TaiPing Golden Coin Soc. - Museum Gallery

Tai Ping Rebellion; Golden Coin Society (a branch of the Heaven & Earth Society). According to Helen Wang's excellent article (See Library), this could be a leaders badge (these 8 trigram pieces are membership badges - Not coins). These large ones are thought to be from the time when the original 8 groups broke up to protect themselves and to spread their philosophy and rebellion. There are two translations of the Ob: 1) 'Jin gian yi ji' (r,l,t,b), "Golden coin mark of loyalty; or 2) 'Yi Ji Jin gian' (t,b,r,l) as "Mark of Loyalty - A golden coin".
RX: linked lozenges w/"li" (to part) at top; said to symbolize 8 directions or "everywhere".
Ma & Ma's 'Encyclopedia of Tai Ping Coins' shows this variety (H-38) as a crude cast compared to the others, like this one. RARE! This one has a dark red, lacquer coating also associated with the Secret Societies, they were later worn as amulets and were even found on Chinese workmen that came to N. America. Any suggestions are much appreciated. 43.5 mm, 29.1 gm. ND (1858-62).
From Steve Album: The Golden Coin Society, a branch of the Tiandihui (Heaven and Earth Society) that was active during the Taiping Rebellion, was a fraternal organization dedicated to removing the Manchus from China. Their name was initially derived from their membership badge, a pair of Kang Xi Tong Bao coins fixed back to back by a red silk thread, so as to obscure the Manchu inscriptions on the reverse. As the society grew, more personalized badges were needed. Several varieties of these 'coins' exist, all with a curiously written jin character. The first two strokes of the word are written in a way that resembles the element ru (enter).

VIEW and DOWNLOAD:
THE TWO Most Worthy Articles on the coins of the Tai P'ing Rebellion:
Money of the Kingdom of Heavenly Peace - Sandrock: [ link ]
Chinese Secret Society Coins & Tokens - Wang: [ link ]