Summary

These Chinese coins were excavated at were excavated at one of the digs on the Commonwealth Block between 1988 and 2003.

Cultural diversity in Little Lon.
Little Lon was home to a diverse population. Germans, Jews and Irish arrived in the mid 19th century; Chinese, southern Europeans and Syrians (Lebanese) in the 1880s; and Italians in the 1890s. Immigrants sometimes brought objects with them to remind them of home, or purchased new items that re-affirmed national loyalties. Pipes, vases or plates were decorated with flags, military heroes, an Irish lyre or English roses. The amount of foreign currency excavated also attests to diversity of the immigrants who frequented Little Lon.

Physical Description

Each of these 13 Chinese coins has a square hole through its centre. They vary in size and and the inscriptions on them. They are all corroded or worn to varying degrees.

Physical Description

Description for Parent record: Chinese coins (16) of varying sizes and inscriptions. 6 x coins with " " mint mark. 3 x very illegible (corroded). Others vary in size and inscription. 6 x 20mm diam, others between 18 & 22mm. Found with metal detector in backhoe dirt, 23/05.

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