Xu Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Metal (jīn) Silver Kangxi Strokes: 14 Page 1303, Entry 01 Pronounced yin. According to the Shuowen Jiezi (Shuowen), it is white gold. According to the Erya, Explaining Vessels (Erya), white gold is called silver. According to the History of the Former Han (Qianhan Shu), Food and Money Treatise: Zhu-ti silver, weighing eight liang, makes one ingot, valued at one thousand five hundred and eighty, while other silver ingots are valued at one thousand. The commentary states: Zhu-ti is the name of a county that produces high-quality silver. There is also yellow silver. According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas (Shanhaijing), commentary on Mount Gaotu: Yellow silver is produced in Shu; it is no different from gold, but when placed upon stone, its color turns white. According to the History of the Tang (Tang Shu), Biography of Fang Xuanling: Emperor gifted Fang Xuanling a yellow silver belt. According to the Treasury Treatise (Baozang Lun), there are seventeen types of silver. Natural tooth silver is produced in the stone crevices of silver mines, shaped like tangled silk; those that are red in color are of superior quality, turning purple-white when placed in fire; those resembling grass roots are of secondary quality. Silver containing black stone is the most peculiar, produced in the mountains of Leping and Poyang where lead is mined; one type is called dragon tooth, and another is called dragon whiskers. Raw silver is produced in stone in sheets or chunks of irregular size, shaped like hard tin. Mother-sand silver is produced in the cinnabar mine pits of the Five Streams, with a reddish and lustrous texture. Black-lead silver obtains the energy of both mother and child. These four types are considered genuine silver. There are also mercury silver, grass-sand silver, zengqing silver, malachite silver, realgar silver, orpiment silver, sulfur silver, chalcanthite silver, and lingcao silver, all of which are made using medicinal substances. Danyang silver, copper silver, iron silver, and white tin silver are all created through alchemical transformation and are false silvers. There are four foreign types: Silla silver, Persian silver, Linyi silver, and Yunnan silver, all of high quality. There is also mercury. According to the History of the Former Han (Qianhan Shu), Biography of Liu Xiang: Mercury was used to create rivers and seas. According to the Guihai Yuheng Zhi, in places in Yongzhou rich in cinnabar, striking the earth with a hammer causes mercury to flow out naturally. There is also black silver. According to the Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu), Chen Cangqi stated: People now use sulfur to fumigate silver, and after two nights, it is removed; its color turns black. Craftsmen use it to make utensils, and those cultivating life use these utensils to decoct medicine, which can ward off evil. There is also a surname. According to the Zhengzitong, there was a person named Yin Mu during the Han dynasty. During the Zhengde era of the Ming dynasty, there was a magistrate of Jize named Yin Jing. There is also a place name. According to the Gongyang Zhuan, eleventh year of Duke Zhao: A meeting was held at Quyin. The Zuo Zhuan and Guliang Zhuan write this as Jueyin. According to the Jiyun, it is a prefecture name. It was the territory of the White Di people in Shaanxi, and Northern Zhou established Yin Prefecture. According to the Zihui, it is also read in the rising tone. According to Huang Xiang, Nine Palaces Rhapsody (Jiugong Fu): Glancing at the rising sun while sharpening the silver. The commentary states: This is like the act of diligent study. According to the Tongwen Duo, it is the same as the character for boundary (yín). According to the Xunzi, Chengxiang Chapter: Guard its boundaries. According to the Zihui Bu, it refers to edges, corners, or sharp blades. According to the Book of Rites of Dai the Elder (Da Dai Liji): Hands as decisive as silver implements; this was the character of Bu Shang (Zixia). According to the Yunbu, it rhymes with yan. According to Yang Fang, Joyful Union Poem (Hehuan Shi): The long road is winding and treacherous, and autumn weeds grow on both sides. The yellow flowers are like layered gold, and the white flowers are like scattered silver.