An ancient coin from Song dynasty Photo: VCG

 
More than 300 kilograms of ancient coins have recently been recovered following the arrest of seven suspects by the local police of Helan County in northwest China's Ningxia Province.

With the assistance of organizations such as the Helan County Cultural Relics Protection Center, it was discovered that the suspects were involved in illegal activities including the excavation of ancient cultural sites, desecration of ancient tombs, and the sale of cultural relics.

During the initial investigation, the police learned that two individuals surnamed Li and Yuan had broken into the local Helan Mountain Natural Resources Reserve and stolen over 300 kilograms of ancient Song Dynasty (960-1279) coins. The estimated value of the stolen coins, as determined by experts, exceeds 500,000 yuan.

This incident in 2023 is not the only case that has occurred in Ningxia Province. The Shengweicheng Site, the province's only known Xixia period (1038-1227) site, was illegally excavated three times between 2014 and 2015. Approximately 109,016 ancient coins were stolen by robbers.

These invaluable coins, witnesses to a mysterious historical culture, were sold for 110 yuan per half kilogram.

Cultural relic expert Zhang Siping stated that preventing such illegal activities requires the more widespread promotion of the "dos and don'ts" outlined in cultural heritage laws to the general public.

"Based on my experience, a significant number of illicit transactions occur in remote areas and villages where both the cultural relic protection system and people's awareness of such issues are relatively weak," Zhang noted.