Entering the exhibition hall of the China Numismatic Museum, a magnificent copper relief "casting" first came into view, bringing the viewer into the fiery labor scene of ancient craftsmen turning sand and casting money...
In the middle of the picture, the three-dimensional and tall cast figure shows the key steps of casting money; the craftsmen carved on both sides, some pulling bellows, laying sand, some moving sand, hammering money, are also busy in an orderly manner... The flames are raging, the smoke is rising, and in the light of the fire, the "craftsman spirit" that has been passed down for thousands of years shines on their bodies.
The sand casting process shown by the relief is a great invention of ancient craftsmen on the mainland, and only the mother money and the shape sand can realize the repeated casting operation. At the latest during the Northern Dynasty, the money minting craftsmen began to use the sand turning method to mint coins, and were used by later generations, because they omitted a lot of manpower and material resources necessary for the Fan casting method to mold the model, which greatly saved costs and improved efficiency, which was a major technical contribution of the mainland money minting craftsmen to the development of the traditional casting industry. After the 15th century, the sand turning process gradually spread to Europe and was used in machinery manufacturing; from the 17th to the 18th century, it became the supporting technology of machine manufacturing in industrialized countries such as Britain. Until modern times, sand turning technology is still an indispensable technology in machine building.
The development of the coinage process from Fan Casting to the technological innovation of turning sand must be realized by craftsmen on the basis of completing the accumulation of necessary technologies after a lot of attempts and continuous adjustments. The craftsmen who invented this technology have long been lost in the rolling river of history. Although there is no name left, the sand turning process has survived in the inheritance and development of future generations, and the "craftsman spirit" they interpreted as rigorous, striving for excellence, and constantly innovating in the accumulation of work is also respected and admired by future generations.
The cornerstone of a society is ultimately built brick by brick by dedicated and creative workers.
On the occasion of the upcoming May Day International Labor Day, we salute the "craftsman spirit" that has been passed down for thousands of years, and also wish every hard-working, intelligent, and hard-working worker and strivers a happy holiday!
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Happy Labor Day