Item number: A236

Year: AD 307-433

Material: Copper

Size: 20.0 x 20.0 x 1.2 mm

Weight: 1.98 g

Provenance:

1. Fuchin Coin 2015
2. Mr. Li Weixian

This is a “Liang Zao Xin Quan” coin from the period of the Sixteen Kingdoms, part of the collection of Mr. Li Weixian, who was active in the coin collecting community in Shanghai before the Cultural Revolution. This copper coin is the first currency in Chinese history to bear the national name. The coin features the typical square hole design of Chinese coins, with the characters “Liang Zao Xin Quan” inscribed on the obverse in seal script, arranged in the order of top, bottom, right, and left. The reverse side does not bear any inscriptions.

During the Republican era, only around thirty to forty of these coins were unearthed. It wasn’t until after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China that more of these coins were gradually discovered, though they remain rare. The unearthed coins are divided into two sizes based on diameter: large (2.0 mm) and small (1.8 mm). This coin belongs to the “large size” category. Both types commonly exhibit casting defects along the outer rim, reflecting the technological limitations of the minting process at that time.

The exact attribution of “Liang Zao Xin Quan” remains a subject of controversy in both academic and numismatic circles. The only certainty is that this coin has been unearthed exclusively in the region west of Wuwei in Gansu Province, China. Scholars have proposed several hypotheses regarding its origin, including associations with the following historical figures and periods: Dou Rong, the governor of Liangzhou during the late Xin dynasty (16-62 BCE); Zhang Jun, ruler of the Former Liang during the Sixteen Kingdoms period (AD 307-346); and Juqu Mengxun, ruler of the Northern Liang during the Sixteen Kingdoms period (AD 401-433).

The casting of “Liang Zao Xin Quan” during the Former Liang period of the Sixteen Kingdoms is the earliest and most widely accepted explanation. This is due to the chaos following the Yongjia Incident of AD 311, during which nomadic tribes such as the Xiongnu captured the capital of Western Jin and established hegemony over the northern regions of China. This period saw the fragmentation of authority into various regimes known as the Sixteen Kingdoms. The Former Liang, which controlled the Liangzhou region, emerged as a local Han Chinese regime originating from the provincial governorship of Liangzhou under Western Jin. Its relatively stable governance attracted a significant influx of Han Chinese refugees. However, several scholars have presented counterarguments, one of which is based on evidence suggesting a return to a barter economy in North China during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. This economic shift rendered even the circulating Wu Zhu coins of Western Jin ineffective as a medium of exchange, casting doubt on the motivation for the Former Liang regime to mint new coins.

Therefore, some scholars propose that the “Liang Zao Xin Quan” coins were minted during the reign of the Northern Liang, a Xiongnu regime that later controlled the Liangzhou region. This hypothesis is based on historical records indicating that the first ruler of Northern Liang, Juqu Mengxun, minted coins using copper as raw material. Additionally, in the numismatic community, some collectors rely on palaeographic studies to suggest that these coins were privately minted by Dou Rong, the provincial governor of Liangzhou, during the chaotic period of the Xin Dynasty. The main reason for this assertion is the similarity between the character “Quan” on the “Liang Zao Xin Quan” coins and the character “Quan” used on the currency issued by Wang Mang during the Xin Dynasty.

This “Liang Zao Xin Quan” not only carries the mystery of its casting date but also embodies the life-ending mystery of its former owner, Mr. Li Weixian, who was a member of the Shanghai coin collecting community. In AD 1963, at the age of 71, Mr. Li Weixian voluntarily donated his cherished collection to the Shanghai Museum. Did Mr. Li Weixian meet a good end? This secret may be buried in the red-painted “72135X” number on the reverse of the “Liang Zao Xin Quan”, which was the inventory number assigned by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution when they confiscated his collection.

Mr. Ma Chuande, the son of Mr. Ma Dingxiang, a prominent figure in the Shanghai coin collecting circle, recounted in his memoirs that most of his family’s and friends’ collections were confiscated during the Cultural Revolution. Although some of the old collections were fortunately recovered after the end of the Cultural Revolution, most of them were lost or ended up in foreign markets. One elder collector in the circle, Mr. Yang Chengqi, told his father,

“Except for gold coins, which are specially guarded, other coins confiscated by the Shanghai Museum were stored in an unlocked iron cabinet, and these unorganised coins were often taken away by the Red Guards.”

Mr. Ma Chuande mentioned that many Red Guards who were planted in the museum during the Cultural Revolution became wealthy overnight after the revolution ended, and the reason behind it is self-evident.

According to publicly available information, Mr. Li Weixian passed away in AD 1972, a time when the Cultural Revolution had not yet ended. Combined with his donation to the museum in AD 1963, where Mr. Li Weixian mentioned having several children living overseas, it is possible to infer that his “overseas connections” may have been one of the factors that led to his unfortunate experience during the Cultural Revolution, considering the inventory number on this coin. As for whether Mr. Li Weixian died of natural causes at an advanced age or due to other factors, it remains unknown.

物件編號: A236

年代: 公元 307-433 年

材料: 青銅

尺寸: 20.0 x 20.0 x 1.2 mm

重量: 1.98 g

來源:

1. 福君錢幣 2015
2.李偉先舊藏

這是一枚文化大革命以前，曾活躍於上海錢幣收藏圈的李偉先先生舊藏的五胡十六國時期之「涼造新泉」，該枚銅幣是中國歷史上第一枚鑄造國號的貨幣。硬幣外觀為中國典型的方孔錢型制，正面以篆書按上下右左順序寫有「涼造新泉」四字，背面未刻有任何文字。民國時期該錢幣的出土數量僅有約三四十枚，中共建政後方才陸續出土，其數量仍為罕見。目前出土的錢幣依直徑分為：大尺寸(2.0 mm)和小尺寸(1.8 mm)兩種版型，此硬幣為「大尺寸版」。兩者的共同點是錢幣的外廓常見鑄造缺陷，反映當時鑄造工藝的水平限制。

關於「涼造新泉」確切屬於哪個政權，目前學界和收藏界仍多有爭議。唯一確定該硬幣僅出土於甘肅武威以西一帶的地理侷限特性，學界為此提出：新莽末期的涼州刺史竇融(公元前16-62年)、五胡十六國時期前涼的張駿(公元307-346年)和五胡十六國時期北涼的沮渠蒙遜(公元401-433年)，上述三種假說。

鑄造於五胡十六國時期的前涼為最早和受到多數人認可的說法，在於公元311年的永嘉之禍後，攻破西晉首都的匈奴等北方游牧民族入主中原後，華北地區陷入政權割據的五胡十六國混亂時期。彼時控制涼州一帶的前涼，是源自西晉涼州刺史的地方漢人政權，其國情較為穩定故吸引大量漢人避居。不過有許多學者提出不同證據反駁，其中一個證據是華北在五胡十六國時期退回「以物易物」經濟型態，連尚在流通的西晉五銖錢也失去原有購買力，故前涼政權缺少再鑄新錢的動機。

因此有學者提出是後續控制涼州的匈奴政權北涼，第一代統治者沮渠蒙遜時期鑄造，原因在於史書曾留下沮渠蒙遜以銅為原料鑄幣的紀錄。而在收藏界有藏家以字型學研究，推斷該硬幣是新莽天下大亂之際，割據涼州的涼州刺史竇融私下鑄造，主要原因是「涼造新泉」的「泉」字寫法跟王莽發行的「貨泉」字樣類似。

這枚「涼造新泉」不僅有鑄造年代的謎團，更乘載其舊藏家李偉先先生的人生結局之謎。身為上海錢幣收藏家一員，公元1963年以71歲高齡主動向上海博物館捐出珍藏的李偉先先生是否善終？該秘密或許被掩埋在「涼造新泉」背面以紅漆塗上的「72135X」數字中，這組數字是紅衛兵在文化大革命期間沒收其收藏的抄家編號。身為上海錢幣收藏圈佼佼者馬定祥先生的兒子，馬傳德在回憶錄中提到自家和友人的收藏多半在文革期間慘遭沒收。文革結束之後，雖然有幸拾回一些舊藏，但多數舊藏已經遺失或流入外國市場。其中一位收藏圈的長輩楊成麒先生跟他父親說道：

上海博物館除了金幣有專門保管外，沒收而來的其他錢幣皆放在一個沒上鎖的鐵櫃，這些沒人整理的錢幣經常就被紅衛兵拿走。

馬傳德提到許多文革期間安插在博物館的紅衛兵，在文革結束後一夜暴富者彼彼皆是，其背後原因自然不言而喻。

根據公開資料能查到李偉先於公元1972年逝世，彼時文革尚未結束。結合公元1963年在博物館捐獻儀式上，李偉先曾提及有幾位僑居海外的子女，結合這枚硬幣的抄家編號或許能推斷「海外關係」是李偉先慘遭文革浩劫的因素之一。至於李偉先是否為高齡自然死亡或其他因素便不得而知。