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How did Ancient Roman coins get to JAPAN?


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How did these Ancient Roman coins get to JAPAN? Artefacts are found thousands of miles from where they were made

    Japanese archaeologists found ancient coins at the ruins of an old castle
    This is the first time Roman coins have been found in the country
    10 bronze and copper coins found, with the oldest from the 4th Century
    It is thought they travelled during the Middle Ages, when trade was high


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3811089/Ancient-Roman-coins-unearthed-Japan-castle.html#ixzz4LZzq7L48


 

 

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-Roman_trade_relations

The Roman's had a trade port on the SE coast of India from which they received spices. Others traded there especially the Chinese and other SE culture either by proxy or directly. Japanese were at various times traders and raiders to China so the coins probably came not from a Roman traveling to Japan (not that that is completely impossible or vice versa) but more probably by intermediaries trading between themselves.

Reading that the site was built in the 13-14 century leads one to believe they were part of a horde that included the coins from many eras.

Edited by Hanslune
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Tarim mummies

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Archeological record

220px-AurelSteinWithDog.jpg
 
Sir Aurel Stein in the Tarim Basin, 1910

At the beginning of the 20th century, European explorers such as Sven Hedin, Albert von Le Coq and Sir Aurel Stein all recounted their discoveries of desiccated bodies in their search for antiquities in Central Asia.[5] Since then, numerous other mummies have been found and analysed, many of them now displayed in the museums of Xinjiang. Most of these mummies were found on the eastern end of the Tarim Basin (around the area of Lopnur, Subeshi near Turpan, Kroran, Kumul), or along the southern edge of the Tarim Basin (Khotan, Niya, and Cherchen or Qiemo).

The earliest Tarim mummies, found at Qäwrighul and dated to 1800 BCE, are of a Europoid physical type whose closest affiliation is to the Bronze Age populations of southern Siberia, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and the Lower Volga.[1]

The cemetery at Yanbulaq contained 29 mummies which date from 1100–500 BCE, 21 of which are Mongoloid—the earliest Mongoloid mummies found in the Tarim Basin—and eight of which are of the same Europoid physical type found at Qäwrighul.[1]

 

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The travelers and travels were quite extensive quite far back ...

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This kind of stuff is the meat of this site.  Good post seeder.

Edited by Thorvir Hrothgaard
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"  It is thought they travelled during the Middle Ages, when trade was high "

This (above) is what I think. Coins are coins. I've found 75 year old pennies in my pocket, so it doesn't surprise me that old coins ended up in a castle in Japan. Did it say at what era they were buried? I could go lay a medieval broadsword out in Eastern Oregon, and when it is found in 100 years, would it be proof of medivel adventurers coming to Oregon? It all depends on the context I think.

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13 hours ago, DieChecker said:

I've found 75 year old pennies in my pocket

I think you should consider changing your pants more often. 

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16 hours ago, DieChecker said:

"  It is thought they travelled during the Middle Ages, when trade was high "

This (above) is what I think. Coins are coins. I've found 75 year old pennies in my pocket, so it doesn't surprise me that old coins ended up in a castle in Japan. Did it say at what era they were buried? I could go lay a medieval broadsword out in Eastern Oregon, and when it is found in 100 years, would it be proof of medivel adventurers coming to Oregon? It all depends on the context I think.

Exactly this.

This reminds me of this story:

17th-century Chinese coin found in Yukon on display at Kwanlin Dun centre

Coin found during 2011 archeological dig evidence of far-reaching trade network

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/17th-century-chinese-coin-found-in-yukon-on-display-at-kwanlin-dun-centre-1.3218892

No.

I've worked at the restoration of a ghost town for over 20 years that had a significant Chinese population and we've found dozens of these coins, many older. Chinese miners carried these defunct coins that were kept in the families for hundreds of years. They were good luck. pieces that were cherished by their holders.

In the late 1890's a Chinese miner lost a coin. Big flippin' deal. It happened all the time. It far from proves that the Chinese were trading either directly or indirectly with the Native population 300 years ago.

Like you said DC, "context".

Edit: This is a better link to the original story.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/17th-century-chinese-coin-found-in-yukon-1.1072367

It just p***es me off that an actual archaeologist has perpetuated this myth for the last five years. <_<

Edited by Likely Guy
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