China - Ancient. WARRING STATES: AE halberd, 475-221 BC, 138x102mm, so-called "halberd head money", the ji (halberd) was initially a hybrid between a spear and a dagger-axe; it was a relatively common infantry weapon in Ancient China, and was also used by cavalry and charioteers, light encrustation, VF, ex Charles Opitz Collection. This example is the plate coin on page 154 in "An Ethnographic Study of Traditional Money: A Definition of Money and Descriptions of Traditional Money" by Charles Opitz. Photo size reduced.
