Chinanews client, Beijing, August 11th (Reporter Shangguanyun) How long has the history of making and using coins in ancient China?

What is an empty head cloth?

Recently, "Henan found the world's oldest mint" was on the hot search, which aroused the curiosity of many people.

  Zhao Hao, associate professor of the Department of Archaeology at Zhengzhou University, explained the above-mentioned related issues in an interview with a reporter from Chinanews.com.

He said that the empty head cloth probably appeared in the middle and late Spring and Autumn Period, and later evolved into the flat head cloth.

Guanzhuang Site

  Recently, the archaeological team of Zhengzhou University published a paper in the international archaeological journal Antiquity, which confirmed that the Guanzhuang site in Xingyang, Henan is currently the oldest minting workshop confirmed by carbon 14 dating in the world.

Data map: Excavation site of Guanzhuang site.

Photo courtesy of Zhao Hao

  The Guanzhuang site is located in the west of Zhengzhou, with a total area of ​​more than 1.3 million square meters.

According to the literature, during the fortnight period, countries such as Dongguo and Zheng Guo were active successively in the western area of ​​Zhengzhou.

  In other words, the Guanzhuang site is a complete urban site from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period. It was built around 800 BC and was abandoned around 450 BC.

  During the excavation work, a large area of ​​handicraft workshops was discovered at the site. The handicraft activities in the workshops involved various types such as copper casting, pottery making, and bone making.

The bronze casting workshop at the Guanzhuang site is located in the north-central part of Dacheng, covering a large area.

  Earlier, some media reported that according to the relevant person in charge of the Zhengzhou Cultural Relics Bureau, Zhengzhou’s old grandmother temple ruins, Xishi Village ruins, Guanzhuang ruins, and Yaogou ruins were selected as the eighth batch of national key cultural relics protection units.

The ancient "mint"

  According to reports, the archaeological team of Zhengzhou University identified 4 types of relics related to coin casting during the field excavation of the Guanzhuang copper casting workshop, including empty first cloth products, unused cores, used cores, and Outside fan.

  Among them, it can most directly show that the remains of the official metal currency produced by the Guanzhuang copper casting workshop are the core examples of empty cloth.

A total of 54 cores were found. These cores are exactly the same as the ones embedded in the two empty-head cloth finished products unearthed at the site. It is thus determined that these finished cloth coins were produced at the Guanzhuang site.

  According to Zhao Hao, the archaeological team of Zhengzhou University selected millet flotation from the site as a dating sample, confirming that the minting activities of the Guanzhuang workshop took place between 640-550 BC, and the workshop continued to carry out bronze ritual vessels, weapons and other products At the same time as the production, the casting activity of standardized metal currency began to appear.

  He said that this data provides for the first time absolute chronological information about early coin minting sites in China, and it also makes the Guanzhuang site the world's oldest coin-making workshop site confirmed by carbon fourteen testing.

Data map: The pottery core fan used for casting cloth coins unearthed at the Guanzhuang site.

Photo courtesy of Zhao Hao

  "In addition, from the late Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle Spring and Autumn Period, it was also a period of major changes in Chinese bronze technology. The excavation and discovery of many copper-related materials in this workshop area is very important." Zhao Hao said.

When did the empty first cloth appear?

  Zhao Hao also stated that the Spring and Autumn Period should be the time when China's ancient metal currency was produced. It is currently believed that the empty first cloth was the first metal currency to be produced, probably in the middle and late Spring and Autumn Period.

  "Later, it is generally believed that in the early Warring States period, two currencies appeared in the Central Plains: Knife coins appeared in the Yan and Qi states, and ant nose coins appeared in the Chu state." He said.

  From the appearance, the empty head cloth was shaped like a shovel, and later evolved into a flat head cloth.

Zhao Hao said that the currency in early ancient times was rather chaotic. Judging from the coins found in cellars and minting workshops, there was a situation where multiple currencies were minted in one country at that time, probably for the convenience of trade.

  "Before Qin, many currency issues were unresolved. In the middle and late Warring States period, Qin began to mint currency, that is, currency with a round square hole, and the chosen unit of minting was half taels. After Qin unified the world, half taels became common." He said .

(Finish)