A Good-Luck Sycee of Chekiang

Stephen Tai
Feb.15, 1998

The shown silver item have size 46x46mm, weight 190g (5 taels) and inscribed with 3 stamps, severally read as Shou, Bin Wu Nien and San Yuan, which mean 'Longevity, Year of Bin Wu (a year dated by TienGanDiZe, ought to be in 1906, the 32^nd year of Kuang Hsu) and [Cast by Silversmith] San Yuan Bank'. This is a typical style of silver currency used in Chekiang Province during Ching Dynasty.

The peculiarity of such sycee is in its inscription of Shou (Longevity), which has identified itself as a good-luck sycee.
According to Chinese customs such sycee should be cast for someone's birthday, as a birthday gift.
Even though such sycee was assigned for the specific purpose, yet it still could be circulated in the market as any ordinary sycee by its owner.

A Silver Sycee Review