光绪二十三年浙江省造一钱四分四釐铜样币。安庆造币厂。使用德国埃斯林根 (Esslingen) Otto Beh公司提供的模具打铸。黄铜橄榄色调。铸打锐利，魅力十足的一枚早期中国机制币，在顶尖集藏中亦能不费吹灰之力取得一席之位。黄铜铸异质币，与其他省份如安徽、奉天的黄铜及铝制样币可见共通之处。然而浙江样币的罕见程度远超其他省份，市面上可説是从未出现。其他省份异质样币尚可寻获零星拍卖记录，但浙江异质样币百不一遇。编者唯一找到的记录是一枚面值错误的黄铜三分二釐 (获评NGC MS-63)，在2008年8月Norman Jacobs集藏拍卖中以24,000美元落槌。由此可见，本拍品非同小可，重要无比。必先过五关斩六将才能收穫此枚无上珍品。近年发现的铸造物料如样币、模具、二元模以及一系列来自德国 Otto Beh 公司的存档制模冲头阐明了此钱币的生产。此前，对安徽、浙江、奉天、黑龙江、新疆几省铸币模具母版的来源猜想纷纭，但始终是个迷团。Otto Beh是一间专精压印铸模的公司。1895年，在距埃斯林根不远的格平根 (Goppingen) 居住的路易斯-舒勒 (Louis Schuler) 收到一笔铸币机的订单，于是他委託Otto Beh制作模具。在1897年和1898年间，Beh为Schuler提供了200多个用于中国钱币的模具。这是当时该公司所接到最大的订单。 舒勒于1839年开锁匠铺起家，后逐步发展为世界最大的金属加工供应商，为上述省份的铸币厂提供模具。<p>(t) CHINA. Chekiang. Brass 1 Mace 4.4 Candareens (20 Cents) Pattern, Year 23 (1897). Esslingen (Otto Beh) Mint. Kuang-hsu (Guangxu). PCGS SPECIMEN-63+.cf. L&M-273 (silver pattern); cf. K-117 (same); cf. KM-53.5 (same); cf. WS-1012C (same). Sporting a brassy-olive hue and an alluring, crisply struck look, this charming specimen undoubtedly holds a place among the pantheon of issues from the early years of the vintage Chinese series. Issued as an off-metal pattern striking in brass, it shares similarities with other pattern issues in brass and aluminum from provinces such as Anhwei and Fengtien. However, such trials for Chekiang are that much <strong>RARER</strong> and seemingly never encountered in the marketplace. Indeed, while one can locate a few disparate records of the latter provincial off-metal trial strikings, those for Chekiang remain the most elusive. The only such example that this cataloger could locate is a Brass 3.2 Candareens error denomination (graded NGC MS-63), realizing a hammer of $24,000 when it sold as part of the Norman Jacobs Collection in August 2008 (<em>there listed as extremely rare, possibly unique</em>). As such, the importance of this piece cannot be overstated, and it should no doubt present much in the way of spirited bidding and fanfare when it ultimately joins its new, highly deserving cabinet.<p><em>The recent discovery of production material has shone new light on the creation of this coinage. Such findings included patterns, dies, hubs and a series of punches from the archives of the Otto Beh company in Esslingen, Germany. Before this, the origin of the dies used to produce coinage for the provinces of Anhwei, Chekiang, Fengtien, Heilungkiang and Sungarei was only speculated upon. Otto Beh was a specialist in the production of seals and dies. From neighboring Goppingen, Louis Schuler received an order for coining presses in 1895 and commissioned Otto Beh to manufacture the dies. In 1897 and 1898, Beh supplied Schuler with over 200 dies for Chinese coins. At the time, this was the largest order that the company had ever received. Schuler, which started as a Locksmiths shop in 1839, had grown to become one of the worlds leaders in metal forming and, in fact, supplied the aforementioned mints with coining presses.</em>
