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China's
New Fan Coins Commemorate "The Year of the Goat"
China issued
the first fan-shaped silver and gold coins to commemorate the
lunar-zodiac "Year of the Dragon" in 2000. The fan
coin series continued in 2001, "The Year of the Snake"
and 2002, "The Year of the Horse." The reverse of
each year's fan-shaped coin is a different section of the Great
Wall.
China
has just released the fan-shaped coins for the upcoming "Year
of the Goat," that begins on February 1, 2003. Only 6,600
½ oz. pure (999 fine) gold and 66,000 1 oz. pure (999
fine) silver Prooflike Brilliant Uncirculated coins were minted.
The story
of the fan's invention in China is lost to time. The likelihood,
given the fan's elemental simplicity, is that it was invented
by some happy accident in the time before time -- when big
leaves would have been more abundant than paper, but all theories
about the fans origin remain that … just theories.
More than
3,000 years ago, fans were made with bird's feathers and were
one of the chief components in imperial pomp. They lent infinite
gracefulness and charm to court dancers, who used fans to
achieve the appearance of heavenly phoenixes in performances
for the country's most powerful men.
With the
progress of agriculture in the Han and Tang Dynasties, and
the resultant mass-production of cloth, fans began to be made
of silk and satin. This new material transformed the fan from
accessory to artists' canvas as thousands of scholars and
artists found it fashionable to demonstrate their genius by
writing and painting on the silken surfaces.
Folded
fans were reportedly introduced to China from Japan and Korea
about 1,000 years ago. They were usually made with fine paper
mounted on bamboo. Throughout history, Chinese fan makers
have turned to a variety of materials besides traditional
silk or paper. Sandalwood, ivory, even gold, silver and jade
have all been used to construct fans.
Click
Here to Shop for the China 2003 Lunar Year of the Goat Fan
Shaped Coins.
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