Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2013
This is a “Republic of China Year 3 Issue Yuan Shikai Portrait One Yuan” silver coin that has undergone gold gilt treatment. After the Beiyang Government announced the minting of national currency in the 3rd year of the Republic of China (AD 1914), the coin featuring the portrait of Yuan Shikai came to be colloquially known as “Yuan Big Head” among the populace in Asia, and later as “Fatman Dollar” in the west.
The likeness of Yuan Shikai on the obverse was crafted by Luigi Giorgi, an Italian sculptor who served at the Tianjin Central Mint since the 2nd year of the Xuantong era (AD 1910). Some of the gold gilt on Yuan Shikai’s ear has slightly worn off, revealing the silver base layer. The upper edge of the portrait is engraved with the year “Year 3 of the Republic of China”. On the reverse side is an intricately tied sheaf of grain, with the denomination “One Yuan” inscribed centrally.
Since the 3rd year of the Republic of China (AD 1914), the Beiyang government passed the “National Currency Regulations,” using the Yuan Shikai portrait as the unified national currency. Subsequently, there were four basic types: “Year 3 of the Republic of China,” “Year 8 of the Republic of China,” “Year 9 of the Republic of China,” and “Year 10 of the Republic of China.” The basic features of the “Year 3 of the Republic of China” type are as follows: the year on the obverse does not end with the character “造,” there is a stroke on the right side of the character “民,” and two dots replace the stroke at the upper left of the character “華.”
After the Tianjin Central Mint issued the moulds to various mints across the country, each mint produced coins with different characteristics based on their technological capabilities and mould repairs. Taking the earliest “Year 3 of the Republic of China” type as an example, at least twelve minting factories in different locations were involved in production. From AD 1914 to AD 1951, the production of “Yuan Big Head” coins continued, culminating in the last batch minted for the Liberation Army entering Tibet. Rough estimates suggest that the total circulation of “Yuan Big Head” coins surpassed 75 million, making it one of the most representative currencies of modern China.
