Ta Liao T'ien Ch'ing []

Description	Obverse	Peculiarity
The Liao dynasty (Ch'i-tan, Tartar) a.d.907-1125 Emperor T'ien Cha (1101-25) year title T'ien Ch'ing [] c.d.1110-1120	diam.46.5	Plain reverse Traces of thin golden layer on the surface Shown item may be imitation

c.d. - coin dating

Shown item is very unusual coin of Liao Dynasty.
F.Schjoth wrote that:

The literature records of Liao are very imperfect and give scarcely any description of the coins issued. Next, the coins issued were few in number, amounting to only some 500 strings annualy, while in the reign of the Emperor Shen Tsung of Nothern Sung (1068) six million strings [string - rope with near 100 coins - V.B.] were cast annualy. Hence the abundance of this latter and the scarcity of the Liaos.

By the way shown coin is absent in F.Schjoth famous (in America and Europe) book.

There are references on two such rarest coins in the Chinese book Illustrative plates of Chinese ancient coins - both with the same sizes but one with golden surface.

In the book 'Zhong Guo Hua Qian' - 'Chinese charms' ( Yu Liu Liang etc., Shanghai, 1992, page 262, coin No.1261) this coin is shown as charm with coin legend -also rarest!

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