Coin-sword

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A Chinese coin sword-shaped talisman made from Qing dynasty era cash coins on display at the Museum of Ethnography, Sweden Coin Sword.jpg
A Chinese coin sword-shaped talisman made from Qing dynasty era cash coins on display at the Museum of Ethnography, Sweden

Coin-swords (alternatively spelt as coin swords), or cash-swords, are a type of Chinese numismatic charms that are a form of feng shui talisman that were primarily used in southern China to ward off evil spirits and malicious influences, especially those inducing fever. [1] These coin-swords are also often used in Taoist rituals. Coin-swords are considered an "evil-warding sword" (Chinese :避邪劍; pinyin :bì xié jiàn) in China. [2]

Contents

Coin-swords usually consist of Qing dynasty era cash coins, specifically from the Kangxi and Qianlong eras, but may also be made from older cash coins.

Coin-swords were also often used by overseas Chinese communities, such as those living in the United States or in Canada, during the 19th and early 20th centuries and merchants and individuals would often purchase cash coins to bring them to these overseas communities to make them into wedding gifts. [3] Coin swords were commonly given to newlyweds to hang over the marriage bed as a means to insure bliss and harmony. [4] [3] These coin-swords are typically an approximate length of 35 cm to 50 cm and require a minimum of 50 coins to make, while the older, larger, and more elaborately decorated coin-swords would typically contain around 150 cash coins. [3]

Names

In Mandarin Chinese, coin-swords are known by various names such as bixiejian (辟邪劍 / 辟邪剑, "evil-averting sword", of which they are a sub-type), qianjian (錢劍 / 钱剑, "coin-sword"), guqianjian (古錢劍 / 古钱剑, "ancient coin-sword" ), and tongqianjian (銅錢劍 / 铜钱剑, "copper coin-sword"). [5]

Composition of coin-swords

Chinese coin-swords generally consist of either one or two iron rods as a foundation with real or replica Chinese cash coins fastened together with a string, a cord, or a wire which are usually coloured red. [6] [7] While the thread is usually red, it may sometimes also be yellow or gold as these are considered to be the colours of royalty. [2]

Coin-swords generally consist of:

A typical Chinese coin-sword is about 0.6 meter, or about 2 feet in the imperial system of units, long and consists of around one hundred copper-alloy Chinese cash coins. [7] In superstition it is usually considered better for all the Chinese cash coins strung together in the coin-sword to have been produced during the reign of only a single Chinese emperor, [7] and may not be mixed with cash coins from other dynasties. [2] Ancient Chinese cash coins are also generally preferred over more modern ones. [6]

Coin-swords are constructed out of three different kinds of things, each of which is regarded as a preventive of evil spirits in feng shui. [6]

Uses in feng shui

A popular way sword symbolism in integrated in Chinese numismatic talismans is by stringing actual or replicas of cash coins into a sword-shape. [7] In feng shui, these coin-swords are often hung to frighten away demons and evil spirits. [7] Coin-swords are frequently hung above the bed, on residential walls, on the front and the outside of the bridal bed-curtain, or above the windows of a building. [7] [6] It is believed that evil spirits would not dare molest the residents of the house where the coin-sword hangs because the sword resembles that wielded by the Taoist immortal Zhong Kui, who in Chinese mythology is famous for being a slayer of evil demons. [7] Most Chinese coin-swords consist of Qianlong Tongbao (乾隆通寳) cash coins. [6]

The supposed powers of coin-swords do not come from the associated wealth symbolism that usually comes with cash coins. [2] But with the design form of the cash coins used to make the sword, as well as the dynastic origins of the cash coins that carry the Emperor's reign era title. [2] As such, in feng shui the supposed power of the coin-swords will depend heavily on which Chinese emperor's inscription is written down on the cash coins. [2]

About the time of a woman's confinement after her marriage, a coin-sword is sometimes taken to be hung inside of the bridal bed-curtain, usually in a position that is parallel to the horizon. [6]

Coin-swords made from Qing dynasty cash coins with the inscription Kangxi Tongbao (康熙通寶) are considered to be the most effective, this is because the reign of the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty lasted an entire 60-year cycle of the Chinese calendar and thus according to feng shui cash coins with this inscription represent "longevity". [7] These cash coins are furthermore preferred because the name "Kangxi" means "good health" and "prosperity". [6]

Uses in Taoist rituals

Share K. Lew, a Taoist monk trained at the White Cloud Monastery near Beijing who moved to San Diego, California, explains that coin-swords are commonly used among overseas Chinese Taoist monks as a substitute for the traditional sandalwood swords used in China. [3] These sandalwood swords are used to ward off ghosts and evil spirits and coin-swords fulfil the same purpose in overseas Chinese Taoist rituals. [3] This is as sandalwood swords are difficult to obtain outside of China. [3]

Sword symbolism in Chinese numismatic charms

A modern coin-sword made from replicas of Qing dynasty cash coins in Winschoten, Groningen Sword-shaped cash coin talisman.jpg
A modern coin-sword made from replicas of Qing dynasty cash coins in Winschoten, Groningen

True Chinese numismatic charms and amulets did not begin to appear in China until sometime during the Han dynasty and the sword, or frequently a pair of swords, as objects invested with power became frequently seen symbols in Chinese numismatic charms from this time on. [7]

Swords are a common theme on Chinese numismatic charms, and coins were often assembled into sword-shaped talismans. Most Chinese numismatic charms that feature swords often show a single sword. [7] According to Chinese legends, the first swords in China appeared under the reign of the legendary Yellow Emperor. During the Spring and Autumn period, the notion developed that swords could be used against evil spirits and demons. [7] Under the Liu Song dynasty swords became a common instrument in religious rituals, most particularly in Taoist rituals; according to the Daoist Rituals of the Mystery Cavern and Numinous Treasure (洞玄靈寶道學科儀) it was essential for students of Taoism to be able to forge swords which had the capability to dispel demonic entities. [7] Many Taoist sects formed during this period believed that swords could defeat demons and also contained medical properties. Under the Sui and Tang dynasties ritualistic swords constructed of peach wood started to appear. Around this time, Chinese amulets with sword themes began to be produced; often these amulets resembled Chinese cash coins but had crossed swords decorated with ribbons or fillets on them, as the ancient Chinese believed that these items enhanced the powers of the item they were tied to. [7] Chinese swords were commonly engraved with imagery representing the Big Dipper, which was believed to have unlimited magical power, and this also became common for charms that featured swords. [7]

The image of two swords on Chinese amulets stems from a legend where Taoist leader Zhang Daoling saw Laozi appear to him on a mountain in present-day Sichuan and gave him two swords. Alternatively, two swords can also represent two dragons from a legend where a man named Lei Huan (雷煥) received two swords and gave one to his son Lei Hua (雷華), who lost it in a river; a servant tasked with retrieving it witnessed two coiled and entwined Chinese dragons. [8] [7]

Chinese talismans of swordsmen usually depict one of the Taoist immortals Zhong Kui or Lu Dongbin. [9] Swordsmen also appear on zodiac charms, Bagua charms, elephant chess pieces, lock charms, and other Chinese numismatic charms. Another person who appears on Chinese amulets is Zhenwu, who is regarded as the perfect warrior. [10] [11] [7]

Taoist priests use coin-swords because of this symbolism for rituals for ridding evil, a red cloth is then wrapped on the hilt of the sword. [2] Taoist priests can also sometimes use a peach wood sword as an alternative to coin-swords. [2]

Coin-swords in Western museums

Coin-swords can be found in the collections of various museums across the Western world such as the British Museum in London (UK), the Durham University Archaeology Laboratory Collection (UK), the National Museum of American History (US), the National Museum of Scotland (UK), Horniman Museum and Gardens (UK), the Science Museum in London (UK), among a large number of other museums. [5]

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<span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh">Fulu</i></span> Taoist magic symbols and incantations

Fulu are Taoist magic symbols and incantations, translatable into English as 'talismanic script', which are written or painted on talismans called 靈符; 灵符; língfú by Taoist practitioners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cash (Chinese coin)</span> Chinese coin

The cash or qian was a type of coin of China and the Sinosphere, used from the 4th century BC until the 20th century AD, characterised by their round outer shape and a square center hole. Originally cast during the Warring States period, these coins continued to be used for the entirety of Imperial China. The last Chinese cash coins were cast in the first year of the Republic of China. Generally most cash coins were made from copper or bronze alloys, with iron, lead, and zinc coins occasionally used less often throughout Chinese history. Rare silver and gold cash coins were also produced. During most of their production, cash coins were cast, but during the late Qing dynasty, machine-struck cash coins began to be made. As the cash coins produced over Chinese history were similar, thousand year old cash coins produced during the Northern Song dynasty continued to circulate as valid currency well into the early twentieth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinese numismatic charm</span> Decorative coins used for rituals

Yansheng Coins, commonly known as Chinese numismatic charms, refer to a collection of special decorative coins that are mainly used for rituals such as fortune telling, Chinese superstitions, and Feng shui. They originated during the Western Han dynasty as a variant of the contemporary Ban Liang and Wu Zhu cash coins. Over the centuries they evolved into their own commodity, with many different shapes and sizes. Their use was revitalized during the Republic of China era. Normally, these coins are privately funded and cast by a rich family for their own ceremonies, although a few types of coins have been cast by various governments or religious orders over the centuries. Chinese numismatic charms typically contain hidden symbolism and visual puns. Unlike cash coins which usually only contain two or four Hanzi characters on one side, Chinese numismatic charms often contain more characters and sometimes pictures on the same side.

Korean numismatic charms, also known as Korean amulets, Korean talismans, or simply Korean charms, refer to a family of cash coin-like and other numismatic inspired types of charms that like the Japanese and Vietnamese variants are derived from Chinese numismatic charms, but have evolved around the customs of the Korean culture although most of these charms resemble Korean cash coins and the amulet coins of China, they contain their own categories unique to Korea. There are approximately 500 different known variants of Korean numismatic charms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japanese numismatic charm</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vietnamese numismatic charm</span>

Vietnamese numismatic charms, also known as Vietnamese amulets, Vietnamese talismans, or simply Vietnamese charms, refer to a family of cash coin-like and other numismatic inspired types of charms that like the Japanese and Korean variants are derived from Chinese numismatic charms, but have evolved around the customs of the Vietnamese culture although most of these charms resemble Vietnamese cash coins and the amulet coins of China. These "coins" were used at temples, as tokens within the imperial palace, and as everyday charms with supposed magical power such as having the ability to curse evil spirits and bogies. Some of these charms contained the inscriptions of real circulating cash coins but with added imagery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Numismatic charm</span> Index of articles associated with the same name

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhengde Tongbao</span>

The Zhengde Tongbao is a fantasy cash coin, Chinese, and Vietnamese numismatic charm bearing an inscription based on the reign title of the Zhengde Emperor of the Ming dynasty. The Zhengde Emperor reigned from the year 1505 until 1521, however during this period no circulating cash coins were minted. There were a large amount "cash coins" bearing the Zhengde era name are minted from the late Ming to early Qing dynasty periods as superstitious "lucky coins" with auspicious depictions and instructions, as this inscription remained popular for charms modern reproductions of the Zhengde Tongbao are also very common.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lei Ting curse charm</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lock charm</span>

Lock charms are Chinese numismatic charms shaped like ancient Chinese security locks. Their shape resembles a basket or in most cases the Chinese character for "concave" (凹). The pendants tend to be flat, without any moving parts, or the functionality of the locks they symbolize. They are decorated with both Chinese characters and symbols. Like other types of Chinese numismatic charms, lock charms are meant to protect the wearers from harm, misfortune, and evil spirits, and to bless them with good luck, longevity, and a high rank. In particular, this talisman is meant for young boys, to help "lock" them to the earth, to guard them from death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Open-work charm</span>

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<i>Hongwu Tongbao</i> First cash coin to bear the name of a Ming Emperor

The Hongwu Tongbao was the first cash coin to bear the reign name of a reigning Ming dynasty Emperor bearing the reign title of the Hongwu Emperor. Hongwu Tongbao cash coins officially replaced the earlier Dazhong Tongbao coins, however the production of the latter did not cease after the Hongwu Tongbao was introduced. The government of the Ming dynasty placed a greater reliance on copper cash coins than the Yuan dynasty ever did, but despite this reliance a nationwide copper shortage caused the production of Hongwu Tongbao cash coins to cease several times eventually leading to their discontinuation in 1393 when they were completely phased out in favour of paper money. In the year 1393 there were a total of 325 furnaces in operation in all provincial mints of China which had an annual output of 189,000 strings of cash coins which was merely 3% of the average annual production during the Northern Song dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kangxi Tongbao</span> Chinese Qing dynasty coin

Kangxi Tongbao refers to an inscription used on Chinese cash coins produced during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty. Under the Kangxi Emperor the weights and standards of the brass cash coins changed several times and the bimetallic system of Qing dynasty coinage was established. Today Kangxi Tongbao cash coins are commonly used as charms and amulets where different forms of superstition have developed arounds its mint marks and calligraphy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qianlong Tongbao</span> Chinese Qing dynasty coin

Qianlong Tongbao is an inscription used on cash coins produced under the reign of the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty. Initially the Qianlong Tongbao cash coins were equal to its predecessors in their weight and quality but as expensive military expenditures such as the Ten Great Campaigns began to take their financial toll on the government of the Qing dynasty the quality of these cash coins started to steadily decrease. The weight of the Qianlong Tongbao was changed several times and tin was added to their alloy to both reduce costs and to prevent people from melting down the coins to make utensils. As the intrinsic value of these coins was higher than their nominal value many provincial mints started reporting annual losses and were forced to close down, meanwhile the copper content of the coinage continued to be lowered while the copper mines of China were depleting. The Qianlong era also saw the conquest of Xinjiang and the introduction of cash coins to this new region of the Qing Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indonesian numismatic charm</span> Decorative coins used for rituals

Indonesian numismatic charms, also known as Indonesian magic coins, are a family of coin-like objects based on a similar Chinese family of coin charms, amulets, and talismans but evolved independently from them. Indonesian numismatic charms tend to have been influenced a lot by Hinduism, Islam, and the native culture and often depict religious imagery from Hinduism for this reason. The "magic coins" and temple coins from Indonesia are largely based on the Chinese cash coins introduced to the region during the Tang dynasty era in China, and during the local Majapahit era they began circulating in the region. Unlike with Chinese numismatic charms, the coin charms of Indonesia have not been as well documented both historically and in the modern era. A major modern day work about Indonesian numismatic charms in English is Joe Cribb's Magic coins of Java, Bali, and the Malay Peninsula which is a catalogue based on the collection of coin-shaped charms from the island Java acquired by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles during his lifetime held in the British Museum, the book is further supplemented with data and information available from various other sources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddhist coin charm</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taoist coin charm</span> Chinese and Vietnamese numismatic charms

Taoist coin charms, or Daoist coin charms are a family of categories of Chinese and Vietnamese numismatic charms that incorporate elements of the Taoist religion. Taoist coin charms come in various shapes, sizes, and formats and can contain inscriptions or wholly pictorial designs. While a large number of Taoist coin charms have their inscriptions written in traditional Chinese characters, a subset of Taoist coin charms have inscriptions written in Taoist "magic" writing. In these countries similar numismatic charms existed for Buddhist and Confucianism, and at times Taoist coin charms would also incorporate symbolism from these other religions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marriage coin charm</span>

Marriage coin charms are a category of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese numismatic charms that depict marriage, harmonious, and/or sexual imagery. These coin charms often imitate the design of Chinese cash coins, but can exist in many different shapes and sizes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cash coins in feng shui</span>

The usage of cash coins in the Chinese pseudoscientific practice of feng shui is commonplace influencing many superstitions involving them. Believers in feng shui believe in a primal life force called qi and apply their beliefs to the design of residential houses, as well as to commercial and public buildings, sometimes incorporating cash coins into the flow of this supposed qi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhouyuan Tongbao</span>

The Zhouyuan Tongbao is a copper-alloy cash coin produced during the reign of Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou dynasty, a historical Chinese state that existed in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The design of the Zhouyuan Tongbao cash coins closely resembles that of the Kaiyuan Tongbao (開元通寳) series produced during the earlier Tang dynasty period. The Zhouyuan Tongbao cash coins were produced from recycled Buddhist statues confiscated from Buddhist temples. For this reason the Zhouyuan Tongbao is commonly referred to as "Arhat money" or as the "money that destroyed Buddha". Nicknames only reserved for a handful of Chinese cash coins, as confiscation of Buddhist statues for coin production only happened around 7 times in Chinese history.

References

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