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Gold Alloy Ingot - Hill Tribe currency
| Issuer | |
|---|---|
| Year | 1800-1900 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Oval |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse features two large, prominent circular depressions impressed into the cast surface, symmetrically positioned side by side near the center of the oval field. These concave indentations are a diagnostic characteristic of Hill Tribe ingot currency, likely serving as test marks or ceremonial identification features. The surrounding field retains the rough, porous texture typical of primitive casting techniques. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Hill tribe ingot currencies of this type circulated across the upland regions of mainland Southeast Asia — northern Burma, Yunnan, Laos, and the Shan States — where colonial banking infrastructure was absent and Chinese tael-weight silver dominated lowland trade. Gold alloys at or near .500 fineness were deliberately produced at this purity, not from metallurgical limitation, but because local goldsmiths alloyed to match the assay expectations of specific trading partners, particularly itinerant Chinese merchants who maintained their own touchstone testing kits.
Attribution to a single ethnic group or decade within this century is essentially impossible without provenance documentation.