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Goryeo
Haidong Tongbo
(Seal Script Version 1)
高麗
海東通寶
(篆書一版)
Item number: A2839
Year: AD 1102-1105
Material: Bronze
Size: 24.9 x 25.1 x 1.5 mm
Weight: 4.75 g
Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2020
This is a Haedong Tongbo coin minted during the reign of Sukjong, the 15th monarch of the Goryeo Dynasty.
The coin adopts the traditional Chinese-style design of square-holed cash coins. On the obverse, the inscription “海東通寶” (Haedong Tongbo) is engraved in seal script, arranged in a clockwise sequence. The characters “海東” (“Haedong”) symbolically refer to Goryeo’s geographic position east of the Yellow Sea. The reverse is plain, bearing no inscriptions or decorative elements.
The Korean Peninsula has historically been profoundly influenced by neighbouring Chinese civilisation, and in its early monetary history, coins in circulation were often adopted from or modelled after those of Chinese dynasties. According to historical records, the Haedong Tongbo was minted in the 7th year of King Sukjong’s reign (AD 1102), during the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song Dynasty. It represents the first independently designed coin in the history of the Korean Peninsula. The inscriptions on the coin were rendered in various calligraphic styles, including seal script, regular script, and running script.
The Goryeo Dynasty was founded by Wang Geon, a general of Goguryeo descent, who seized power by overthrowing the ruling monarch. He subsequently conquered Silla and Later Baekje, thereby reunifying the Korean Peninsula. Throughout its history, Goryeo maintained active relations with neighbouring powers, including Japan, China, and the nomadic peoples of the northern steppes. In the 13th century, Goryeo became a vassal state of the Mongol Empire following a series of invasions, and royal intermarriages between the two dynasties became frequent. The Goryeo Dynasty lasted nearly five centuries until it was overthrown in AD 1392 by General Yi Seong-gye, who established the Joseon Dynasty.
Hyosoo Jeon、Hyungtae Kang、Jooyoung Ahn, “Conservation and Analysis of Goryeo-era Coins in Collection of the National Museum of Korea -Donggukjungbo, Dongguktongbo, Haedongtongbo, Haedongjungbo, Samhanjungbo,” Conservation Science in Museum, 2008, pp. 17-29