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Please Help Me Identify This Coin (If It Is A Coin) (Id: Likely "Funeral Coin" Or Charm)

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OzLeigh's Avatar
Australia
215 Posts
 Posted 05/07/2023  09:41 am Show Profile   Bookmark this topic Add OzLeigh to your friends list Get a Link to this Message Number of Subscribers
2.9 grams, 24mm

Seems like the correct orientation is with the square as a diamond.

Please-Help-Me-Identify-This-Coin-If-It-Is-A-Coin-Id:-Likely-
Please-Help-Me-Identify-This-Coin-If-It-Is-A-Coin-Id:-Likely-
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Spence's Avatar
United States
34397 Posts
 Posted 05/07/2023  10:28 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Spence to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
My initial thought was a cast cash of the Qing Dynasty in China, where the reverse has similar markings. However, they aren't on the corners of the square, but rather the sides and there are four (different) characters on the other side. I'll keep looking, but in the meanwhile can you please confirm that it isn't attracted to a magnet? I want to make sure that we are dealing with a copper alloy rather than iron. Thx.
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OzLeigh's Avatar
Australia
215 Posts
 Posted 05/07/2023  7:36 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add OzLeigh to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Hey Spence, actually it is attracted to a magnet.
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OzLeigh's Avatar
Australia
215 Posts
 Posted 05/11/2023  08:10 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add OzLeigh to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
So nobody has an opinion about whether this thing is a coin or not?
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joewobblie's Avatar
United States
238 Posts
 Posted 05/11/2023  11:12 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add joewobblie to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
I dabble with cash coins so am far from an expert but I am unfamiliar with any that have the orientation of the square whole to the characters like yours - so my best guess would be it is not a coin, perhaps a charm.
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OzLeigh's Avatar
Australia
215 Posts
 Posted 05/11/2023  11:38 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add OzLeigh to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply

Quote:
it is not a coin, perhaps a charm


Thanks joewobblie, I'm starting to think that way too.
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SdKfz's Avatar
United States
46 Posts
 Posted 06/06/2023  12:12 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add SdKfz to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Looks like maybe a charm with Manchu characters?
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Sap's Avatar
Australia
16809 Posts
 Posted 06/06/2023  6:50 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Sap to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
It hasn't been cast in the traditional method of making cash-style coins - but it's been designed to kind-of-look like it was cast.

This, combined with being made of iron, points me toward it not being an official coin. My best guess: a "funeral coin", designed to be thrown into a funeral fire.

It seems to have the same design on both sides, which also points towards a non-monetary function. I can't tell if the script is Manchu, Arabic, or just random squiggles intended to mimic Manchu. But the lack of Chinese characters implies to me it is not of Chinese or Chinese-diaspora origin. Perhaps from somewhere in Southeast Asia.
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