Lot 809. A group of five bronze coins, Xin dynasty (9-24) and Tang dynasty (618-907); Knife coin: 3 in. (7.6 cm.) long, cloth box; Each circular coin: 1 in. (2.5 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 1,500 – USD 2,000. Price realised USD 10,710. © Christie's 2023

The knife coin, Xin dynasty (AD 9-24), is inscribed on one side with an inscription that reads yi dao ping wu qian (one knife is worth five thousand), with the first two characters inlaid in gold on the circular ring and the other three characters cast on the ‘blade’. Each circular coin, Tang dynasty (AD 618-907), is cast on one side with four characters surrounding the square central aperture reading kai yuan tong bao (circulating treasure from the inauguration of a new epoch).

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong, 1997.
J. J. Lally & Co., New York, nos. 2514I and 2513B.

Note: A similar gold-inlaid bronze ‘knife coin’ with the same inscription, excavated in 1983 from Guyuan, Ningxia province, is illustrated in Zhongguo wenwu jinghua daquan: jin, yin, yu, shi juan (The Compendium of Chinese Art: Gold, Silver, Jade and Stones), Hong Kong, 1994, no. 027. Another coin of this ‘knife’ type in the Shaanxi History Museum is illustrated by Li (ed.) in Shaanxi qingtong qi (The Shaanxi Bronzes), Xi'an, 1994, p. 341, no. 304, and again by Zheng Wenlei (ed.) in A Journey into China's Antiquity, vol. 2, Beijing, 1997, p. 128, no. 143.

The circular coins with characters reading kai yuan tong bao were issued by Emperor Gaozu (r. AD 618-626) on the fourth year of Wude (corresponding to AD 621) to commemorate the founding of the Tang dynasty. This currency was widely circulated throughout the Tang and minted in large quantities by both the government and non-government agencies, resulting in a variety of casting details. Similar bronze coins from the Tang dynasty cemetery at Xingyuan village, Yanshi city, Henan province, are illustrated in Yanshi Xingyuan Tang mu (The Tang Tombs in Yanshi Xingyuan), Beijing, 2001, p. 233, pl. 225, and described in detail on pp. 232-34 with an outline of their characteristics as basis for dating and attribution.

Christie's. J. J. Lally & Co., New York, 23.03.2023