancient bronze mirror with a Chinese coin design was recently unearthed from a Song Dynasty (960-1279) tomb according to a report from Qianjiang City (潜江), Hubei Province.
 The Qianjiang Cultural Relics Bureau (潜江文物局) announced that the mirror, which has some damage, was among the precious items found in a tomb located in Longwan Zhen (龙湾镇).
 Also discovered in the tomb were three silver bracelets and a bronze wash basin.
 The mirror design incorporates multiple images of the classic Chinese cash coin, which is round with a square hole in the center, that was used for more than 2,000 years in China.
In addition to the mirror with the coin motif, 42 ancient Chinese cash coins were excavated from the tomb.
 The coins included Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) wu zhu (五铢) coins and Tang Dynasty (618-907) kai yuan tong bao (开元通宝) coins.
 There were also coins from the Song Dynasty such as tai ping tong bao (太平通宝 976 – 989), jing de yuan bao (景德元宝 998-1022), and xi ning tong bao (熙宁通宝 1068-1085).
 This is the first time coins from more than ten Emperor reigns have been discovered in a single tomb in Qianjiang.
The report concluded by stating that the discovery of the tomb will contribute greatly to the understanding of local burial customs and the historical changes that occurred during the Song Dynasty.

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