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Sycee

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Imperial gold sycee
Silver sycee
Drawing of a boat-shaped silver sycee
Silver sycee
Gold sycee and molds

Asycee[n 1](/ˈsaɪsiː,saɪˈsiː/;[2][1]fromCantoneseTế ti,Jyutping:Sai3 Si1,lit. 'fine silk')[2][3]oryuanbao(traditional Chinese:Nguyên bảo;simplified Chinese:Nguyên bảo;pinyin:yuánbǎo;Jyutping:jyun4 bou2;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Goân-pó;lit.'primary treasure') was a type ofgoldandsilveringotcurrency used inimperial Chinafrom its founding under theQin dynastyuntil the fall of theQingin the 20th century. Sycee were not made by a central bank or mint but by individualgoldsmithsorsilversmithsfor local exchange; consequently, the shape and amount of extra detail on each ingot were highly variable. Square and oval shapes were common, but boat, flower, tortoise and others are known. Their value—like the value of the various silver coins and little pieces of silver in circulation at the end of theQing dynasty—was determined by experiencedmoneyhandlers,who estimated the appropriate discount based on the purity of the silver and evaluated the weight intaelsand the progressive decimal subdivisions of the tael (mace,candareen,andcash).

In present-day China, gold sycees remain a symbol of wealth and prosperity and are commonly depicted during theChinese New Yearfestivities. Paper imitations of gold- or silver-colored paper are burned along withhell moneyas a part ofChinese ancestral venerationforTomb Sweeping Dayand theGhost Festival.

Name[edit]

The name "sycee" is an irregularromanizationof theCantonesepronunciation of thecharactersfor "fine silk".[2][3]This is variously explained as deriving from the ability to draw pure gold or silver out into fine threads[1]or from the silky sheen of quality silver.[4]

The name "yuanbao" is thepinyinromanization of theMandarinpronunciation of the characters for "inaugural treasures". Under China'sTang dynasty,coinswere inscribedKaiyuantongbao(KhaiNguyênThông bảo,"Circulating Treasure of the Beginning of anEra"),[5][6]later abbreviated to yuanbao. The name was also applied to other non-coin forms of currency. Yuanbao was speltmambo[7][8] andyambu[9][10]in the 19th-century English-language literature onXinjiangand the trade between Xinjiang andBritish India.

Ayuanbaowas also called adìng(Chinese:Đĩnh;pinyin:dìng;Wade–Giles:ting) or "silverdìng"(Ngân đĩnh;yíndìng;yin-ting). [11]

History[edit]

Sycees were first used as amedium for exchangeas early as theQin dynasty(3rd century BC). During theWestern Han dynasty(206 BC – 9 AD), theWu Zhubronze coins became the maincurrency in circulation,whilehoof-shapedgold ingotknown as "Horse Hoof Gold" (Chinese:Mã đề kim) served as an adjunct currency for high-value transactions. During theTang dynasty,a standard bi-metallic system of silver and copper coinage was codified with 10 silver coins equal to 1,000copper cashcoins.[12]

Paper moneyandbondsstarted to be used in China in the 9th century. However, due to monetary problems such as enormous local variations in monetary supply and exchange rates, rapid changes in the relative value of silver and copper, coin fraud, inflation, and political uncertainty with changing regimes, until the time of the Republic payment by weight of silver was the standard practice, and merchants carried their own scales with them. Most of the so-called "opium scales" seen in museums were actually for weighing payments in silver.[citation needed]The tael was still the basis of the silver currency and sycees remained in use until the end of theQing dynasty.Common weights: 50 taels, 10 taels, 5 taels, 1 tael.

When foreign silver coins began to circulate in China in the later 16th century, they were initially considered a type of "quasi-sycee" and imprinted withsealsjust as sycees were.[13]

Contemporary uses[edit]

Today, imitation gold sycees are used as a symbol of prosperity among Chinese people. They are frequently displayed duringChinese New Year,representing a fortunate year to come. Reproduction or commemorative gold sycees continue to be minted as collectibles.

Another form of imitationyuanbao– made by folding gold- or silver-colored paper – can be burned at ancestors' graves during theGhost Festival,along withimitation paper money.

Even after currency standard changed in Republican times, the old usage of denominating value by equivalent standard weight of silver survived in Cantonese slang in the common term for a ten-cent and a five-cent piece, e.g.,chat fan yi(Thất phân nhị"sevencandareens,twocash") orsaam fan luk(Tam phân lục"three candareens and six cash" ).

Notable hoards[edit]

See also:List of coin hoards in China
  • It was reported on 17 November 2015 by theXinhua News Agencythat at the tomb of theMarquis of HaihuninXinjian,Jiangxia number of gold coins had been found.[14][15]Excavations of the tomb have been conducted since 2011.[16][17]The gold objects unearthed included some 25 gold hoofs (a type of sycee) with varying weights from 40 to 250 grams and 50 very large gold coins weighing about 250 grams each.[14][15]The gold coinages were packed inside of three different boxes that were placed under a bed that was located inside of the main chamber of the tomb.[14][15]According to Yang Jie, who leads the excavation team, the gold objects were likely awarded to the Marquis of Haihun by the emperor himself.[14][15]
  • It was reported on 24 September 2015 that a number of cash coins had been found in tombs located in tombs during excavation work undertaken by theJinan City Archaeological Research Institutenearby the Zhaojiazhuang Cemetery,Shandong.[18]The tombs yielded cash coins produced during theSong,Tang,andQing dynastieswith the latest examples beingXianfeng era cash coins.[18]A tomb identified as "Grave M1" also contained silver sycees issued under theJin dynasty.[18]
  • In March 2017 a large number of cultural relics were discovered at theMinjiang RiverinMeishan,Sichuan.The findings at the river included over 10,000 individual items of gold and silver including a number of golden and silver sycees.[19][20]Furthermore a Xiwang Shanggong (Tây vương thưởng công)cash coinissued byZhang Xianzhongwas unearthed at the Jiangkou stretch of the Minjiang River.[21]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^Uncommon variant spellings includesiseeandseze.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^abc"sycee,n.",Oxford English Dictionary,1st ed.,Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1919.
  2. ^abc"sycee",Merriam-Webster Online,retrieved22 March2016.
  3. ^abMorse, Hosea Ballou; et al. (1908),The Trade and Administration of the Chinese Empire,Longmans, Green, & Co., p. 148.
  4. ^Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies,Academy of East Asian Studies at Sungkyunkwan University, 2008, p. 133.
  5. ^Louis, François.Chinese Coins(PDF).p. 226. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2015-02-15.Retrieved2015-02-15.
  6. ^"BronzeKaiyuan tongbaocoin ".Explore Highlights.British Museum.The charactersKai yuanmean 'new beginning', whiletong baomeans 'circulating treasure' or 'coin'.
  7. ^Shaw, R.B. (1872–1873),"Miscellaneous notes on Eastern Turkestan",Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society of London,17,Edward Stanford: 196
  8. ^Bell, James (1836),A System of Geography, Popular and Scientific: Or A Physical, Political, and Statistical Account of the World and Its Various Divisions,vol. 6, A. Fullarton and Company, p. 632
  9. ^Millward, James A. (1998),Beyond the Pass: Economy, Ethnicity, and Empire in Qing Central Asia, 1759-1864,Stanford University Press, p. 62,ISBN0804729336
  10. ^"Shoe of Gold"inHobson-Jobson,p. 830
  11. ^Morse, H.B.(1907)."Currency in China".Journal of the North-China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society.38.Shanghai: 36.The standard ingot of China weighs about 50taels(from 49 to 54) and, formerly calledtingĐĩnh,is now calledpaoBảo(jewel, article of value, as in the inscription on the copper cashtung-paoThông bảo= "current coin" ) and more commonlyyuan-paoNguyên
  12. ^Lockhart, James Haldane Stewart (1975).The Lockhart Collection of Chinese Copper Coins.Quarterman Publications. p. xi.ISBN978-0-88000-056-7.the theory is that 1000 copper cash are equal to 10 silver and 1 gold.
  13. ^Foreign Silver Coins and Chinese Syceeat Sycee-on-line.com
  14. ^abcdXinhua(17 November 2015)."Gold coins found in ancient tomb".China Internet Information Center(State Council Information OfficeandChina International Publishing Group).Retrieved12 April2020.
  15. ^abcdCredited as "Xinhua NetNetWriter ". (20 November 2015)."Gold coins, hoofs found in 2,000-yr-old Chinese tomb".Kaogu( khảo cổ ) -Institute of Archaeology,Chinese Academy of Social Sciences( trung quốc xã hội khoa học viện khảo cổ nghiên cứu sở ).Retrieved12 April2020.
  16. ^"Excavation of Haihunhou Tomb in China Completed".New Historian.12 October 2016.Retrieved22 February2017.
  17. ^"Identity of Han-Dynasty marquis confirmed".Chinanews.com.Retrieved22 February2017.
  18. ^abcCredited as "Chinese Archaeology NetWriter". (24 September 2015)."Song and Yuan dynasty graves found in Zhaojiazhuang Cemetery, Shandong".Kaogu( khảo cổ ) -Institute of Archaeology,Chinese Academy of Social Sciences( trung quốc xã hội khoa học viện khảo cổ nghiên cứu sở ).Retrieved12 April2020.
  19. ^Jamie Seidel (22 March 2017)."Chinese discover legendary treasure buried in river bank".News Corp Australia Network.Retrieved12 April2020.
  20. ^Xinhua (20 March 2017)."China Focus: Legendary sunken treasure discovered in SW China".Xinhua News Agency.Retrieved12 April2020.
  21. ^ZD (11 May 2018)."China's top 10 archaeological finds of 2017".Xinhua News Agency.Archived fromthe originalon April 28, 2018.Retrieved10 April2020.10. Archaeologists found artifacts at the site of a peasant uprising at the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) from the Jiangkou stretch of the Minjiang River in Meishan, southwest China's Sichuan Province.

Further reading[edit]

  • Cribb, Joe.A Catalogue of Sycee in the British Museum: Chinese Silver Currency Ingots c. 1750–1933.British Museum Press, London, 1992.

External links[edit]

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