During the Warring States period, the vassal states went their own way, minted their own money and had their own knives, such as gold and ant nose money from Chu, square ruler cloth from Yan, pointed cloth from Zhao, bridge ruler cloth from Wei and money from Qin. Coins have different shapes, weights, advantages and disadvantages, and are difficult to convert, which caused great difficulties in the circulation of goods at that time.
Qin Shihuang was called the first emperor by later generations, and he was a great statesman with foresight. In order to unify the country, he finally unified the national currency in the thirty-seventh year of the first emperor.
Qin Shihuang ordered the abolition of the old coins of the original countries and the implementation of a new monetary system based on Qin coins. Sima Qian recorded in Historical Records that in Qin State, a country's currency was divided into three classes. In the name of Yi, gold is the currency; Copper coin is known as half a tael, as heavy as its text, and it is the next coin; Jade beads, tortoiseshell, silver and tin are ornaments, not coins. Among them, half of the money shaped like a jade wheel, with a round square hole, has gradually become the mode of making money stipulated by China.
Qin Shihuang not only had clear regulations on the quality, quantity, shape and use of money, but also concentrated the right to coin money and prohibited private casting of money. In fact, Qin Banliang did not surpass the copper coins of pre-Qin countries in casting technology, and his circulation reputation was maintained by national laws. According to the golden cloth method of Yunmeng bamboo slips, those who receive money from the government will get 1000 yuan, which will be printed by Cheng Xu, and the money will be delicious. People's money is a mixture of beauty and evil.
As early as the second year of Qin Huiwen's reign, the right to coin casting and distribution was in the hands of the royal family when the currency was first used. Qin money does not cast place names, which is the embodiment of the concentration of coin distribution rights. Qin Shihuang reformed the monetary system. On the one hand, he abolished the old coins of the governors, on the other hand, he prohibited private coinage, and consolidated and strengthened the state's right to coin and issue coins. This is also the most important measure for Qin Shihuang to unify the currency.
Ding, an ancient monetarist, once wrote a poem about Qin Banliang: There is only the Great Wall in the future, and Qin Shihuang is not there. Mo Dao is only half square. He once saw Liu Xiang enter Xianyang.
Both Liu Bang and Xiang Yu led troops into Xianyang and Qin Dou. Xiang Yu also burned down the palace of the Qin Dynasty. After four years of Chu-Han War, he was defeated by Liu Bang. These two men also used Qin Banliang during this period.
Qin Banliang's square hole coins were unified after Qin Shihuang leveled the warring states governors in order to adapt to the development of commodity economy and end the chaotic monetary system. This kind of money with the outer circle and the inner side is very convenient to use, which has laid the basic form of China copper coins. In ancient times, this kind of money was twelve baht, ten millet was _, ten baht was _, and twenty-four baht was one or two. In fact, its weight is not so accurate. Although money is specially minted by the royal family, it often changes at any time and its weight is impermanent. If strictly required, a lot of money is not up to standard. It can be seen that the weights and measures promulgated by Qin Shihuang are difficult to be uniformly implemented. According to historical records, Xiang Liang, the leader of the peasant uprising army in the late Qin Dynasty, once made a lot of money for himself. The diameter of Qin Shihuang is 2. 5——2。 8 cm, weighing 3-6 grams. However, some of the artifacts handed down are larger than 4 cm in diameter, and the largest ones are 6. 8 cm, the latter is considered as fake money, and some people think it is like money.
From the late Warring States to the Qin Dynasty, the price was very low. The normal price of millet is only tens of yuan a stone, and a bucket of rice is only three Qin and a half Liang. It can be seen that the price was very cheap and the price of money was very expensive. It is recorded that Su Qin, a military strategist, went to Yan State with only one hundred dollars. It is also recorded that Xiao He gave Liu Bang two pieces of Qin Banliang, and Liu Bang was very grateful, and later gave Xiao He a fief.
When Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang was a civilian, there was an official of the Qin Dynasty named Xiao He in Pei County, his hometown. He sheltered Liu Bang several times. When Liu Bang was a curator, Xiao He often helped him. During the Chen Sheng Uprising, local governments responded in succession. Liu Bang gathered dozens of people and killed the county magistrate of Pei County in Qin Dynasty. At this time, Xiao He, Cao Can and others assisted Liu Bang in the uprising, promoted Liu Bang to Pei Gong, recruited Pei County's children, got three thousand soldiers, defected to Xiang Liang, and Xiang Liang gave Liu Bangbing five thousand and ten people. Liu Bang became the main force under Xiang Liang.
Liu Bang led the crowd to Xianyang, and some officials gave three dollars each, while Xiao He gave five dollars. At this time, of course, the prevailing money is Qin Banliang, and 35 yuan refers to Qin Banliang. It can be seen that there was not much money at that time, and it was not impossible without money. Probably at that time, it was often a few dollars between taking and taking. Historical records also record that five years after Emperor Gaozu killed Xiang Yu, the world was stable, and then he was rewarded with merits. The group will strive for merit, and it will not be decided for more than a year. Liu Bang thought that Xiao He made the greatest contribution, and named him Hou, with many food cities. Other military commanders are a little unconvinced. Why didn't Xiao rise without a fight? Liu bang said, do you know anything about hunting? Do you know hounds? Dogs hunt and chase wild animals, but people give instructions. Now, you can get wild animals, but you are just a meritorious dog. As for Xiao He, he gave instructions to those who made meritorious deeds. At this time, the military commanders also dare not fight any more. So Liu Bang named Xiao He and his son more than ten people, all of whom were food cities. The number of households in Xiaohe has increased by 2,000. This is also because he sent two more dollars.
After Qin Shihuang unified the monetary system, half a penny became the national unified legal tender. Half a penny is inside the outer ring, with no inner and outer contours and a flat back; The characters of "semi-paired" seal script are listed on both sides of the perforation, and the Qian Wen is raised, which is said to have been created by Prime Minister Lisi. Strict layout, overlapping strokes, elegant and vigorous. Half a penny has a square inside and a circle outside, combining rigidity and softness, and combining motion and static to achieve the highest state of symmetry and balance.
The shape of half a tael of money is very political, and it is a symbol of the imperial power in the Qin Dynasty. Lu Chunqiu: Heaven is round, authentic, and the holy king is the law, so the world is established. Why is it said that the sky is round, the essence is up and down, the circumference is complex, and there is nothing to miss, so it is called round; Why the authentic side? Everything has a different position and can't be the same. Therefore, the authentic side, the master holds the circle, and the minister is the master. Fiona Fang is not easy, and the country is prosperous. The rulers of the Qin Dynasty believed that the outer circle symbolized destiny and the inner side represented imperial power. The money was made into the shape of an outer circle and an inner side, symbolizing that the king ruled the world and the imperial power was supreme, and the prestige of the imperial power spread everywhere in the circulation areas of the Qin Dynasty.
The figure on the half-taels of money embodies the thought of the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements. Qin Banliang weighs 12 baht, with a diameter of 12 points and a perforation length of 6 points each. These numbers are all six or multiples of six. The sixth is the counting of water in Yin-Yang and Five Elements. It is not accidental that so many sixes appear on coins, it is the embodiment of an ancient idea.
In addition, from the perspective of material utilization and manufacturing technology, the shape of half penny saves casting materials than any other shape, which is an optimal choice, and the square hole in the middle is convenient for fixing and filing. It shows that people at that time had profound research and discussion on material utilization and working hours efficiency.
In a word, the measures taken by Qin Shihuang for the great cause of reunification are in line with the historical development trend and revolutionary and progressive. The unification of the monetary system has greatly facilitated the exchange of goods and economic exchanges between different parts of the country. It is not only beneficial to the tax collection of feudal countries, but also convenient for the development of commodity economy and promotes the formation of economic unity in the vast territory. Qin Banliang's money not only embodies the imperial power thought and the theory of yin and yang and five elements, but also embodies the aesthetic consciousness and efficiency concept of the Chinese nation. It is practical, artistic and ideological, and it is the crystallization of the collective wisdom of working people in ancient China.