Item number: A1607

Year: AD 1911-1912

Material: Brass

Size: 24.2 x 24.1 x 0.9 mm

Weight: 3.2 g

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2014

This is a Fujian Tongbao round-holed coin, manually cast using traditional methods between AD 1911 and AD 1912, during Fujian Province’s secession from the Qing Empire in response to the Xinhai Revolution and the establishment of the Republic of China. The coin is made of brass and has a denomination of 2 cash.

Fujian Tongbao is one of the last officially issued square-holed style coins in Chinese history. On the obverse, the four characters “福建通寶” are inscribed in Song-style Chinese script, following a top-bottom-right-left sequence.

On the reverse of the coin, the Iron Blood Eighteen-Star Flag and the Five-Coloured Flag of the early Republic of China are depicted on the left and right sides, respectively. The denomination is inscribed along the upper and lower edges. Fujian Tongbao was issued in two denominations: 1 cash and 2 cash. This particular specimen belongs to the 2 cash category.

By the late Qing period, Fujian Province had already adopted European-imported minting machines at its provincial mint in Fuzhou. The return to traditional manual sand casting for the Fujian Tongbao was likely due to the political turmoil during the transition of power, which left the new government unable to produce coinage dies in time. As Fujian’s political situation stabilised, mechanised minting resumed, leading to the Fujian Tongbao’s eventual withdrawal from circulation.

物件編號: A1607

年代: 公元 1911-1912 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 24.2 x 24.1 x 0.9 mm

重量: 3.2 g

來源: 大城郵幣社 2014

這是公元1911至1912年間，福建省在響應辛亥革命脫離清帝國宣布獨立和中華民國創立之際，以手工翻鑄的傳統工法鑄造的福建通寶圓孔錢，材質為黃銅，面額為二文。

福建通寶是中國歷史上，官方發行的最後一款方孔錢形制的貨幣之一。錢幣正面以宋體漢字按照上、下、右、左的順序，依序鐫刻「福建通寶」四字。

錢幣背面的左右兩側，分別以鐵血十八星旗和民國初年的五色旗為裝飾。錢幣的上緣和下緣則鐫刻面額，福建通寶分別有一文和二文兩種面額，本藏品為二文的品項。

福建省在清末之際，於省會福州的鑄幣廠已經採用歐洲進口的鑄幣機。之所以福建通寶重回傳統的人工翻鑄，可能是因為改朝換代之際的混亂下，新政府來不及替新貨幣製造模具，因此先以傳統的手工鑄造頂替。待福建政局步入正軌之後，機械鑄幣又重新恢復也讓福建通寶退出歷史的舞台。