CHINESE HELL MONEY

Hell money springs from a very old tradition in Chinese culture, arguably stretching back as far as 1600 BC. Archaeologists have found tombs of that era in China with imitation metal money placed among the human remains. China has been using some form of paper money since the 9th Century, and paper money’s been dominant there for nearly 800 years. Joss paper copies of this money have been burned at funerals and graves for almost as long, and some people still prefer to use this form of spirit “cash” in paying their respects today.

The first Chinese currency resembling a modern banknote was printed around 1890, and it’s reasonable to assume that Hell’s currency appeared soon after. “The earliest Hell notes I’ve seen that look like banknotes were printed in the mid-1930s,” Anderson told me. “In the past decade or two, they have become increasingly elaborate and colourful.” When hyperinflation gripped China in the 1940s, Hell banknotes followed suit, producing the denominations of $1bn, $5bn or even $50bn we see today.

The name “Hell money” is thought to derive from a misunderstanding between the first Christian missionaries to reach China and the people they tried to convert there. Thinking “Hell” meant merely the afterlife in general, rather than the zone it sets aside for evildoers alone, Chinese people were happy to use this word on their dead relatives’ offerings. The habit’s stuck ever since, with a dozen “Hell Money” designs appearing for every one which labels itself “Heaven Money” instead. For Western collectors like me, this has the added appeal of giving the notes a sexy, badass name which “Paradise Money” or “Afterlife Money” simply can’t match.

To read the complete article, see:
Satan’s own bankers: Chinese Hell money (http://www.planetslade.com/hell-money.html)

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