cash 907-960 AD Unlisted lead Kai Yuan TB the Ten Kingdoms period, c.907-960 CE, China (Zeno 58232) circulated

Kai Yuan Tong Bao / Blank. 21mm, 1.90 grams. Hartill -; cf. Zeno 58232.

A small and apparently little-studied group of "Kai Yuan Tong Bao" was cast in lead, but in a surprisingly fine style closely resembling regular Tang-dynasty bronze issues. They are quite distinct from the typically crude lead Kai Yuan Tong Bao cash associated with the Southern Han and Chu kingdoms. Their precise origin remains uncertain: they may represent emergency or local issues from the final years of the Tang dynasty, or belong to the subsequent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–960). Several comparable specimens have appeared on Zeno, but the type appears to remain unpublished or inadequately documented in the standard numismatic references.

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