Item number: A2726

Year: AD 1906

Material: Silver

Size: 22.8 x 22.8 x 1.4 mm

Weight: 5.35 g

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2015

This is a 20 chon silver coin issued by Emperor Gojong, the first emperor of the Korean Empire, bearing his era name Gwangmu.

The obverse of the coin features a beaded circular border, within which a three-clawed flying dragon is depicted grasping a flaming pearl at the centre. Along the outer edge of the beaded circle, the upper margin bears the inscription of the minting year “Year 10 of Gwang-mu” (AD 1906) in Chinese characters. The left side is inscribed with the country name “Daehan” (大韓) in Chinese characters, while the right side presents the denomination “이십젼” (20 Chon) in Hangul. The lower margin displays the denomination “20 CHON” in English.

The reverse of the coin bears the denomination “二十錢” (20 Chon) prominently at the centre in Chinese characters. Flanking the central inscription on both sides are decorative sprigs of hibiscus (mugunghwa, the national flower) and plum blossoms. At the top of the design is a plum blossom, serving as a national emblem of the Korean Empire.

After the First Sino-Japanese War in AD 1894, Korea emerged from the shadow of its suzerain, the Qing Dynasty of China, and swiftly became embroiled in the rivalry between Japan and Russia in Northeast Asia. Domestically, Korea faced turmoil due to the debate over pro-Japanese or pro-Russian policies. In AD 1897, taking advantage of Russia’s greater influence in Northeast Asia compared to Japan, King Gojong of Korea seized the opportunity to emulate Japan and China by declaring himself emperor, thereby changing the country’s name to the Korean Empire and adopting the era name of “Gwangmu.”

物件編號: A2726

年代: 公元 1906 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 22.8 x 22.8 x 1.4 mm

重量: 5.35 g

來源: 大城郵幣社 2015

這是一枚大韓帝國首任皇帝高宗，以其年號光武發行之面額二十錢的銀幣。

錢幣正面有一道珠圈，正中央是前爪握著龍珠的一條三爪飛龍。珠圈外圍的上緣以漢字打印發行年份「光武十年」(公元1906年)，左側以漢字打印國名「大韓」，右側以韓文打印面額「이십젼」(二十錢)，下緣則以英文標示面額「20 CHON」。

錢幣背面的正中間以漢字標示面額「二十錢」，左右兩側以木槿(無窮花) 和李花枝條作為裝飾，正上方則是作為國家象徵的李花。

公元1894年甲午戰爭結束後，朝鮮脫離宗主國大清帝國的保護，很快便捲入日本和沙俄在東北亞的競逐，國內則面臨親日或親俄路線之爭帶來的動盪。公元1897年，趁著俄國對東北亞的影響大於日本之際，時任朝鮮國王的高宗趁勢師法日本和中國稱帝，並且更改國號和年號為「大韓帝國」與「光武」。