The coinage of ancient Korea (pre-13th century CE) first employed Chinese coins, known locally as the oshuchon. Korean rulers began minting their own metal coins from the late 10th century CE, first in copper and iron, and later in bronze. These coins never really gained wide circulation, though, and it would not be until the 17th century CE that coinage fully replaced the barter system prevalent throughout the peninsula. Another form of currency, in use from the 12th to 14th century CE, was the unbyong silver vase, stamped by the state and given an official rate of exchange with staple commodities such as rice; it was shaped like the peninsula of Korea.

? ? ? ? ? 古代韓國(guó)的錢幣（公元13世紀(jì)前）首先采用了中國(guó)的錢幣，在當(dāng)?shù)乇环Q為 " oshuchon "。從公元10世紀(jì)末開始，韓國(guó)統(tǒng)治者開始鑄造自己的金屬硬幣，首先是銅和鐵，后來(lái)是青銅。不過(guò)，這些錢幣從未真正獲得廣泛的流通，直到公元17世紀(jì)，錢幣體系才完全融入到整個(gè)半島普遍存在的易貨貿(mào)易體系。另一種貨幣形式，從公元12世紀(jì)到14世紀(jì)一直在使用，是unbyong銀瓶，由國(guó)家蓋章，并賦予主食商品如大米的官方匯率；它的形狀像韓國(guó)的半島。

早期貨幣

In early Korea, the system of exchange was principally one of barter where goods were calculated as having a certain value in relation to fundamental commodities such as grain, rice, and cloth. The latter was first hemp and then more typically cotton cloth, known as cloth currency or pohwa. The first known currency used in ancient Korea which was made of metal was knife money (ming-tao-chien), so called because of the crescent, bladelike shape. This came with settlers from China during the Warring States Period (475-221 BCE) and has been excavated at sites in the Pyeongan and Jeolla provinces. The Chinese also introduced coins to Korea when the Han Dynasty invaded the north at the end of the 2nd century BCE. These coins became the official currency and were known as wuzhu in Chinese or oshuchon in Korean, meaning 'five-grain'. The oshuchon continued to be used by the two kingdoms of Goguryeo and Silla up to the 10th century CE. They are commonly found in the tombs of the Nangnang (Lelang) region.

? ? ? ? ? 早期韓國(guó)，交換制度主要是以物易物，貨物被賦予一定的價(jià)值，與基本商品如谷物、大米和布相比。后者首先是麻布，然后是更典型的棉布，這種貨物被稱為布幣或pohwa。古代韓國(guó)使用的第一種已知的金屬貨幣是刀幣（Ming-tao-chien），因其新月形的形狀而得名。這是在戰(zhàn)國(guó)時(shí)期（公元前475-221年）隨著中國(guó)移民傳入的，并在平安和全羅道的遺址中挖掘出來(lái)。公元前2世紀(jì)末，漢朝入侵北方時(shí)，中國(guó)人也將錢幣引入韓國(guó)。這些錢幣成為官方貨幣，在中國(guó)被稱為 "五銖錢"，在韓國(guó)被稱為 " oshuchon "，意思是 " five-grain "。直到公元10世紀(jì)，高句麗和新羅這兩個(gè)王國(guó)還在繼續(xù)使用這種貨幣。它們通常出現(xiàn)在南朗（Lelang）地區(qū)的墓葬中。

首批韓國(guó)貨幣

It was during the Goryeo Dynasty (918 – 1392 CE) that Korea first produced its own coins. These early coins, minted from 996 CE, imitated those of the earlier Chinese Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 CE) and were made of iron and copper. Even the 'heavy coin of the Qianyuan period' inscription was translated from the Chinese (Qianyuan zhongbao) to the Korean Konwon chungbo. They did add an identifying 'Eastern kingdom' (Tongkuk) on the reverse side of the coin. As with Chinese coins, the Korea coins had a square central hole.

? ? ? ? ? 在高麗王朝（公元918-1392年）期間，韓國(guó)首次生產(chǎn)了自己的錢幣。這些早期的錢幣，從公元996年開始鑄造，模仿早期中國(guó)唐朝（公元618-907年）的錢幣，錢幣由鐵和銅制成。甚至連 "乾元時(shí)期的重幣 "銘文也是從中文（乾元中寶）翻譯成韓國(guó)的金元重寶。他們確實(shí)在錢幣的背面添加了一個(gè)可識(shí)別的 "東方王國(guó)"（Tongkuk）。與中國(guó)的貨幣一樣，韓國(guó)的貨幣有一個(gè)方形的中心孔。

In 1097 CE and 1102 CE copper coins were minted by the Goryeo king, Sukjong. These carried uniquely Korean inscriptions but still continued with the distinctive Chinese square hole design. Marked on one side with the familiar tongbo ('circulating treasure') or chungbo ('heavy treasure'), the other side carried one of the following possible legends identifying them as of Goryeo Korea:

Tongguk tongbo – 'Coin of the Eastern Kingdom'

Tongguk chungbo – 'Heavy coin of the Eastern Kingdom'

Haedong tongbo – 'Coin of the Land East of the Sea'

Haedong chungbo – 'Heavy coin of the Land East of the Sea'

Samhan tongbo – 'Coin of the Three Hans'

Samhan chungbo – 'Heavy coin of the Three Hans'

? ? ? ? ? 在公元1097年和1102年，高麗國(guó)王肅宗鑄造了銅幣。這些銅幣帶有獨(dú)特的韓國(guó)銘文，但仍然延續(xù)了獨(dú)特的中國(guó)方孔設(shè)計(jì)。一面標(biāo)有熟悉的tongbo（"流通寶"）或chungbo（"重寶"），另一面則有以下可能的傳說(shuō)，表明它們是高麗國(guó)鑄造的：

東國(guó)通寶--"東國(guó)的錢幣

東國(guó)重寶--"東國(guó)重寶"。

海東通寶--"海東之國(guó)"的錢幣

海東通寶--"海東之國(guó)的重幣"。

三韓通寶--"三韓之幣"。

三韓重寶--"三韓重寶"。

These legends were written in four types of script – the clerical, regular, seal, and cursive. Once again, tombs (e.g. at Gaeseong) have been the best source of ancient coins for archaeologists and historians to study.

? ? ? ? ? 這些銘文有四種字體——隸書、楷書、篆書和草書。墓葬（如開城）再次成為考古學(xué)家和歷史學(xué)家研究古錢幣的最佳來(lái)源。

銀色花瓶

An alternative to coins as a form of payment was the unbyong (aka hwalgu) silver vases which were made from 1101 CE. The vases took the shape of the Goryeo empire and were marked as legitimate currency by having the official state seal engraved on them. Naturally, the vases contained a great deal of silver (600 g or one kun) and so were only useful for large payments. Historians also suggest that they were used primarily by aristocrats and for bribing officials. Unfortunately, no examples survive, but we do know from a 1282 CE law that the value of one unbyong was fixed at between 2,700 and 3,400 litres of rice. Despite their impracticality for smaller transactions, the vases continued to be used over the next two centuries, until King Chungnyeol permitted rough or broken pieces of silver to be used instead at the end of the 13th century CE. By 1331 CE the small vases shaped liked Korea itself were no longer in use.

? ? ? ? ? 替代錢幣的支付方式是公元1101年開始制造的銀瓶（又稱aka hwalgu）。這些花瓶采用了高麗帝國(guó)的形狀，并通過(guò)在上面刻上國(guó)家的官方印章而被標(biāo)記為合法貨幣。當(dāng)然，這些花瓶含有大量的銀（600克或one kun），所以只適用于大額付款。歷史學(xué)家還認(rèn)為，它們主要是由貴族或賄賂官員時(shí)使用的。遺憾的是，沒(méi)有遺物存世，但我們從公元1282年的法律中得知，一個(gè)銀瓶的價(jià)值被固定在2700至3400升米之間。盡管小花瓶在小型交易中不實(shí)用，但在接下來(lái)的兩個(gè)世紀(jì)里，小花瓶仍繼續(xù)使用，直到公元13世紀(jì)末，忠烈王允許使用粗糙或破碎的銀器來(lái)代替。到了公元1331年，小銀瓶已經(jīng)不再使用了。

?中國(guó)與紙幣

No further coins were minted in Korea until the 15th century CE, and as in earlier periods, Chinese coins were imported and used instead. The Sinan shipwreck, which was discovered in waters off the coast of South Korea in 1976 CE, dates to the Song Dynasty (10th - 13th century CE) and contained 26,775 kg of Chinese coins destined for use in ancient Korea.

? ? ? ? ? 直到公元15世紀(jì)，韓國(guó)都沒(méi)有再鑄造錢幣，和早期一樣，中國(guó)錢幣被進(jìn)口和使用。西南沉船于公元1976年在韓國(guó)沿海水域被發(fā)現(xiàn)，其歷史可追溯到宋朝（公元10-13世紀(jì)），其中有26,775公斤的中國(guó)錢幣，這些錢幣本要在古代韓國(guó)使用。

The Korean state did produce paper money in the 14th century CE, but it was never issued. Another attempt was made in the 15th century CE when notes were made from the high-quality hanji paper for which Korea was famous throughout Asia. Traders also accepted Chinese banknotes during the Middle Kingdom period. However, banknotes were generally only used to pay taxes, and they struggled to catch on in Korea, where metal coins were used, and trusted, far more widely. No paper money survives from this period.

? ? ? ? ? 在公元14世紀(jì)，韓國(guó)確實(shí)生產(chǎn)過(guò)紙幣，但從未發(fā)行過(guò)。另一次嘗試是在公元15世紀(jì)，當(dāng)時(shí)的紙幣是用高質(zhì)量的韓紙制作的，而韓國(guó)的韓紙?jiān)谡麄€(gè)亞洲都很有名。在中原王朝時(shí)期，商人們也接受中國(guó)的紙幣。然而，紙幣通常只用于支付稅款，它們?cè)陧n國(guó)很難流行起來(lái)，因?yàn)樵陧n國(guó)，金屬硬幣的使用和信用度都要廣泛得多。這一時(shí)期沒(méi)有紙幣留存下來(lái)。

參考書目：

Jinwung, Kim. A History of Korea. Indiana University Press, 2012.

Ki-baik Lee. A New History of Korea. Harvard University Asia Center, 1984.

Portal, J. Korea: Art & Archaeology. British Museum Press, 2016.

Pratt, K. Korea. Routledge, 1999.

原文作者：Joshua J. Mark

? ? ? ? ? Joshua J. Mark是自由撰稿人，曾是紐約馬里斯特學(xué)院的兼職哲學(xué)教授，他曾在希臘和德國(guó)生活過(guò)，并游歷過(guò)埃及。曾在大學(xué)里教授歷史、寫作、文學(xué)和哲學(xué)。

原文網(wǎng)址：https://www.worldhistory.org/Korean_Coinage/