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Historical records of Song Yuanbao

As for the silver money in the Northern Song Dynasty, according to Fang Ziyu's Record of Words and Money, "the silver money is said by Li Yin Zhenghe, and the name of the same party is Yin Dading. So far, the same good teacher has been unbreakable." However, Baozi has many questions about this kind of money. Fang went on to write: "I can see that Song Zhisheng, Daguan, Xuanhe and Jingkang were really pure silver, which was different from Bao Tong in Yuan Dynasty, Bao Tong in Dade and Wanli in Ming Dynasty. It can be seen that at the beginning of the last century, Mr. Fang, a famous minter in China, had seen the silver coins of the sage Song Yuanbao Xiaoping, but unfortunately he did not see the rubbings handed down from generation to generation, nor did he see the real thing again.

20 11June1day, an ancient well containing 4 tons of ancient coins from the northern song dynasty was dug up at a construction site in the Leqiao section of Ganjiang Road, Suzhou, including the Song Shengyin ingot. "Oriental Experience Record" records:

Tools: paper (cicada wings and flowers or other thin materials are also acceptable).

Ink (all kinds of ink can be too strong, water can be added, and solid ink will do).

Extension bag (according to the size of the extension bag to be made, take a sponge, make it into a circle and wrap it with household plastic wrap, then wrap it with face cloth and finally wrap it with fine silk cloth and rubber band, and adjust the tightness of the extension bag).

Water (Fan Mingdou size can prevent ink smudge, a few drops of glue can increase ink adhesion, 250g of water and 30g of salt can prevent fiber shrinkage and paper deformation after long-term storage, stir evenly, put a piece of paper on the water surface to play a filtering role, and use the water oozing from the paper surface).

Brown brush (used for pressing and spreading paper).

Press plate (screwed into different diameters with paper clips and plastic plates).

Cushion (to prevent money from moving and acting and reacting. Use a soft rubber pad and a book).

Weighing ruler (paper pressing)

Brush (dipped in water)

Making:

1。 Put a small dollar on the mat, and it won't move when it is wet.

2. Dip the adjusted amount of water into the paper with a brush and draw it on the coin. Choose a piece of paper with the right size, even and free of impurities, and cover it on the coin. Press the pressure plate.

3. Cover the rubbing paper with raw rice paper to absorb excess water, then cover the rubbing paper with raw rice paper and flatten it with a brown brush. Gently punch out from the middle of the coin, and finally cover the coin with plastic wrap before punching (the effect is that the plastic wrap is thinner and the characters can be clearly punched out). At this time, the voltage ballast is fixed. Why not press the ballast from the beginning? Because the rubbing paper will be straightened when it is first pressed, and it is easy to break with a brown brush.

4. Don't put the ink in the inkstone too thick, dip it evenly with the extension bag, and hammer it with the extension bag to suck out the excess ink in the lifetime publicity. This depends on the drying of rubbing paper until it turns slightly white (the key step of a rubbing), and gently hammer it down from the money with rubbing bag to make the ink clear and even (the first pass is the most important). Then you can ink it many times until you are satisfied, but in the end, you must beat the inner buying wheel of the coin again, so that the outline is clear and three-dimensional. "Oriental knowledge record" records:

In addition to pyrometallurgy, there is also the "water smelting copper method". This method of copper smelting is to replace copper from the solution containing copper compounds with metallic iron, then scrape it off and cook it to obtain copper ingots. The so-called "bile water" refers to the natural spring water containing copper sulfate (commonly known as bile and bile alum in China). It is formed because some natural copper sulfide ores will generate soluble copper sulfate after weathering and oxidation, which will be soaked and leached by groundwater and rainwater and then dissolved in spring water. As long as the concentration of copper is large enough, this bile water can be used as raw material for copper hydrometallurgy.

As early as the Han Dynasty, our ancestors had noticed that metallic iron could replace copper. For example, it is recorded in the ancient book Huainan Wanbi Book of the Western Han Dynasty that "Zeng Qing (a mineral of copper carbonate) got iron and then [iron] turned into copper". Shen Nong's Classic of Materia Medica, written in the Eastern Han Dynasty, says that "stone gall can turn iron into copper". Ge Hong, an alchemist in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, said more clearly in his Inner Chapter of Bao Puzi: "Painting iron with Zeng Qing, iron is as red as copper, ... and it is all a change from the outside to the inside." But at that time, most people didn't know this phenomenon exactly, and mistakenly thought that iron would be transformed into copper when it came into contact with Zeng Qing and stone gall. As late as the Tang Dynasty, some alchemists who were engaged in alchemy took advantage of this chemical change, heating and refining stone gall water and mercury in a large iron pot, and the replaced copper and mercury formed amalgam. Then, they heated the copper amalgam that looked like sand and evaporated the mercury, so they got red copper powder. They are euphemistically called "Red Silver" and are very proud, thinking that they have really realized the transformation from iron to copper. This "stunt" was recorded in "Dragon and Tiger Return to Dan" written by alchemist Jin Lingzi in the late Tang Dynasty.

About the Five Dynasties, "smelting copper with danshui" officially became a practical method to produce copper. By the Song Dynasty, this craft had developed to a considerable scale. According to the conference and food articles in Song Dynasty, Shui Ye copper was used in 1 1 in Huizong period of Northern Song Dynasty, and there were three major areas: Censhui in Shaozhou (Guangdong), Lead Mountain in Xinzhou (Jiangxi) and Dexing in Raozhou (also in Jiangxi). In the second year of Chongning (A.D. 1 103), the total output of bile copper in China reached 1874427 Jin, accounting for 12% of the copper output at that time. However, after Zhao and Song Dynasties moved to the south of the Yangtze River, the copper production in Jiangnan 14 States dropped sharply, while the bile copper production in trunk roads was still 2 10000 Jin, accounting for 80% of the total copper production in the Southern Song Dynasty. Therefore, Song people attached great importance to the production of bile copper. Zhang Jia, a native of the Southern Song Dynasty, wrote a book entitled "A Brief Introduction to Copper Immersion", which recorded the production of bile copper at that time. As for the specific operation of leaching bile copper, it is recorded in the History of Song Dynasty that pig iron is sliced, put into a tank filled with bile water, soaked for several days, and then the precipitated mud copper (called "red coal") is scraped off and put into a smelting furnace for smelting. At that time, the benefit was probably to exchange two Jin of iron for one Jin of copper, and the technical level was quite high. In addition, at that time, there was a "copper leaching method" for frying copper with bile soil, and its basic principle was the same as that of "bile water method". This method is "less workload", but "its soil is endless and its benefit is thicker than copper mining", so it is also widely used. Master Zhu Ying's decameron among Bamboo records:

1, look at copper

Most coins in ancient China were cast in the form of copper alloy, so coins showed different colors due to different alloy compositions. The copper quality of coins in different times is different, and because of the different ancient smelting techniques, the ancient coins cast in different regions are also different, and each dynasty has its own characteristics. Generally speaking, coins cast by copper-zinc alloy are yellow, and coins cast by copper-tin alloy are blue. During the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, money was cast in Xinjiang, Tibet and other places, using copper and a small amount of zinc and lead, and the money was red after casting.

The coins in the pre-Qin period were mainly copper-tin alloy, and the copper was bluish red with hard texture. Most coins from the Han Dynasty to the Tang and Song Dynasties were made of bronze, which was characterized by a bluish, white and reddish copper color. Five baht money in Sui Dynasty was called white money because of its large tin content and white copper. After Jiajing in Ming Dynasty, it began to transition to brass. In the apocalypse, coins made of brass became customized, and the color of coins changed greatly compared with before. It can be seen that there are laws to follow in the casting of ancient Chinese coins.

Step 2 pay attention to rust color

There are only two kinds of coins now: one is unearthed and the other is handed down from generation to generation. Excavations have been buried underground for many years, and the surface is covered with bronze rust. Due to the oxidation in the air, the surface of products handed down will also have patina. Black or copper.

Copper is a relatively stable metal, which is not easy to rust at room temperature. It takes decades or even hundreds of years to produce copper oxide and basic copper carbonate. Copper oxide has different colors such as yellow, orange-red, bright red and dark brown due to different particle sizes, commonly known as "jujube skin red" and "chestnut shell".

The rust color on the surface of excavated coins is deeply dyed into coins, because its molecular structure is stable and dense, so the real rust is not easy to erase. The color of forging rust is not. Fake rust is mostly on the surface of coins, which is called "floating rust" or "powder rust". It is frivolous and easy to fall off. Often boiled in alkali water, the fake rust on it is vulnerable. There are two ways to dig up counterfeit money: (1) put counterfeit money into acetic acid and bury it underground to quickly generate rust color; (2) Put the counterfeit money into the mixed solution of brine sand (ammonium chloride), tin green (copper sulfate) and vinegar to corrode the new copper into the old color, and then stick the rust on the coin with glue. The handed down method of fake rust is to blacken, oil and wax the fake with fire. Handed down from ancient times, the real thing is calm and smooth, while the fake thing is fleeting.

The formation of green rust is different in the north and south, and the oxidation degree in acidic areas of geological belt is also serious. When it is dry and rainy in the north, the rust color is hard. It is rainy and humid in the south, and the oxide layer is loose, mostly blue-green. For example, coins in the Southern Song Dynasty were issued in the south, and more were unearthed in the south. Due to the influence of geographical environment, coins are generally blue-green. If light green rust is found, it means there is something wrong with money. If it is buried in a hot and dry place, the copper rust will be reddish purple, but this rust color will not exist alone on the money body, but will be mixed with green rust, which is called "red spot green rust". If it is found that the money body is red rust, it should be counterfeit money. It is the counterfeiter who puts the fake goods in the stove to burn red. This kind of imitation rust is superficial, and a discerning person will know it is fake at a glance.

3. Look at the inscription on the coin

A major feature of China metal coins is that they have inscriptions on them. It can be said that the font of each coin has its own characteristics, and the writing style of coin inscriptions in different times is also different. According to these characteristics, it can be checked whether it is a contemporary coin. In addition, while paying attention to the characteristics of various inscriptions, we can also find the evolution process and changing law of inscriptions. These laws and characteristics can be used as the basis for distinguishing the authenticity of ancient money.

In the pre-Qin period, the characters on metal coins such as knives, cloth and money were all written in big seal script. Although the inscriptions in Qin and Han Dynasties belong to the category of small seal script, such as Banliang and Wuzhu, they have their own styles, among which Mangqian is a hanging needle seal script. The calligraphy style of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties is complicated. Coins in the Tang Dynasty were written in eight official languages, which prevailed after the Tang Dynasty. In the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, authenticity, seal and official script were the main characters. Coins in the Northern Song Dynasty include seal, official seal, truth, travel and grass. From Shao Xi, Song Guangzong to Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, the inscriptions were mainly regular script (original), and occasionally seal script and official script. As China is a multi-ethnic country, the inscriptions on coins include Mongolian, Manchu, palindrome, Tangut (Xixia) and other minority languages.

To identify whether the text of a coin is correct, we must first look at whether it conforms to the characteristics of the time; The second step is to see if it meets the characteristics of this variety. For example, although "Yihua" is a pre-Qin seal script, it also has the characteristics of Qi characters, which is different from the money characters of other countries in the same period; Found money from the Eastern and Western Zhou Dynasties. If Qian Wen wrote it in Xiao Zhuan, it is obviously a fake. Qin Banliang enjoys a high reputation among ancient coins. Its money is thick, its copper is excellent, its Qian Wen uplift is majestic, and the word "human" in the word "two" in Qin Banliang is majestic. If you find Qian Wen apartment, you will know it is fake at a glance. If you see mistakes in Manchu writing on coins in Baoyuan or Baoquan Bureau in Qing Dynasty, you should consider that Baoquan and Baoyuan Bureau are the most formal mint bureaus in Qing Dynasty, and there is absolutely no mistake in Manchu writing, so the coins you see must be counterfeit.

4. Listen to the sound

Due to the texture of ancient coins, the older they get, the more angry and oxidized they are, and the dumber they sound when thrown on the concrete floor. Generally speaking, knives, cloth and money in the pre-Qin period were dumb. After the Ming Dynasty, coins were relatively new, without deep oxidation, but their sounds were crisp and loud. If we throw the coins of the pre-Qin period on the ground with a crisp sound, then the money is not very reliable; On the other hand, if the Ming and Qing coins are dumb, it will also make people suspicious.

5, understand the casting method

China ancient coins probably went through several stages of development, such as sub-mold (earth, stone, copper), mother mold (brick, copper), sand turning and so on. Various casting methods, whether real money or fake goods, will leave corresponding marks on coins. These marks are a powerful basis for us to identify the authenticity of coins today.

Step 6 smell it

This method is the simplest in the identification of ancient coins. Because counterfeit money is mostly decorated with chemicals, it often emits an unpleasant and pungent chemical smell, while real money does not have this smell.

7. Watch the version

The main way to distinguish between ancient coins and versions is to look at the money spectrum and get in touch with the real things, so as to be familiar with the real coins of various dynasties. We should pay attention not only to rare products, but also to a large number of common varieties. Because these ordinary products are rarely fakes, they can truly reflect the characteristics of coins in various historical periods. For example, in the Warring States period, the knife cloth had a special shape, so counterfeiters had to turn over sand to make fakes. The defects are that the coins after sand turning are too small and heavy, the words are superficial, the copper is rough, the rust color is wrong, and it is easy to fall off. Moreover, when casting knife coins, the gate is on the knife ring, and the gate for distributing coins is at the head end, which basically does not need pruning and keeps the natural state. However, for the sake of beauty, counterfeiters often smooth the edges of knife coins and cloth coins, which is actually gilding the lily and revealing flaws. Another example is Huichang Kaiyuan, because Yangzhou uses regular characters to record years. If anyone is found reciting the word "Yang", whether handed down from generation to generation or unearthed, it should be regarded as a fake. Because the version of Xianfeng coins in the Northern Song Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty is the most complicated, and it is also the object that counterfeiters compete to imitate, it is necessary to analyze its shape and grasp its characteristics to prevent being deceived. The recording method in "Oriental Experience Record";

1. negative character model coin casting method, children's model coin casting method with clay model as the mainstream. The mud proton model is to carve a coin-shaped Qian Wen on a piece of fine mud, dry it in the shade, burn it into pottery, and then pour copper liquid directly to cast money. The pattern of this kind of money is very weak, and it can only be used once or twice, and it will be broken after use. If it is recast, it will still be recast.

2. Yang Wen's master mold coinage method, Yang Wen's master mold is called the master mold in coinage, and the master mold is used to copy the model, so it cannot be directly minted. With this template, many templates can be printed, dozens of templates can be stacked together, and hundreds of coins can be cast at a time. The coins made by Zhu Fan, the mother of Yang Wen, are round and round, not particularly sharp, and the money body is not so flat, but there are no traces of tiny grains of sand. If there is a "bunker", it must be counterfeit money.

3. Mother money casting method, the requirements for casting money have always been very strict. Whenever casting new money, first submit the money sample to the emperor for approval. The process of casting money is the most typical: carving ivory money Copper carving ancestral money? Initial casting mother money? Printing mom's money? Submit sample money. The procedure of the foreign exchange bureau is: initial casting of mother currency (issuing sample currency)? Printing mom's money? Submit sample money. A large number of coins cast with mother money are neat and exquisite, and there are a lot of money in the same edition, but the money is decent, intuitive and without sand holes, and the words are beautiful. The relationship between Qian Wen and Zhangdi is profound and has no superficial image.

4. Slag baking method. This method is called "settling mud" because the money shape and Qian Wen are cast on the clay mold and then treated at high temperature, which can not only play a role of sterility, but also reduce the plasticity and shrinkage of the batch. Then, copper, zinc, lead, tin and so on are directly smelted and refined on the clay mold by using the early method of smelting wrought iron and the function of small reverberatory furnace. Has been added. After cooling, impurities in crude copper and crude alloy are separated. After cooling or heating for many times, the coin cast is Qian Wen, with fine edge, smooth surface and excellent copper, which is incomparable to the coin cast by sand mold.