18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

1.5 tons of bronze coins found in east China

An ancient coin hoard containing 1.5 tonnes of coins from the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties has been discovered in Jiangsu Province, east China. The coins were strong together with straw ropes and arranged in tidy stacks.

The underground remains were unearthed in Shuangdun Village, Jianhu County of Yancheng City. The pit mouth of the hoard was square, 1.63 meters long, 1.58 meters wide, and 0.5 meters deep. Bronze coins connected in series with straw ropes were neatly layered and paved inside. Most were from the Song Dynasty.

The coins that were discovered were well-preserved, and the majority of them had legible inscriptions, indicating a significant value for further study.

Photo: Xinhua

In ancient China, such hoards were often buried in the ground so as to preserve precious porcelain, coins, metal tools, and other valuables, said the researchers.

Seventy wells were also found around the coin hoard, which was near the battle frontline of the Song and Jin troops, making the researchers wonder whether the excavation site belonged to a hutted camp.

Photo: Xinhua

The majority of the coins in the hoard are Song dynasty wens. Bronze wens were the common currency until a severe copper shortage forced the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279) to issue lower-quality and lower-value coins. Iron was difficult to mint and rusted quickly once in circulation. Due to a lack of bronze coinage, the government was forced to cut military wages in half in 1161, resulting in the invention of paper money. In 1170, the state began to require that half of all taxes be paid with Huizi paper currency stepped into the breach.

Cover Photo: Xinhua

Related Articles

Archaeologists unearth 600,000-year-old evidence of Britain’s early inhabitants

22 June 2022

22 June 2022

New finds have indicated that some of Britain’s earliest people lived in the Canterbury suburbs. According to the research, led...

Alexander the Great’s Sacred Purple Tunic Found in a 2,400-year-old Macedonian Tomb?

29 October 2024

29 October 2024

Archaeologists have found a sacred chiton (tunic) in a 2400-year-old royal tomb in the Macedonian city of Vergina in northern...

Phrygian Royal Tomb Unearthed in Ancient City of Gordion, Türkiye: A Landmark Discovery

4 June 2025

4 June 2025

In a major archaeological breakthrough, Turkey’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, announced the discovery of a wooden...

Ancient Footprints Offer Evidence Humans Wore Shoes 148,000 Years Ago

12 September 2023

12 September 2023

A new analysis of ancient footprints in South Africa suggests that the humans who made these tracks might have been...

Exceptional discovery of a fully frescoed chamber tomb dating back to the Republican and Imperial Roman ages

10 October 2023

10 October 2023

Waterworks in Giugliano, a suburb of Campania (Naples), have uncovered an untouched chamber tomb full of frescoes ceilings, and walls...

The Lion of Venice was Made in China: : Isotopic Analyses and Stylistic Comparisons Prove it

16 September 2024

16 September 2024

Recent scientific studies have revealed that the famous bronze-winged lion above one of the two columns in Piazzetta San Marco,...

The Big Universe Coming Out from the Dust “in Esna Temple”

7 February 2021

7 February 2021

While the Esna Temple has been waiting to renew and breathe again for a long time, it has recently experienced...

Albastı “A Mother’s Nightmare “

5 February 2021

5 February 2021

Albastı is one of the bad characters in Turkish mythology. The fearful dream of puerperal women and babies, Albastı continues...

The 2800-year-old Urartians Lake, which is an engineering masterpiece of its time, is drying

13 July 2023

13 July 2023

Keşiş Lake in Van, in eastern Turkey, which was built by the Urartu King Rusa 2,800 years ago, was negatively...

Marble inlay floors found in a Sunken Roman villa in Baia, the Las Vegas of the ancient world

9 April 2023

9 April 2023

Expansion of research activities in the Terme del Lacus area in the sunken Baia park, known as the ‘Las Vegas’...

In Moravia, archaeologists discover divine thrones, thousands of artifacts and a new settlement

13 August 2021

13 August 2021

During a four-year dig in the Moravian city (Czech Republic) of Perov, rare gems, mysterious burial places, and divine thrones...

Rare gladiator tombs were discovered in the Ancient City of Anavarza in southern Türkiye

10 August 2022

10 August 2022

Archaeologists have discovered rare gladiator tombs in the ancient city of Anavarza, known as the “Invincible city” in history, which...

1,600-Year-Old Tomb of First Maya King Discovered in Caracol, Belize

11 July 2025

11 July 2025

Archaeologists have unearthed the 1,600-Year-Old Tomb of First Maya King at Caracol, Belize, marking one of the most significant Maya...

Celtiberian Inscription Found at La Peña del Castro: One of the Earliest Examples of Alphabetic Writing in Northern Iberia

26 February 2025

26 February 2025

La Ercina, León, Spain – Archaeological research at the La Peña del Castro site has unveiled an important discovery that...

A rare treasure with ornaments nearly a thousand years old was discovered in Staraya Ryazan, Russia

18 August 2021

18 August 2021

During expeditions of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a rare treasure with ornaments of about...