View timeline Unusual currency
Chinese Knife Money of the State of Ming
Date: 480 BC - 255 BC
Materials: Bronze
Origin: Ming, Shaanxi province, China
Height: 135 mm
Width: 17 mm
Accession No: 1935C547.602
The first 'coins' made in China seem to have been miniature bronze hoes (or spades) produced by the kingdom of Zhou in the early sixth century BC. Soon other states were making hoes or coins shaped like model knives. This one comes from the city of Ming, in the modern Shaanxi province. The first emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, banned these early coins and replaced them by round coins with a square hole in the centre.
