Shroff marks vs. chopmarks

[shirohniichan]

 

I recently bought this Ptolemy II tetradrachm. I collect coins with Chinese chopmarks and found it interesting the sunburst mark under the eagle's head looked like it could have come from China. More likely it is a test mark from another area.

 

I've heard of Indian shroff marks, but I don't know much about them. I've only seen them on the edges of old Indian coins. Does anyone know if the punch marks on this coin look like Indian shroff marks? If they're neither Indian nor Chinese, what are they?

[igwood-migration]

niichan,

 

i know almost nothing about ancient numismatics, nor do i call myself an expert in chinese characters, but those don't look like chinese characters to me. i think that at the time this coin was issued that chinese characters were already of a form that we could recognize today as chinese.

 

igwood

[shirohniichan]

You're right-- they don't look anything like Chinese characters.

 

Chinese merchants used geometric shapes and other symbols in addition to kanji chops.

[shirohniichan]

I can't seem to find my Rose book about chopmarks anywhere, and it's really starting to bother me.