ANCIENT CHINA
			
Shang Dynasty 1766-1154 BC 
			
Bronze Cowrie shell money, the Earliest Coin
			

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Reference: Hartill 1.3
			
Weight: 5 grams; Size: 24 mm; Material: Bronze
			
 
			
 
			
COWRY AND COWRY IMITATION COINS
			
By the Shang Dynasty and continuing into the Zhou Dynasty, actual cowry shells were used as a form of money but they fall more into the category of "primitive money" than true coins. Their use far pre-dates the first true coins as shown by Wang on pages 64 and 6