China, cash coin of Pan Liang

[capnbirdseye]

Got this in a mixed lot, ticket says 'warring states' C.300-200BC Pan Liang, ?

7.64g    34mm

[Figleaf]

Your coin is illustrated in A Monetary History of China by Peng Xinwei (plate XXV, 6) as a "Qin half-ouncer". Peng argues that coinage started before unification and was continued by the first emperor.

Peng notes that "The lightest Qin half-ouncer weighs only about 6 grams; the heaviest over 20 grams." He blames local standards and an incomplete understanding of the relation between weight and value. He also describes several experiments to determine the average weight of the half-ouncer, concluding that it was probably less than 10 grams, but quotes Bruce Smith: "I have never had a genuine piece weighing more than 7.5 grams. Many large and heavy fakes exist." (Peng, section 79)

Peter