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Yansheng Coin , in the west they are more commonly known as Chinese numismatic charms or simply Chinese charms , refers to a collection of special kinds of coins and coin-shaped objects used mainly for ritual uses as well as fortune telling and are involved in almost all forms of Chinese superstitions and Feng shui. It was very popular in ancient China and even the Republic of China era. Normally these coins are privately funded or cast, such as by a rich family for their own family ceremony, though a few types have been known to be cast by various governments or religious orders over the centuries. They originated during the Han dynasty as a variant of the contemporary Ban Liang and Wu Zhu cash coins but evolved into their right right and into many different categories in various shapes and sizes over the centuries. Chinese numismatic charms typically contain a lot of hidden symbolism and visual puns. Unlike cash coins which usually only contain two or four Hanzi characters on one side Chinese numismatic charms often contain more characters and may or may not also contain pictures on the same side. Chinese numismatic charms and amulets are not a real kind of currency, however as Chinese coins were valued by their weight in bronze or brass, Chinese numismatic charms tended to circulate on the Chinese market alongside regular government issued coinages as Chinese charms and amulets were often made from copper-alloys and in some cases from precious metals or jade, and in certain cases some variants were sometimes used as alternative currencies especially temple coins issued by Buddhist temples during the Yuan dynasty when copper currency was scarce or its production was intentionally limited by the Mongol government. As some types of Chinese charms and amulets were used as daily fashion accessories many of them are worn. The collection of this kind of coins has a long history, and has been very popular since the Western Han Dynasty. Normally this kind of coins are heavily decorated, have complicated patterns, and even engraved. Sometimes actual government cast Chinese cash coins can become Chinese numismatic charms such as the fact that in Feng shui Qing dynasty era cash coins with inscriptions of the five emperors Shunzhi, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong, and Jiaqing placed together are said to bring wealth and good fortune to those that string these five coins together.Chinese numismatic charms and amulets have inspired a similar tradition in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam and often charms and amulets from these other countries can be confused for Chinese charms due to their similar symbolism and inscriptions. Similarly Chinese cash coins themselves may be treated as lucky charms outside of China.
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