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Pillar of the Community
United States
2637 Posts |
The coins were excavated from the ruins of Katsuren Castle in Okinawa Prefecture, according to the Japan Times, noting that this is the country's first discovery of its kind. Citing the Board of Education in the city of Uruma, the Japan Times reports that the four copper coins are believed to be from the third to fourth centuries. X-ray analysis of the coins has apparently revealed the image of Emperor Constantine I and a soldier carrying a spear. Each coin measures 0.6 inches to 0.8 inches in diameter, according to the report. http://www.foxnews.com/science/2016...-castle.html |
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Moderator
 United States
23731 Posts |
AS the article states the Chinese had dealings with the Japanese and it stands to reason they might have had some Roman coins that that were left there. It is amazing though how many places Roman coins have been found that had no known contact with the Empire.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3444 Posts |
I recall reading many years ago (1980's) an article that made reference to a Chinese emperor having a unit in his army made up of western "barbarians" which he had acquired in deal with the Parthians. The author was attempting to connect the disasters of the mid to late 3rd century with this 'foreign' army. Specifically the disastrous campaign of Valerian !
Regardless of any wars analysis of Bronze age lapis lazuli seals found in Egypt have shown that the source of the stone was without question Afghanistan. Trade between neighbors will inevitably lead to items finding their way across vast distances.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Unless this was a novelty, it just doesn't add up.
Japan didn't have "coins" of their own until the Wadokaichin cash coins were introunced in 708. That currency system collapsed in 958 and they reverted to a rice-based commodity economy until the launch of the Kanei Tsuho in the 1620s.
When this castle was standing, coins in Japan were mainly used for trade with China. I could see a lord wanting a foreign silver or gold coin as a curiosity, but a handful of bronze coins?
Not saying it's impossible, but it doesn't add up.
I remember someone posting on here that their father found a few Roman coins in a coal mine in Pennsylvania or thereabouts in the 70s. Maybe someone planted them to mess with archaeologists?
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Valued Member
United States
408 Posts |
Quote:
It is amazing though how many places Roman coins have been found that had no known contact with the Empire. There can be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this. Back in those days, it is possible two countries never met, but, through The Silk Road, they received coins from someone who had. I also assume back in the day that coin designs did not matter. What mattered was the weight and the metal. It may be possible for Roman coins to be found in Japan and they had no idea what the designs on them meant. |
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Valued Member
United Kingdom
90 Posts |
Edited by FlaviusJ
10/03/2016 07:21 am
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Valued Member
United Kingdom
90 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
It cracks me up when non-collectors talk about a team of experts using X-ray technology and being able to finally date a Roman coin to within a century. We could probably have all of those identified within an hour!
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Pillar of the Community
Belgium
1194 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Quote:
Constantine (306-377 AD)  |
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Pillar of the Community
Russian Federation
5178 Posts |
I have a 4th century Roman coin in my collection that was found in Kaliningrad Oblast (aka East Prussia) - here's the thread. That's nowhere near as ridiculous as Japan, but it's not particularly close to Roman territory either. Wasn't Japan very short of good copper? (Or was that silver?) I know that the reason for appearance of Roman coins in East Prussia is said to be, partly, as copper bullion; maybe the guys on Okinawa got them in a similar way. EDIT: though I can imagine how a coin in condition similar to the one in my thread would have to be identified by complicated technology if they couldn't find an expert quickly. Also, "a soldier carrying a spear"? Is that by any chance a Fel Temp Reparatio? (There's no picture of the reverse, so I can't confirm.) I can certainly imagine the experts saying "Constantius II" and someone else along the way bungling it into "Constantine the Great" anyway. Edited by january1may
10/20/2016 5:03 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Here is one with a photo of one of the coins, which is indeed a FEL TEMP https://www.google.com/amp/phys.org...roid-verizonMost problematic I think is the Ottoman coin dating to 1099 AH, nearly two hundred years *after* the castle was supposedly left to ruin. Something smells fishy... |
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Replies: 11 / Views: 1,338 |
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Posted 09/29/2016 09:09 am
