Item number: A2697

Year: AD 1766-1798

Material: Copper

Size: 26.7 x 26.6 x 1.3 mm

Weight: 5.45 g

Manufactured by: Wushi Bureau

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2014

This is a copper coin cast by the Ush Mint in Southern Xinjiang during the period spanning from the thirtieth year of the Qianlong reign to the fourth year of the Jiaqing reign (AD 1766–1798), bearing the inscription “Qianlong Tongbao”. It is denominated as one wen and is also referred to as a “xiaoping qian”, or small-denomination coin.

The coin adopts the typical Han Chinese form of a round coin with a square hole. The obverse bears the Chinese inscription “Qianlong Tongbao”, which is to be read from top to bottom and left to right. On the reverse, the left side features the Manchu inscription “ᡠᠰᠢ”, and the right side presents the name “Ushi” written in Chagatai script as “اوشى”, denoting “Ush” in both cases. The Chagatai script employs a Persian-style form of the Arabic alphabet and differs slightly from the contemporary Arabic script.

In AD 1755, following the Qing conquest of the Dzungar Khanate, the court established the Yarkand Mint in Southern Xinjiang, where the previously circulating Dzungar pūl coins were recalled and recast into round coins with square holes. The format preserved the physical features of the pūl, employing high-purity red copper, and was restricted to circulation within the Xinjiang region beyond the Jiayu Pass. The Qianlong Emperor, considering the pacification of Xinjiang among his ten great military achievements, decreed that coins for use in Xinjiang should permanently bear the inscription “Qianlong Tongbao”, without being updated to reflect the reign titles of his successors. Later emperors generally adhered to this ancestral instruction by maintaining a certain proportion of “Qianlong Tongbao” coins alongside newly cast coins bearing their own reign titles. However, over time, the coin’s weight gradually decreased, eventually reaching approximately 3 grams.

In AD 1761, the twenty-sixth year of the Qianlong reign, older coins were gradually withdrawn. However, as Yarkand lacked local copper production, insufficient retrieval of old coinage hindered recasting efforts. Consequently, a new mint was established in Aksu to produce fresh coinage. In AD 1765, the thirtieth year of Qianlong’s reign, discontent arose in Southern Xinjiang due to the Qing court’s militarised administration, oppressive governance, burdensome taxation, and imposition of interior Chinese institutions. A local conflict over the requisition of a jujube tree served as a trigger, prompting several Hui Muslim leaders in the region to initiate a revolt centred in Ush. They mobilised large groups, attacked Qing military outposts, and assassinated officials. The Qing court dispatched troops to suppress the rebellion, which was pacified within several months. The regional military-administrative centre was then relocated to Ush, and the mint at Aksu was transferred accordingly to resume coin production. By AD 1798, the fourth year of the Jiaqing reign, due to Ush’s poor accessibility and the decline of its administrative role, the mint was relocated back to Aksu.

物件編號: A2697

年代: 公元 1766-1798 年

材質: 紅銅

尺寸: 26.7 x 26.6 x 1.3 mm

重量: 5.45 g

製造地: 烏什局

來源: 大城郵幣社 2014

這是一枚由清代南疆烏什局，於乾隆三十年至嘉慶四年間(公元1766-1798)所鑄之「乾隆通寶」。幣值一文，亦稱「小平錢」。

銅錢形制為中國漢地典型的方孔圓錢。錢幣正面錢文為漢字「乾隆通寶」，由上至下、由左至右對讀。

錢幣背面左側錢文為滿文「ᡠᠰᠢ」，右側錢文為察合台文寫就的維吾爾語「اوشى」，皆為「烏什」之意。察合台文採阿拉伯字母之波斯體書法，與當代阿文稍異。

乾隆二十年(公元1755年)，清廷攻滅準噶爾汗國後，於南疆設葉爾羌錢局，收繳準噶爾普爾錢，改鑄為方孔圓錢。體質照準噶爾錢，以高純度紅銅為主，限於嘉峪關外新疆地區行用。乾隆帝以平定新疆地區作為引以自豪的十大武功之一，要求後世行用新疆之錢幣不必隨新帝改鑄，而永遠行用「乾隆通寶」錢文。後世諸帝多循祖訓，鑄年號錢時搭上一定比例的乾隆通寶。惟與時推移，重量愈輕，至約3公克左右。乾隆二十六年(公元1761年)，舊錢漸次收繳，但葉爾羌本地不產銅，若舊錢收繳不足則無法改鑄新錢。於是設阿克蘇局，開鑄新錢。乾隆三十年(公元1765年)，由於清廷的軍事管理、高壓統治、對稅政掠奪、推行內地制度的不滿，以解送沙棗樹為導火線，一些南疆回民首領，以烏什為中心聚眾起事，殺官造反，攻擊清軍駐所。清廷遣軍進剿，數月平定，軍事行政中心改為烏什，因此遷阿克蘇局至烏什，復行鑄錢。至嘉慶四年(公元1798年)，由於烏什交通不便，漸失軍政中心之地位，故遷回阿克蘇。