DAVIS. — CERTAIN OLD CHINESE NOTES. 265 



In the "Imprint" (a publication of the American Bank-Note Co.) 

 for November, 1908, there is a photographic process picture of a 

 Chinese government note for one kwan. The note is there described 

 as a " Chinese Bank Note of the Ming Dynasty about 1400." 



The numismatic manual published in 1911, by H. A. Ramsden, 

 President of the Yokohama Numismatical Society, was illustrated 

 with a flawless picture of a one kwan Ming note, every detail of the 

 ornamental border being represented in absolutely perfect condition. 

 Mr. Ramsden says with reference to this, " The reduced reproduction 

 figuring in Plate I of this Manual, was taken from a clear and genuine 

 specimen in my own collection and is consequently a true and faithful 

 copy of the original Notes themselves." This is probably true, so far 

 as the impression from the plate goes, but it must be remarked that 

 there is not a sign in the picture of the government seals. 



The Numismatist, a New York illustrated monthly devoted to the 

 science of Numismatics, gives a process picture of the American Bank 

 Note Company's note in Vol. XXV, No. 5, May, 1912. 



This review of the information to be culled from the works of the 

 most conspicuous writers on the subject of Chinese paper money as to 

 what they know about existing specimens has resulted in showing 

 that the one kwan note of the Ming dynasty, and of the period of 

 Hung Wu, is the only note made use of by these authors to illustrate 

 their works, and further has disclosed the fact that several of these 

 writers have frankly declared that so far as they knew, no other of 

 these old Chinese notes has been preserved. Ramsden intimates that 

 it would not be difficult to make a collection of Chinese notes, but when 

 it comes to illustrating his Manual he makes use of a one kwan Ming 

 note of the Hung Wu period. 



The only writer other than Chinese who has furnished any pictorial 

 illustration of any other form of note than the one above mentioned 

 is Dr. S. W. Bushell, 25 who has given us through the publications of 

 the Peking Oriental Society, first, a representation of a fragment of a 

 wood -cut for a note of the second half of the twelfth century, second, 

 the full text of the inscriptions on a note issued in 1214, and finally 

 the picture of what appears to be the stereotype plate of a two hun- 

 dred cash note of the Ming dynasty, Hung Wu period. Dr. Bushell 

 asserts that this plate is an actual coin, and that the inscription on its 

 face shows that it belongs to the period of T'sung Chen and to the 



25 In a communication published in the Journal of the Peking Oriental 

 Society. 3, No. 4, pp. 308-312. 



