This post is a summary of the comparative
study by Quanmo Yishanren on the pattern coins from the first set of the Historical
Figures series. The original post is rather long and deviating. I am picking
out the essential points from his post at http://bbs.bqcoin.com/read-htm-tid-3378-page-1.html.
In 1984, Shanghai Mint issued a brass medal
celebrating the 30th anniversary of the new Shanghai Mint after PRC
was founded. (Shanghai Mint itself has a much longer history.) This is the
brass medal:
This medal is interesting because it has
the image of the Shanghai Mint building on one side, and the images of several coins
on the other. The coin side reveals three pattern coins: a pattern for the
Decade of Women gold coin, a pattern for one of the 30th Anniversary
of the PRC gold coins, and a pattern for the Soldier Kneeling silver coin. The
Decade of Women gold pattern was leaked to the market, sold by a coin store
under the China Gold Coins Inc. The 30th Anniversary gold pattern
was very close to the one later released, with difference only in denomination
(300 Yuan vs. 400 Yuan). What Quanmo Yishanren focuses on is the pattern for
the Soldier Kneeling. It is vastly different from the coin actually released:
1. The fonts of the characters are different. The characters "Soldier
Kneeling" are arranged in an arc on the upper left side on the pattern,
while they are horizontal on the upper right side on the released coin; 2. The
characters "Three Hundred Years B. C." on the pattern coin use a
similar font as found on the released coin, but they are in different
positions. On the pattern, the characters are on the upper right corner, in an
arc, while they are horizontally arranged below the characters "Soldier
Kneeling" on the released coin; 3. The denominations are different. It is 20 Yuan on the
pattern coin, on the right middle section of the coin, while it is 5 Yuan on
the released coin, in the lower right corner.
Quanmo Yishanren has the following
questions about the Soldier Kneeling pattern: How come the image of this
pattern got onto the medal? Why the differences between the pattern and the
released coin? Does the pattern still exist today? Where is it?
Quanmo Yishanren then digresses to the
pattern of the gold coin in this set, Qinshihuang. It is the only available
pattern from the Historical Figure series, now in the collection of the Hong
Kong collector King Chan. The image on the right in the picture below is the released coin. The other images are those of the pattern:
While the silver coins were designed and
engraved at Shanghai Mint, the gold coin was designed and engraved by Wang Fude
at Shenyang Mint. The design of the Qinshihuang pattern was very different from
that of the released coin: 1. The pattern shows the full body of Qinshihuang,
with his crown tiling up. The released coin shows only his upper body, with his
crown tilting down. 2. The obverse of the pattern shows the year
"1983" and the characters "Qinshihuang's Terracotta Warriors from
China" in the Qinzhuan font, with the image of the Great Wall in the
background, separated into two sections. On the other hand, the obverse of the
issued coin has the name of the country, the national emblem and the year
"1984", which are standard design elements. 3. On the reverse of the
pattern coin are the image of Soldier with a Horse, the 100 Yuan denomination,
the characters "Soldier with a Horse" in the Weibei font and the
characters "3rd Century B. C.", while the reverse of the
released coin has the image of Qinshihuang, the denomination of 100 Yuan, the characters
"Qinshihuang" in the Qinzhuan font, and the characters "Years
259-210 B. C." in the Kaishu font.
Quanmo Yishanren then proceeds to compare
the pattern of Qinshihuang, the brass medal of the 30th Anniversary
of Shanghai Mint and the silver coins of the terracotta warriors.
He believes that through
logical inference, the following questions can be asked: 1. Now that Soldier
with a Horse is on the reverse of the Qinshihuang pattern, it is very unlikely
that the same design would be used on a silver coin. What would the design on
that coin be? 2. The Qinshihuang pattern has the year "1983" on it.
Accordingly, the year on the Soldier Kneeling silver pattern should be the
same. Where would it be positioned? 3. We only see the design on the reverse of
the Soldier Kneeling. Based on the designs on the Qinshihuang pattern, Quanmo
Yishanren believes that the design on the obverse of the Soldier Kneeling would
be different from that on the officially released coin. These questions need to
be investigated.
Quanmo Yishanren then contacted the designers and
engravers of the coins and the brass medal. Unfortunately, they had not even
noticed the facts, especially the patterns on the brass medal. They had very vague
memory of what happened so long ago. What can be concluded are:
1.
The images of the coins on the
brass medal were based on original dies from the die room, although reduced in
size. The three patterns were minted for the release of the coins. The released
coins are different from these patterns for review because of the input from
the distributor or China Mint Company.
2.
The patterns were all actually
minted, but in a very small number. They were primarily submitted to China Mint
Company and the overseas sponsor of the project. Under the chaotic management system
of that time, patterns submitted were rarely recovered. The recipients of
patterns would pay for them. That is to say, these patterns actually
became commodities. Those patterns retained within the mint were melted
under supervision.
3.
After so many years, any such pattern
would be a highly valuable top gem if it shows up. It may be the only specimen available. Even
if such patterns happen to turn up in a managed way, they are still extremely
rare, well worth collecting and researching.
4.
Because of the specific historical
theme, the Qinshihuang and Soldier Kneeling patterns are outstanding even among
pattern coins.
5.
The fact that images of pattern
coins appeared on the brass medal was due to negligence. This will not happen
again as patterns are under strict management now.
