Item number: A389-1

Year: AD 1900-1906

Material: Copper

Size: 16.6 x 16.6 x 0.6 mm

Weight: 1.0 g

Manufactured by: Hubei, Hupeh Copper Coin Bureau

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a machine-cast copper coin with a denomination of “One Cash,” issued by the Hupeh Copper Dollar Bureau in the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1900). Both sides of the coin exhibit copper burrs extending from the edges inward, indicating that the moulds used in the minting process had developed cracks, thereby affecting the coin’s aesthetic appearance.

The obverse of the coin features a beaded circle along the edge. At the centre, there is a five-clawed dragon leaping out of the water, breathing out a fireball. On either side of the dragon, four-petal flowers serve as dividers. The bottom edge is inscribed with the denomination “ONE CASH” in English, while the top edge bears the words “HU-PEH PROVINCE.”

The reverse of the coin features two beaded circles. Inside the inner circle, the four Chinese characters “Guangxu Yuanbao” are arranged around a central six-petal flower. The outer circle has the Manchu characters “Bao Yuan” written from left to right. The bottom edge is inscribed with the denomination “One Cash” in Chinese, while the top edge reads “Made in Hubei Province.”

Since the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1900), Hubei Province, under the administration of Zhang Zhidong, officially issued copper coins with denominations of one cash and ten cash the following year. Hubei, being a crucial transportation hub in Central China, had an immense demand for currency. Consequently, Hubei alone had three entities responsible to produce copper coins: the Silver Coin Bureau, the Copper Coin Bureau, and the Hanyang Arsenal. These three units collectively accounted for an astonishing one-third of the total national copper coin production. The ten cash copper coins were further categorised into four types based on floral design variations: six-petal flowers, eight-petal flowers, coins, and five-petal flowers.

However, by the 32nd year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1906), the oversupply of machine-cast copper coins from various provinces led to a decline in their value. To control the economy and reclaim the minting rights from local authorities, the imperial court ordered all provinces to cease minting copper coins. Despite this directive, the significantly empowered regional governors since the time of the Eight-Nation Alliance were reluctant to relinquish the profits associated with coin minting. Consequently, the effectiveness of the imperial prohibition was limited. This situation ultimately led to a lack of market confidence in the copper coins, preventing them from effectively fulfilling their intended economic function.

物件編號: A389-1

年代: 公元 1900-1906 年

材料: 紅銅

尺寸: 16.6 x 16.6 x 0.6 mm

重量: 1.0 g

製造地: 湖北, 湖北銅元局

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是一枚光緒26年 (公元1900年)，由湖北銅幣局發行之面額「一文」的「光緒元寶」機鑄銅元。銅元兩面皆有從邊緣向內延伸的銅渣，反映鑄造錢幣的模具已出現裂痕從而影響美觀。

錢幣正面的邊緣有一道珠圈，正中央是一隻從水中躍出的五爪龍，並且從口中吐出一顆火球。五爪龍左右兩側以四瓣花為分界線，下緣以英文標示面額「一文」(ONE CASH)，上緣則是「湖北省」(HU-PEH PROVINCE)字樣。

錢幣背面則有兩道珠圈，內部有楷書的「光緒元寶」四字以六瓣花為中心排序。外圍按照左至右的順序寫有「寶源」兩字的滿文，下緣以漢字標示面額「一文」，上緣則是「湖北省造」字樣。

光緒26年(公元1900年)起，張之洞治理的湖北省發行面額分別為：一文和十文的銅元。湖北作為華中重要的通衢，對於貨幣的需求量極為龐大。因此光是湖北一省，就有銀元局、銅元局和漢陽兵工廠，三個單位同時負責銅元的生產，總生產量佔到驚人的三分之一全國銅元總數。面額十文的銅元還按花飾差異，有「六瓣花、八瓣花、金錢和五瓣花」四種版型。

不過在光緒32年(公元1906年)，由於各省的機鑄銅元供過於求，導致其價格下跌。朝廷為控制經濟和收回地方鑄幣權，下令各省停止鑄造銅元。然而八國聯軍以來，權力大幅提升的各地方總督不願放棄鑄幣背後的收益，因此朝廷的禁止效果有限。最後卻也造成市場對於銅元的信任不足，使其無法有效發揮原先設想的經濟作用。