From early 1400' until well past the middle of the 19th. century,
tin ingots in a variety of shapes and sizes were used as money on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula (Shaw & Kassim, 1971)

THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO

Click map for bigger version at my Obsolete Tin Currency blog.

The use of tin currencies issued by the Malay Peninsula was not restricted to areas in the peninsula but extends to a large area in the Malay Archipelago. Although the term Malay Archipelago is widely used, there is no official definition for this area. The widely accepted definition would include Malaysia (the Malay Peninsula, including southern Thailand that connects the Peninsula to the Asian mainland), Brunei, Singapore, Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and islands in the waters surrounded by these large islands. (Source - Bank Negara Malaysia, 1995. Pameran Matawang Perdagangan Kepulauan Melayu (18 Mei - 14 Jun 1995) Unit Muzium Matawang, Bank Negara Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, p. 9.)

CLASSIFICATION OF RING CURRENCY

There is no known classification of the tin Ring Currency. In my yet to be published book entitled The Forgotten Tin Ring Currency of the Malay Peninsula a detailed classification of the currency is made based on research carried out.

The Ring Currency can be classified into the following broad categories..

TYPE A - Ring(s) at the base of the figure.

TYPE B - Figure in between rings.

TYPE C - Ring(s) without figure.

Note - Sub-classification of the above will be revealed in future postings on the blog.

Degree of Scarcity

S - Scarce
R - Rare
RR - Very Rare
RRR - Extremely Rare
RRRR - Highest state of rarity
UNIQUE - Only one piece known to exist

Monday, July 26, 2010

SPINK-TAISEI SINGAPORE COIN AUCTION CATALOGUE 6 - LOT 41

As mentioned in the most recent post the 2 items of Lot 41 may be part of Lot 31.


The first item (above) is what I categorized as Ring Currency Type B with stand. The other item (below) is a tin cockerel (Animal Currency) with stringing ring at the back.

Take note of the four "strand of feathers" of the cockerel. This seems to be a common feature for tin cockerels of Animal Currency as well as the Ring Currency.

I am not able to include the description of the items as per catalogue due to missing pages but I will update the post should the information be available later.

Note: The images posted here are for reference and educational purposes and will be immediately removed if so required by copyright owner(s).
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