熙寧通宝 Xīníng Tongbao

今见小平、折二铁钱，钱文楷书，又有铜范铁钱重宝篆书。铸于神宗熙宁年间(1068-77)。小平铁钱有元宝及通宝两类，其中元宝类又含铜范铁钱，铸地不明，罕见。其余元宝类及通宝类，均为四川路铸。出土于四川。折二通宝铁钱为陕西路(今陕西、甘肃一带)铸。出土于陕西、四川、甘肃等地。折二样篆书重宝铁钱亦为铜范铁钱，与重宝铜钱同样铸于熙宁四年(1071)后。铸地不明，出土于江苏高邮，罕见。

Today we find both value-1 and value-2 iron cash in 楷书 kaishu (orthodox writing) style, as well as copper patterns of 重宝 zhongbao iron cash in 篆书 zhuanshu (seal script) style. They were cast in the Xining reign (1068-77) of Emperor Song Shenzong. The small size [value-1] iron cash are found as both 元宝 yuanbao and 通宝 tongbao. There are copper patterns of yuanbao, but it is unclear where they were cast, and they are seldom found. The rest of the yuanbao and tongbao were cast in the Sichuan Circuit, and are usually unearthed in Sichuan province. Value-2 iron cash were cast in the Shaanxi Circuit (modern day Shaanxi and Gansu), and are unearthed in Shaanxi, Sichuan and Gansu provinces. There are copper patterns of value-2 zhongbao iron cash in seal script, like the copper zhongbao cast in Xining 4 (1071) and later. Where they were cast is unclear, but they are unearthed in Jiangsu province, and they are rare.

Commentary

I do not know why 两宋铁钱 Liang Song Tie Qian calls the large iron cash value-2, when they are obviously value-3 by metal weight, and other catalogs have denominated them value-3. Unless they weigh less than 10 grams, they will be classed as value-3 in this publication.

LSTQ-139
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
正字俯宝 Zhengzi fu BAO - Precise characters, BAO "bowing"
Rarity 5a / 9
Commentary
Weight: 13.2 grams - Diameter: 34.2mm - Thickness: 2.7mm

LSTQ-147
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
长子背月大郭 Zhangzi bei yue daguo - Tall characters, reverse crescent, thick inner rim
Rarity 4a / 7Commentary
Weight: 10.3 grams - Diameter: 33.2mm - Thickness: 2.0mm

LSTQ-149
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
长子背星 Zhangzi bei xing - Tall characters, reverse star
Rarity 3b / 6
Commentary
Weight: 11.7 grams - Diameter: 33.7mm - Thickness: 2.5mm

LSTQ-153
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
狭通降通 Xia TONG jiang TONG - Narrow, low TONG
Rarity 5a / 9Commentary
Weight: 11.6 grams - Diameter: 34.0mm - Thickness: 2.5mm

LSTQ-154
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
狭通长宝 Xia TONG zhang BAO - Narrow TONG, tall BAO
Rarity 5a / 9 Commentary
Weight: 14.4 grams - Diameter: 34.5mm - Thickness: 3.0mm

LSTQ-156
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
狭通降宝 Xia TONG jiang BAO - Narrow TONG, low BAO
Rarity 5a / 9Commentary
Weight: 12.6 grams - Diameter: 34.2mm - Thickness: 2.5mm

LSTQ-159
Xining Tongbao Iron 3 Cash
仰通降宝 Yang TONG jiang BAO - Upturned TONG, low BAO
Rarity 5a / 9Commentary
Weight: 10.4 grams - Diameter: 32.0mm - Thickness: 2.5mm

Chinese Cash Rarity

The usual rarity scale found in coin catalogs is the scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is exceedingly rare and 10 is exceedingly common.

Various catalogs have explained this scale in different ways. In the Qing Dynasty cash variety catalog, Ch'ing Cash until 1735, by Dr. Werner Burger, there is a statistic on what the rarity scale means in terms of actual numbers of pieces. I am reproducing it below (click on the image to zoom), but I am not sure if it is applicable across the whole spectrum of cash coins. If I were to use my own statistical analysis of bulk quantities of Northern Song cash, I might want to revise some of the rarity numbers of some varieties. I think I must agree with something that was written by O. D. Cresswell in his catalog Chinese Cash. "I have resisted the temptation to make facile estimates of rarity as it has been my experience that one collector may have several specimens of a coin which to another has remained unobtainable." If you collect by sorting through hoards and bulk lots of cash, it all depends on just what happens to be in that particular hoard.

The rarity scale used in Liang Song Tie Qian is one that I have encountered nowhere else, and it is only by the kind advice of HKMAL, a collector friend in Hong Kong, that I now understand it. It is based on a scale of 1 to 5, but each number is divided into an 上 above and a 下 below. It can be compared to the scale of 1 to 10 in this way:

一上 = 1a = 1

一下 = 1b = 2

二上 = 2a = 3

二下 = 2b = 4

三上 = 3a = 5

三下 = 3b = 6

四上 = 4a = 7

四下 = 4b = 8

五上 = 5a = 9

五下 = 5b = 10

In the example rubbing, LSTQ-147 has a rarity of 4a / 7.
This is how rarity will be expressed in this blog for iron cash referenced to Liang Song Tie Qian.

Back to the topic of the Chinese cash rarity scale, I am again indebted to HKMAL for what I believe is a very good schedule of what rarity means in terms of the actual number of extant specimens.

His schedule is put together with not a little humor, and I recommend that you view it at this link. The table to the right summarises his conclusions and can be downloaded and printed out by left clicking the image to zoom and then right clicking and selecting "Save Picture As" to download it to your computer for viewing or printing.

至和重宝 Zhìhé Zhongbao

今见有重宝大铁钱及小平铁钱，铸于仁宗至和年间(1054-56)。重宝大铁钱行用于陕西路，初为折三钱，嘉枯四年(1059)改为折二钱。多见光背，亦有带背文虢、同、坊、河者，分别指铸于虢州(今河南境内)、同州、坊州(皆在今陕西境内)、河中府(今山西境内)。带背文者或为。初期所铸。背虢、河罕见。出土于甘肃、陕西。小平至和元宝为铜范铁钱，铸地不明，罕见。

These coins exist as large and also as lightweight iron cash. They were cast in the Zhihe reign (1054-56) of Emperor Song Renzong. Large iron 重宝 zhongbao circulated in the Shaanxi Circuit, originally tariffed as value-3 cash. In Jiayou 4 (1059) they were reduced to value-2 cash. Most of the ones found today have blank reverses, but they are also found with reverse mint marks: 虢 Guo, 同 Tong, 坊 Fang, and 河 He. Some were cast in Guozhou (on the border of Henan), in Tongzhou, in Fangzhou (on the border of Shaanxi), and in Hezhong-fu (on the border of Shanxi). These have mint marks on the reverse, but only in the first issues. Coins with 虢 Guo and 河 He on the reverse are seldom found. These are unearthed in Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. Small size copper patterns for iron Zhihe Yuanbao are also known, but are very rare.

LSTQ-111
Zhihe Zhongbao Iron 3 Cash
长和 Zhang HE - Tall HE
Rarity 4a / 7
Commentary
Weight: 10.1 grams - Diameter: 34.0mm - Thickness: 2.4mm

LSTQ-112
Zhihe Zhongbao Iron 3 Cash
长和大样 Zhang HE dayang - Tall HE, large module
Rarity 4a / 7
Commentary
Weight: 14.2 grams - Diameter: 34.5mm - Thickness: 2.8mm

慶曆重宝 Qìnglì Zhongbao

今见皆为大铁钱，行用于陕西路，铸于仁宗庆历年间(1041-48)此钱初为当十钱，庆历八年(1048)改为折三钱，嘉枯四年(1059)又改为折二钱。钱文为对读版者罕见。出土于四川、甘肃、陕西。

These large iron cash circulated in the Shaanxi Circuit. They were cast in the Qingli reign (1041-48) of Emperor Song Renzong and originally tariffed as value-10 cash. In Qingli 8 (1048) they were reduced to value-3 cash, and in Jiayou 4 (1059) further reduced to value-2 cash. Qingli coins written 循读 xundu (top-right-bottom-left) as this variety are common. Qingli iron coins written 对读 duidu (top-bottom-right-left) are seldom found. These coins are unearthed in Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.

LSTQ-99
Qingli Zhongbao Iron 3 Cash
大字 Dazi - Large characters
Rarity 4b / 8
Commentary
Weight: 11.5 grams - Diameter: 35.0mm - Thickness: 2.3mm