Chinese Coins – 2000 Years of Coin History and Money

China is the most populous country in the world. Its population is 1 billion inhabitants, and the history goes back more than 2000 years. Scientists have found that money was used in China in the Neolithic era. Then, however, money, served as cowry shells (“primitive money”). Later, the means of payment were made of bronze in the form of objects of labor, for example, in the form of a knife (bu) or a shovel (dao).
It is believed that Emperor Qin Shi Huang (247-210 BC) in 211 BC introduced the first round coins with a square hole in the center (qian). Continue reading →