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Traditionally, Chinese silver coins were cast in copper, brass or iron. In mid 1800 the documents were made of three parts copper and 2 parts of lead. Cast silver coins were produced intermittently, but are much rarer. Cast gold coins are also known to exist, but are very rare.
Chinese silver coins came from the barter of agricultural tools and agricultural surpluses. By 1200 BC, small vein spades, hoes, knives and began to be used for exchange with smaller chips later softened to provide real farm tools. These chips came to be used as means of exchange themselves and were known to shovel money and money knife.
The earlier pieces were cast in the weight standards in a direct relationship with the denominations, so if you have a room money weighted at 12 grams, it was almost certainly a Liang 1 (or 1 Jin) designation. During the Chin Dynasty, around 250 BC, things have be changed and begin to see the coins issued with a nominal value brands that were unrelated to the weight of the piece. They are more visible on the liang Ban (1 / 2 Liang) parts of Chin State, which may change weight significantly, but the most massive issues in diameter weighing not less than six grams (and often much), but the size and weight gradually decreased and when they were last issued in the Han Dynasty are generally seen in three grams or even less, but always with the name Liang Ban them.
The Koreans, Japanese and Vietnamese all expressed their copper clean species in the second part of the second millennium, as those employed by China.
The last pieces of silver were struck, not cast under the reign of Qing Emperor Xuantong just before the fall of the Empire in 1911. The play continued to be used unofficially in China until the mid 20th century.
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