ROC

Szechuen Rupee

Kangding Mint

民國

四川盧比

康定造幣廠造

Item number: A1504

Year: AD 1930-1939

Material: Silver

Size: 30.6 x 30.6 x 1.5 mm

Weight: 11.05 g

Manufactured by: Kangding Mint

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2020

This is a silver coin minted between the 19th and 28th years of the Republic of China (AD 1930–1939) under the direction of Ma Su, a brigade commander serving under Szechuen warlord Liu Wenhui. The minting was overseen by the Kangding Mint, located in the capital of the “Special Administrative District of Szechuen Border.” The coin was modelled after the “Szechuen Rupee,” a silver coin historically used for trade between Szechuen and Tibet since the late Qing Dynasty.

The obverse of the coin features the left-facing portrait of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty, depicted wearing a winter hat and a collared long robe. A distinctive characteristic of coins minted at the Kangding Mint is that the curve of Emperor Guangxu’s forehead appears less pronounced and more angular compared to versions issued during the Qing Dynasty.

The reverse of the coin features a beaded circle surrounded by floral patterns inspired by the designs of rupees circulating in British India. At the centre is a vertically aligned eight-petal floral motif, encircled by the Chinese characters “四川省造” (Szechuen Province Mint) arranged in the order of top, bottom, right, and left. A distinguishing feature of coins produced by the Kangding Mint is the unique rendering of the character “四,” where its strokes resemble the character “八.”

In the 28th year of Guangxu’s reign (AD 1902), during the late Qing Dynasty, the widespread circulation of Indian rupees in Tibet, which had even begun to penetrate neighbouring Szechuen, prompted Liu Ting Shu, the then Dajianlu Commissioner, to counteract the situation by manually minting locally produced silver coins. Subsequently, Szechuen Province established the Chengdu Mint, employing mechanical minting techniques to create Szechuen rupees modelled after the Indian rupees bearing the portrait of Queen Victoria. These coins featured the likeness of Emperor Guangxu and continued to serve as a vital medium of trade between Szechuen and Tibet, even after the establishment of the Republic of China, with their production enduring into the Republican era.

The “Special Administrative Region of Chuanbian,” elevated to the status of Xikang Province in AD 1939, is an administrative division that no longer exists today, as it has been absorbed into Tibet and Szechuen. During the Republican era, this region served as a contested zone between Han Chinese warlords, centred in Chengdu, and Tibetan authorities, centred in Lhasa. In AD 1930 (the 19th year of the Republic), Ma Su, the local administrator, imported machinery from Chengdu to establish a mint in Kangding, the provincial capital. The mint was tasked with producing Szechuen rupees for trade with Tibet. However, the quality of coins minted in Kangding was inferior to those produced in Chengdu, with cruder craftsmanship and lower silver content.

物件編號: A1504

年代: 公元 1930-1939 年

材質:

尺寸: 30.6 x 30.6 x 1.5 mm

重量: 11.05 g

製造地: 康定造幣廠

來源: 福君錢幣 2020

這是一枚民國19至28年 (公元1930至1939年),四川軍閥劉文輝麾下的旅長馬驌以「川邊特別區」首府的康定造幣廠為負責單位,仿效清末以來用以四川和西藏兩地貿易交換的「四川盧比」銀幣。

錢幣正面為前清光緒皇帝,頭戴冬帽和身穿有領長袍的左側肖像。康定造幣廠的一大特徵是光緒皇帝的額頭相較清朝的版本,弧度較為不明顯和方整。

錢幣背面有一道珠圈和模仿英屬印度流通的盧比使用的花草紋裝飾。正中央是以直立的八瓣花飾為中心,按照上、下、右、左順序排列的漢字「四川省造」。其中的漢字「四」的筆劃呈現為「八」乃是康定造幣廠一大特色。

光緒28年(公元1902年),晚清之際面對印度盧比充斥於西藏,甚至擴張到鄰近的四川局面,時任打箭爐同知的劉廷恕手工打製本地的銀幣加以抗衡。後續四川省以成都造幣廠為基地,模仿印有維多利亞女王頭像的印度盧比,以機械鑄幣技術打造帶有光緒皇帝頭像的四川盧比,直到民國建立以後,仍是四川和西藏之間貿易的重要媒介和持續發行。

「川邊特別區」即公元1939年升格為西康省,但現今已經併入西藏和四川的不存在行政區域。於民國時期是以成都為中心的漢人軍閥和拉薩為中心的西藏彼此角力的地帶。民國19年 (公元1930年),主管當地的馬驌從四川成都引入機器,於首府康定著手建立造幣廠生產跟西藏交易用的四川盧比,康定相比成都的品質較為粗糙和含銀量較低。

類似/相同物件 請看:

臺灣 國立歷史博物館 National Museum of History

https://collections.culture.tw/nmh_collectionsweb/collection.aspx?GID=MAMHMAMAMNM2

中國 國家博物館 National Museum of China

https://www.chnmuseum.cn/zp/zpml/hb/202106/t20210610_250313.shtml

更多相關訊息請參考:

林國明 編,《中國近代機制金銀幣目錄》(上海:上海科學技術出版社,2021)

王承志,〈四川藏洋〉,《北京市:中國錢幣》,(1988),頁12-18, 54

丁進軍,〈從檔案談清末四川盧比銀幣的發行〉,《成都市:四川檔案》,(2000),頁12-18, 54

寇尚民,〈四川盧比探究〉,《西安市:收藏》,(2011),頁41

黃崇泰,〈平凡裡的名譽品: 維多利亞印度盧比(下)〉,《台北市:台北市集幣協會》,(2024),頁35-43

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