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Bronze Cowrie Tree - China
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Moneta
Registered: August 2005
Location: Arizona USA
Posts: 2,362
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Extremely rare example of how the cowries were cast. The 'tree' clearly shows 4 cowries on the casting sprue. These appear to be the last four on the branch at the termination of the sprue, there is no telling how many were on the original tree, but I would suspect at least 2 - 4 times as many. What is also clear is that there was a lot of bronze that then had to be remelted and that care had to be excercised in order to remove the shells from the sprue without damage. Some copper/bronze shells should show evidence of having been removed from a sprue. 72 x 58 x 6.5 mm; 35.74 gm
Moneta Library has articles on Cowries, Wang Mang & Money Trees to VIEW and DOWNLOAD:
The Worlds's First Money, Chinese Cowries and Their Imitations - by Ted Puls [ link ]
Cowries - Bob Reis: [ link ]
Origin of Cowries in Ancient China - UofPa: [ link ]
Metallic Cowries - Royal Asiatic Society: [ link ]
Nice Video on Cowrie history: [ link ]
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| · Date: September 8, 2007 · Views: 14,957 · Filesize: 27.7kb, 85.6kb · Dimensions: 900 x 363 ·
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Keywords: Bronze Cowry Tree cowrie
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stretrader99z
Registered: September 2009
Location: In the collective memory of yesterdays children
Posts: 72
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Nice example of a Cowery casting tree. Looks like you have an extensive collection of Chinese coins
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Moneta
Registered: August 2005
Location: Arizona USA
Posts: 2,362
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I wanted to have a decent representative group but the problem is authentic items, confirmed by "experts", are really expensive now. The problem of deceptive fakes is huge. As for the cowrie tree, I've never seen another. The Chinese soak their finds in vinegar, thus producing that familiar green patina, I suppose it's better than as it was found.
Thanks for presenting your fine collection in the Moneta - and please keep it up!
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