Dai Nippon - Finn's Japanese Type Set, 1636 To Date

Tokugawa Coinage
1626-1867

Background

At the conclusion of the Japanese civil wars at the end of the 16th century, the Tokugawa shogunate came to absolute power over Japan under Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1600. Initially enjoying a booming economy and flourishing international trade, the Shogun gave the order of Sakoku, or the closing of the country to foreigners. This was ostensibly because of a growing number of Catholic converts in Japan, and the Shogun feared the European missionaries sought to overthrow the Japanese government and colonize the islands. In 1633 all ports except Nagasaki were closed, and trade was forbidden with all nations except China, Vietnam, Korea, and the Netherlands. The Ryukyu Islands--which were officially a separate and independent kingdom--were exempt from Sakoku, despite being directly controlled by the Japanese Satsuma clan. Unless accompanied by an official guardian, no foreigners could enter Japan from the trading post at Dejima in Nagasaki bay on pain of death. The native Japanese could only enter Dejima by special permit.

The Tokugawa era saw unprecedented success. Japan was free from internal or external warfare for 250 years, and good fiscal management meant the general populace was kept in comfortable institutionalized poverty while the arts and culture flourished as the wealthy patronized the skilled. To facilitate this booming economy, the Tokugawa shogun commissioned the development of a new currency for Japan.

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Overview:

There were three facets to the Tokugawa currency system; Gold, Silver, and Bronze.

The base unit of gold was the Ryo, which was issued in the form of a large, thin ovoid coin, known as a "Koban." One Koban was worth enough for one Koku--about 150kg / 330 pounds of rice; enough to feed one adult for a full year.

Silver initially occupied a very confusing position, having no denominated coins, but rather being legal tender at the intersection of weight and fineness, both of which were in near-constant flux. Until the very early 1800s, Japanese silver "coins" were cho-gin and mameita-gin, both coarse rounded bars or pellets of silver which were stamped with a seal to indicate purity, and had to be individually certified in order to circulate. At the turn of the 19th century, the Chogin and Mameita-gin were phased out of circulation and clearly denominated silver bars were introduced. Denominated in Bu (1/4 Ryo, 1,000 mon) and Shu (1/16 Ryo, 250 mon) these had serious purchasing power, although they did circulate some.

The workhorse of the Japanese economy was the Mon, or cash coin. Like in China, these coins had little individual purchasing power (probably as much as a US quarter or dime today) and would be tied up in "strings" of 1,000 coins for safekeeping or large transactions. Due to copper shortages, a 4 mon coin was introduced in 1768, and eventually phased out the 1 mon coin. These were joined by a huge ovoid 100 mon coin in 1835.

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Bronze coinage

Kanei Tsuho - 1 Mon
1626 - 1867

In the rocky first years of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Kanei Tsuho were first introduced as one of many co-circulating currencies, being unique for carrying the current era name rather than a copycat Chinese inscription, thus being more distinctly Japanese than the other circulating currencies. From 1626-1636, Kanei Tsuho were made on a very small scale, and as a result these earliest types are the rarest and by far most valuable from this series.

In 1636, three years into Sakoku, the Kanei Tsuho became the sole official bronze coin of Japan, and production ramped up to allow the bita sen, shima sen, and other coins to be driven from circulation. Coins produced between 1636-1668 are known as Ko-Kanei or "Old Kanei" and are easily distinguished because the legs of the character "Ho" (9:00 position) touch at the bottom. These are usually well-cast, always in good quality bronze, and come in a couple dozen varieties, none of which (barring the earliest issues already mentioned) are scarcer than the others.




Beginning in 1668, the calligraphy standard was modified so that the legs of Ho no longer touched; these are known as "New Kanei" and encompass a good couple hundred minor varieties. Many of these probably would escape modern numismatists, but among the numerous leisurely pursuits of the Tokugawa aristocracy we can find contemporary numismatic catalogues of the various types, including mint information, nicknames for distinguishing features, and sometimes mintage figures. Trying to collect all 200+ varieties would be an expensive and mind-numbing task, but there are a few major types to collect.




Types without mintmark

Most Kanei Tsuho do not have any marks on the reverse, but can be distinguished by calligraphy style and metal content. In general, bronze quality started quite good, and became increasingly debased as Japan's copper mines became exhausted. Earlier coins are never magnetic. Coins from the 1700s are either nonmagnetic, semi-magnetic, or magnetic. By the 1800s, there was no copper left for these coins, which were then cast in iron.

I have not read any true explanation of the calligraphy variants, but they are exhaustively documented and traceable to particular mints and very narrow date ranges, thanks to our Japanese numismatists living in the 18th and 19th centuries.


Regular script:

(I really tried to ID this one, but I couldn't figure out the Hartill #. It is likely early 1700s, uncertain mint.

This one is Hartill #4.144 (Jumantsubo mint, Fukugawa, late 1730s) known to the Japanese as the "Tiger Tail" mon, due to the extended right leg of the upper "Kan", said to resemble a tiger that is about to pounce.



As time wore on, the copper shortage deepened and the 1 mon denomination took the brunt of the cutbacks. By the mid-19th century the Kanei tsuho coins were being made entirely of cast iron with just a trace of copper:




Types with mintmarks

Some Kanei Tsuho bear a character on the reverse, indicating the mint which produced them.

"Bun" Edo Mint, 1668
This is the first New Kanei minted, according to legend the copper was sourced from a massive statue of Buddha that had toppled in an earthquake in 1667



"Gen" Takatsu Mint, 1740


"Chou" Nagasaki Mint, 1767


"Sa" Sado Mint, 1861
This coin ain't a looker, but it is remarkable for being the sole example of a 1 mon coin minted after 1668 with the old style legs. These are extremely inferior coins cast in an alloy that is mostly iron. The mintmark is not visible on my specimen, but the legs are diagnostic.

Regional, Clan, and Quasi-official coinages

These are a whole domain unto themselves, and I won't go in depth here. All are scarce to extremely rare, and not surprisingly, there are many fakes that are nearly impossible to distinguish from genuine pieces. There are no examples which are cheap, but several are obtainable on a modest budget. I only have one, which is the second most expensive coin in my entire Japanese collection.


Sendai Tsuho, Iron 1 mon,
1784-1788


Easily the most affordable of the regional coinage of Edo Japan, these interesting square coins were cast strictly for local use at Sendai, and prohibited to be used outside of that locale. Hartill relates that they were so poorly made that approximately 2% of the total mintage cracked or shattered during transit from the mint.

Extra special thanks to @Half, who picked this coin up for me from a coin shop in Tokyo!


Hakodate Tsuho, Iron 1 mon,
1856-1857



A runner up as the second most common and affordable provincial cash coin, the Hakodate Tsuho were minted on modern day Hokkaido and were not permitted to circulate outside of that island. They are remarkable as being the only Japanese cash coin with a circular central hole, and are almost always poorly cast in a high-iron alloy. Mother coins for the type exist, but Hartill cautions that due to the relatively young age of these coins, a majority of purported Hakodate Tsuho mother coins are likely modern forgeries.


Ryukyu Kingdom, 1/2 Shu
c. 1860-1879



The Ryukyu Islands were settled from ancient times by a distinctly non-Japanese (probably Austronesian) people. They were "Discovered" by Japan in the 7th century. Many Japanese migrated to the islands to trade and settle, although they were never admitted to Japan, as the Japanese wished to have a "barbarian" tributary kingdom to look down upon. The islands were administered directly by the Japanese Satsuma clan beginning in 1609, although legally they were an independent kingdom and a tributary state of the Qing dynasty until the 1890s. The islands were not subject to Sakoku, but were nevertheless economically tied to Japan, and felt the pain of the faltering monetary system. Sometime in the 1860s, along with a regional copy of the Tempo Tsuho 100 mon, the Ryukyu authorities issued this enormous (43mm!) cash coin. Carrying a face value of 1/2 Shu (1/32 Ryo or 125 mon), it was subject to failed attempts at price fixing, and may have crashed to a "real" value of about 66 mon. Not many were made, and few of those survived mass scrapping during the 1870s while Ryukyu remained in political limbo before its official annexation by Japan in 1879.

These coins are exceptionally well-cast, usually display heavy file marks around the rim, and have a single validation mark at 9:00, next to the character "Ho". The inscription is in seal script and reads "Ryu Kyu Tsu Ho" on the obverse, and "Han Shu" on the reverse. Fakes are plentiful; if you are seeking one for yourself, always avoid the brassy or coppery looking specimens, and AVOID ebay seller Best666666; he has a huge supply of fakes of this type that he feeds out slowly! If you buy one and it does not have the rim validation mark, return it and get your money back!




Ryukyu 100 Mon
c. 1860-1879




A more recent purchase, an example of the islands' take on the Tempo Tsuho 100 mon. As with the 1/2 shu, these coins are attractive to counterfeiters, and should not be purchased from untrustworthy sellers. The coin should have "Sa" for Satsuma stamped in the 9:00 and 3:00 position.

Thanks Jbuck!