Item number: A2302

Year: AD 1633-1882

Material: Brass

Size: 23.6 x 23.3 x 1.4 mm

Weight: 4.25 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This is a Sangpyeong Tongbo coin minted by the Hunryeon Dogam (Training Command), a military institution established between AD 1593 and AD 1882, which was responsible for the defence of the capital, Hanyang (present-day Seoul).

The coin adopts the square-holed design characteristic of Chinese influence. On the obverse side, the four Chinese characters Sangpyeong Tongbo (常平通寶) are inscribed in regular script, arranged in the order of top, bottom, right, and left. The term Sangpyeong does not correspond to any regnal era of a Joseon monarch; rather, it derives from the Sangpyeongcheong, a government office responsible for providing relief to the poor.

The reverse side of the coin bears the characters Hun Jeong Chil (訓正七), inscribed in the order of top, bottom, and left. The top character Hun (訓) is an abbreviation for Hunryeon Dogam, the minting authority. The bottom character Jeong (正) is drawn from the Thousand Character Classic (Cheonjamun), a traditional text used in Joseon for learning Chinese characters. The meaning of the left-side character Chil (七), meaning “seven,” remains unclear.

Sangpyeong Tongbo was a form of currency circulated during the Joseon Dynasty, with its minting period spanning from AD 1633 to AD 1894. Over the course of its production, more than 3,000 distinct varieties of this coin type were issued. Even after Korea was annexed by Japan in the early 20th century, Sangpyeong Tongbo continued to be used by commoners in everyday transactions, particularly in more remote regions during the initial years of Japanese colonial rule.

The Hunryeon Dogam (Training Command) was a military institution established in AD 1593 by King Seonjo of Joseon in response to the Japanese invasions of Korea (Imjin War). Its primary responsibility was the defence of the capital, Hanyang (present-day Seoul). The institution remained active until it was replaced in AD 1882.

物件編號: A2302

年代: 公元 1633-1882 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 23.6 x 23.3 x 1.4 mm

重量: 4.25 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚由設置於公元1593至1882年間，負責保衛首都漢陽(首爾)要務的軍事單位「訓練都監」鑄造的「常平通寶」。

錢幣形制為深受鄰國中國影響的方孔錢造型。錢幣正面按照上、下、右、左的順序，依序以漢字楷書鐫刻「常平通寶」四字。「常平」並非任一位朝鮮君主的年號，而是取自專門救濟貧民的部門「常平廳」。

錢幣背面則按照上、下、左的順序，依序以漢字鐫刻「訓正七」字樣。錢幣上緣的「訓」字是鑄造單位「訓練都監」的簡稱，下緣的「正」則是出自朝鮮過往學習漢字使用的《千字文》，左側的「七」其意義則不明。

常平通寶是一種流通於李氏朝鮮的貨幣，其鑄造時間橫跨公元1633至1894年，其版型至少有三千多種。即便隨著朝鮮在公元20世紀初遭到日本併吞，但是在日本統治的初期，在一些較為偏遠的地區，常平通寶仍持續作為庶民在日常生活中使用的貨幣。

訓練都監為公元1593年，時任朝鮮國王的宣祖面對壬辰倭亂組織的軍事單位，主要負責保衛首都漢陽(首爾)的安全，直到公元1882年遭到取代為止。