Conveners
S30. ANTIQUITY AND MIDDLE AGES 4. MOVEMENT OF COINS IN ASIA – ARCHAEOLOGY NUMISMATICS AND NETWORKS – SILK ROAD
- Joe Cribb (Hebei Normal Universtiy)
- Emilia Smagur (University of Warsaw)
S30. ANTIQUITY AND MIDDLE AGES 4. MOVEMENT OF COINS IN ASIA – ARCHAEOLOGY NUMISMATICS AND NETWORKS – SILK ROAD
- Emilia Smagur (University of Warsaw)
- Joe Cribb (Hebei Normal Universtiy)
Description
Org. and chair: Joe Cribb, Emilia Smagur
This panel will examine the movement of coins overland and by sea in Asia, with particular focus on movements along the so-called Silk Road, both on land and by sea.
The evidence of coin finds, designs and composition will be used to interrogate the routes, the sources and destinations of trade, the impacts on local monetary systems and cultures, and the establishment of networks.
Coins often provide the only surviving tangible evidence of the presence of peoples and goods which have travelled great distances by land or sea. The finds of Roman coins in India have long been the focus of research, but more recent discoveries of far-travelled coins in Central Asia and South East Asia, together with imported non-Roman coins in South Asia have revealed a more intense, widespread and long-lasting movement of coins in Asia. These new discoveries and a re-evaluation of the evidence from South Asian finds of Roman coins have opened up new approaches to research and to understanding the significance of such finds.
This paper will explore the significance and impact of Kushan coins found in Xinjiang Province.
Archaeological evidence confirms early links between the east and the west in the region now known as Xinjiang, in northwest China. The earliest Chinese coins in the region arrived during the Han dynasty. Other kinds of coins were also used in the region: foreign coins, local imitations, and local creations. During the periods of the greatest Chinese influence in the region (the Han and Tang)...
At Dharmarajika, Marshall picked up 2077 coins which range in date from 3rd century BCE to 5th century CE. Of this assemblage, he illustrated in his comprehensive field report some selected gold and a few copper coins, leaving the remainder unpublished. The site yielded a large number of coins from different periods, quite a few of them found in the form of hoards, obviously donated by the...
This paper aims to discuss the circulation of coins on the territory of the North Konkan coast in the Early Historic and Medieval periods. Its purpose is also to present a narrative on cultural interactions between the North Konkan and other parts of India. Its role as both a member of the greater South Indian cultural landscape, and as a participant in Indian Ocean trade networks will be...
The paper will present an overview of monetary exchange networks in the Indian Ocean region over the past two millennia, highlighting important numismatic elements, particularly with regard to typology, whic make coins a significant marker for the study of these networks.
Thirty years after compiling a list of finds of Roman coins from India it seemed to be worth reviewing the material found since then to see whether the patterns first noted were being sustained or had changed. This work is nearing completion and the presentation will be a summary of the new finds accompanied by new distribution maps.
The paper will present finds of Roman coins in Southeast Asia that would have arrived along maritime routes. Their dates range from the first to the late fifth/early sixth century AD. In contrast to the well-known influx of thousands of Roman coins into India, the result of trade relations between India and the Roman world, only very few coins were found in Southeast Asia. The discussion will...
