Solid Silver Cowrie -China

April 2025

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This one is a bit of a mystery. I have not seen mention of this type of cowry. It appears to be well oxidized silver and stained from contact with other substances. It is solid and does not have a hole but attains the form of a shell, if not exactly the cowry. If authentic, this could be an issue of the Wang Mang period of coinage reform experimentation or another form of gift/grave cowry. 25 x 14 x 4 mm; 7.79 gm

Moneta Library has articles on Cowries 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 ]
An excellent article in ANA's "Numismatist" magazine, Oct 2017 > [ link ]
SEE how far back in time decorative sea shells were important to prehistoric man at his : [ link ]
Interested in Primitive Money? Then check out this YouTube video created by Kagins Auctions featuring Bob Leonard and Charles Opitz upon the massive sale in March 2021. Click this: [ link ]