Some five tons of ancient coins dating back to the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) had been retrieved from the Jialing River, a major tributary of the Yangtze at its upper reaches, in southwestern Chongqing Municipality by Wednesday.
The coins, nearly covering all denominations used in the Northern Song Dynasty, have varying sizes, with their diameters varying from one to four centimeters.
Archeologists speculated that the large quantity of coins were once loaded in an official ship for tax levies, but sank to the bottom of the river after it was overturned by a flood or another type of accident.
The coins were thus inundated in the river for thousands of years, archeologists said, because of the difficulties involved for salvaging at that ancient time.
However, the full truth about the submerged ancient coins still requires further study, archeologists said.
(Xinhua News Agency April 19, 2003)
