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Auction: CSS118B - China Banknotes and Coins
Lot: 1010

Zhong Ling Tang (Zhongling Lodge), China, banknote or membership certificate specimen / remainder, ND, four-clawed dragon design on top, 'Zhong Ling Tang' printed horizontally underneath on bamboo cloth, transposed poem in Chinese surrounding the rest of the note which is seen as the biggest clue for this note being a membership token to Zhong Ling Tang, a branch of the infamous Heaven and Earth Society. Widely believed to be issued to new recruits as part of the initiation ceremony, the design resembles traditional Chinese banknotes to look less conspicuous to casual onlookers.
Allegedly only one known example which currently resides in the Shanghai museum. This piece differs because it is either a specimen or remainder, i.e. not dated, no denomination nor serial number. The current example has a 'Tian' prefix, widely known as the first prefix among Chinese notes, while the example in the Shanghai museum has a 'Wei' prefix, which some scholars believe is linked to the location of Zhong Ling Tang. Either way, not enough examples have seen the light of day and this piece is certainly shrouded in mystery and is of great historical intrigue


清代鍾靈堂布幣/入會憑證樣票/庫存票，頂部印有四爪盤龍圖案，梯形框橫印「鐘靈堂」三字，最特別之處是左右下三側藏有四句倒置的環讀七言詩，可讀為「鍾靈靈光光萬方，一到風雲聚會日，龍盤回水氣昂昂，三江五湖四海王。」此設計被視為該布幣為鍾靈堂會員憑證的最大線索，並屬於秘密組織天地會分支，由於身份敏感，因此樣式上仿效同期民間流通紙幣及布幣以減輕外觀顯眼度。按《天地會文書》說，「一拜天為父，二拜地為母，三拜日為兄，四拜月為嫂，五拜五祖，六拜萬雲龍大哥，七拜陳近南先生，八拜兄弟和順。」萬雲龍，即雲龍和尚，是莆田福清天地會領袖。而此布幣上環讀的四句詩中，第一句裡有「萬」字，第二句裡有「雲」字，第三句裡有「龍」字，絕非偶然。 據稱現存唯一實物藏於上海博物館，而本品因屬樣票或庫存票而異 — 即未註明日期、面額及編號。此票冠有「天」字號，被公認為中國紙幣中之首發冠號；而上海博物館藏品則冠有「威」字號，著名錢幣學者馬定祥認為「威」字與鍾靈堂所在地有關。無論如何，現存例子數量稀少，許多內涵難以確定，此品籠罩著神秘色彩，更蘊含著極具歷史價值的謎團，引人入勝

Estimate
HK$2,000 to HK$5,000

Starting price
HK$2000