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The cash or qian was a type of coin of China and the Sinosphere, used from the 4th century BCE until the 20th century CE, characterised by their round outer shape and a square center hole (Chinese: 方穿; pinyin: fāng chuān; Jyutping: fong1 cyun1; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hong-chhoan).
These cash coins have the character Fu (Chinese: 福; pinyin: fú) on the reverse in reference to Fuzhou. They are made of lead. Wang Shenzhi: Yonglong Tongbao: 永隆通寶: yǒnglóng tōng bǎo: These iron cash coins have the character Min (Chinese: 閩; pinyin: mǐn) on the reverse and comes from the Fujian region. There is a crescent below.
Chinese coins were usually made from mixtures of metals such copper, tin and lead, from bronze, brass or iron: precious metals like gold and silver were uncommonly used. The ratios and purity of the coin metals varied considerably. Most Chinese coins were produced with a square hole in the middle.
The Chinese word for "bat" sounds similar to that of "happiness", the square hole in the center of a cash coin is referred to as an "eye" (眼, yǎn), and the Chinese word for "coin" (錢, qián) has almost the same pronunciation as "before" (前, qián). This combination can be interpreted as "happiness is before your eyes".
An example of these Chongzhen Tongbao cash coins with mint marks the Chinese character "Zhong" (忠) which translates as either "loyal" or "honest" located above the reverse side of the square centre hole. [15] During the Chongzhen Emperor's reign, there were a total of 156 different mint furnaces producing cash coins in operation. [15]
In the years 1943–1947 India produced 1 pice coins for circulation with very large holes, [58] continued by Pakistan producing 1 pice coins of equal shape in the years 1948–1952. [59] Chinese cash coins had a square hole, while many modern coins have a round hole.
The hole enabled the coins to be strung together to create higher denominations, as was frequently done due to the coin's low value. The number of coins in a string of cash (simplified Chinese: 一贯钱; traditional Chinese: 一貫錢; pinyin: yīguàn qián) varied over time and place but was nominally 1000. [4]
The centre square hole is claimed to be a "reference to the well-known Chinese Feng-Shui coins" (Remetendo para as conhecidas moedas-amuleto em circulação na China). [47] It is the second entry in the series "Portugal and the East" (Portugal e o Oriente) with a motif typically found on both Chinese and Portuguese porcelain. [47]