A Monetary History of the Former German Colony of Kiaochou
The defeat of China after two Opium Wars left the Ch'ing Dynasty weak and disorganized. European powers were quick to exploit this weakness. Both Britain and France placed exorbitant demands upon China in the form of monetary indemnity for expenses they had incurred during the wars, and for the outright concession of Chinese territory.
Sensing this weakness, other European powers were quick to seize territorial concessions and to set up their own 'spheres of influence' within China for commercial purposes. This is the story of how Germany became a colonial player in the China trade.
Click to download PDF here.
Twenty Thousand Rupees Under the Sea
This is the story of the Peninsular and Occidental steamship Egypt which sank in 1922 off the coast of France after colliding with another ship in a heavy fog. Egypt was en-route London to Bombay and carried aboard a tremendous treasure - fifteen tons in silver and gold bars and coins. Unknown to outsiders, she also carried millions of rupees in newly printed bank notes which were destined for the Indian princely state of Hyderabad.
The Italian salvage vessel Artiglio undertook the difficult task of locating the wreck and recovering its cargo. This is a story of sunken treasure and daring salvage work in the face of much adversity, as never before had a salvage attempt been made at such depths. After four years of heartbreaking work over £ 1,000,000 in gold and silver was recovered from 400 feet of water, an unheard of depth for salvage operations of the day.
The numismatic aspects of the treasure recovered is described in detail.
Click to download PDF here.