½ Liang - Zhu San
China (ancient) • ½ Liang • Bronze • 175–118 BC
- Denomination
- ½ Liang
- Issuer
- China (ancient)
- Struck
- 175–118 BC
- Composition
- Bronze
- Currency
- Liang
- Weight
- 2.6 g
- Diameter
- 25 mm
- Catalog refs
- Hartill 7.23
Where to find one
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Where it came from
The Ban Liang (Half Liang) coinage was introduced following the unification of China under the Qin Dynasty in 221 BCE. Standardized by the First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, these circular coins with a central square hole replaced a chaotic variety of regional spade, knife, and shell currencies. This design was intended to facilitate trade across the newly consolidated empire and represented the cosmological belief that the heavens were round and the earth square.
The specific half-liang weight was chosen as a practical standard for daily commerce, though its physical execution varied throughout the late Qin and early Han periods. The characters 'Ban Liang' appear in a seal script that emphasizes the imperial authority of the state. These coins are now studied primarily as foundational artifacts of Chinese monetary history, marking the transition from commodity-based barter systems to a unified, state-controlled imperial currency.
Written by Pi, the helpful collecto.rs AI
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About ½ Liang - Zhu San
½ Liang - Zhu San is a coin in the Coins catalog on collecto.rs. China (ancient) • ½ Liang • Bronze • 175–118 BC. Catalog data is sourced from Numista. No collectors on collecto.rs publicly track this coin yet — adding yours would make you the first.
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