3020-地契traded land deeds

In 1951, villagers in Nanliuzhuang Village, Yu County, Zhangjiakou, traded land deeds. A 53 cm square piece of old parchment, along with a Qing dynasty scale and a copper abacus, were ingeniously framed together, creating a nostalgic decoration that also reflects the ingenuity of a collector who was originally an economist and banker from Hong Kong. This framed piece can be seen as a partial financial history of the early years after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. It spans from the eradication of most property owners and the uncompensated distribution of land to the poorest segments of society, to the start of the collectivization movement in 1953, which reclaimed land and means of production for collective ownership, all within just two to three years. The unfortunate spendthrift in this contract traded five acres of land for just over a bushel of millet, but by 1953, he was in fact a prescient fortunate one, as all land was reclaimed by the state, or rather, owned by the Communist Party, without compensation. The deed is marked with red fingerprints and a revenue stamp issued in 1949.

1951年张家口尉县南留庄村民买卖地契，53公分见方老皮纸，和清代老秤，铜算盘一起巧妙装框，既是一件让时光倒流的怀旧好装饰，也体现了一位原本是香港经济学家和银行家的收藏家的匠心。这镜框里，可以说是中共建政初期的半部金融史，从消灭大部分有产者，无偿分配土地给社会赤贫阶层，到1953年开始集体化运动，把土地和生产资料收回集体所有，中间只有短短两三年。这个契约中的倒霉败家子，五亩地只换了一石多小米，但到了1953年，他实际上是有先知先觉的幸运儿，因为所有的土地，都无偿收回国有也就是共产党所有了。地契上有红手印和1949年发行的印花税票。