Item number: A2762

Year: AD 1644-1651

Material: Brass

Size: 24.7 x 24.8 x 0.7 mm

Weight: 2.95 g

Manufactured by: Xuanfu Garrison Mint Bureau, Datong Prefecture, Shanxi Province

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2019

This coin, known as “Shunzhi Tongbao,” was cast under the reign of the Shunzhi Emperor between the first and eighth years of the Shunzhi era (AD 1644–1651) by the mint located in Xuanfu Garrison, Datong Prefecture, Shanxi Province.

The coin follows the traditional format of square-holed round coins characteristic of the Han cultural sphere. It is made of brass, and its obverse bears the inscription “Shunzhi Tongbao” in Chinese regular script, read from top to bottom and right to left. In this inscription, the radical “辶” in the character “Tong” is frequently rendered with a single dot variant, referred to as “single-dot tong.” The “Bao” character, which in modern form uses the “缶” component, is here written using the “尔” variant, termed “Er Bao.” The left component of “Tong” (the “マ” element) begins with a reversed stroke from the lower right, ascends to the upper left, then extends horizontally to the right, forming a near-triangular structure; the final stroke of the “辶” radical bends before concluding with a sweeping stroke. These features are distinctive of the so-called second style of Shunzhi Tongbao coins bearing the “Hu” mark on the right of the reverse side, referred to as the “You Hu” type. If following Japanese numismatic naming conventions, it would be classified as the “Hu-shou Xuan” type.

The reverse side of the coin is inscribed with the Chinese character “Xuan” (宣), engraved to the right of the square hole, indicating the mint. This character is notably elongated, and thus referred to as the “long Xuan” variant.

In AD 1644, as the Qing forces entered and replaced the Ming dynasty in Beijing, the Qing court quickly adopted the administrative framework of the Ming to stabilise the northern frontier. Multiple provincial governors (xunfu) and supreme commanders (zongdu) were appointed across the Zhili region, including the Xuanfu Xunfu and the Xuanda Zongdu, thereby maintaining military oversight of strategic garrisons such as Xuanfu and Datong. At that time, Xuanfu continued to be regarded as a crucial military outpost guarding the northwestern approaches to the capital. To raise funds for border defence and ensure the payment of military stipends, the Qing court established several mints in the Datong area under Xuanfu’s jurisdiction in the tenth month of the same year, issuing “Shunzhi Tongbao” coins with “Tong” and “Xuan” mint marks on the reverse.

As anti-Qing resistance persisted during the Shunzhi reign, the political and military situation across Shanxi and the Zhili region remained volatile. In AD 1648 (Shunzhi 5), Jiang Xuang, a former Ming general who had surrendered to the Qing and was stationed in Datong Prefecture under Xuanfu’s command, launched a rebellion in support of the Southern Ming regime. To signal allegiance to the Ming court, he had coins recast bearing the inscription “Daming Tongbao,” while existing Shunzhi coin moulds were largely destroyed. In AD 1649 (Shunzhi 6), the Qing army suppressed the rebellion, razed Datong in retribution, and the mint was destroyed by war, resulting in a suspension of coinage. Concurrently, the Qing court began to restructure the administrative framework of the Zhili region. From Shunzhi 6 onward, in an effort to improve bureaucratic efficiency, reduce local expenditures, and strengthen central authority, institutions such as the Tianjin, Baoding, and Xuanfu xunfu were gradually eliminated. In AD 1651 (Shunzhi 8), with the Shunzhi Emperor assuming personal rule and facing substantial fiscal burdens, the court suspended coinage in Xuanfu, citing “indeterminate revenue and excessive expenditure,” and resorted to issuing paper money to compensate for monetary shortages. In the following year (Shunzhi 9), the Xuanfu xunfu was officially abolished, with its subordinate territories such as Yanqing and Bao’an reassigned to the Xuanda Zongdu.

During the late Ming and early Qing period, trade in the Xuanfu region increasingly shifted toward Zhangjiakou, driven by commerce with Mongol and Russian territories. Following repeated Qing campaigns against the Chahar Mongols under Nurhaci and Hong Taiji, most Mongol tribes south of the Gobi had submitted to Qing rule, rendering Xuanfu no longer a frontline military outpost. Its strategic and military significance diminished, and it gradually transitioned into a civilian administrative district. In AD 1653 (Shunzhi 10), with political stability improving and administrative demand remaining steady, coin production was resumed in Xuanfu. However, the renewed minting served more as a mechanism for local fiscal supplementation and market regulation than as an urgent financial measure to support military campaigns, as it had been during the regime’s early consolidation.

物件編號: A2762

年代: 公元 1644-1651 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 24.7 x 24.8 x 0.7 mm

重量: 2.95 g

製造地: 山西省大同府宣府鎮錢局

來源: 大城郵幣社 2019

此錢為順治帝所鑄之「順治通寶」，於順治元年至順治八年(公元1644-1651年)，由山西省大同府宣府鎮錢局所鑄造。

此錢形制為漢文化圈傳統的方孔圓錢，材質為黃銅，錢面錢文為漢文「順治通寶」楷書，由上而下，由右而左對讀。「順治通寶」之「通」字「辵」旁常寫為單點「辶」，稱「單點通」；「寶」字今寫為「缶」旁的部件，於錢文中寫常寫為「尔」旁，稱「尔寶」。此錢「通」字「マ」旁首劃逆鋒自右下起筆向左上運筆，再向右拉出橫畫，使「マ」旁結構近似三角形；「辶」旁末劃捺前折筆。該特徵為順治通寶二式背單右戶者所共有，稱「右戶版」，若襲日人錢譜手類錢之命名習慣，當稱「戶手宣」類。

錢背錢文為漢文「宣」，鐫於方穿之右，標示錢局。「宣」字較長，稱「長宣」。

順治元年(公元1644年)，清軍入關，取代明朝入主北京。為穩定北方邊鎮，清廷迅速沿用明代制度，在直隸地區設立多個巡撫與總督，包括宣府巡撫與宣大總督，延續對宣府、大同等軍鎮的管控。當時的宣府仍被視為扼守京師西北的軍事要地。清廷為籌措邊防軍費與發放兵餉，遂於同年十月在宣府所屬的大同地區多設錢局，鑄造「順治通寶」背「同」、背「宣」等銅錢。

隨著順治年間反清勢力的持續，山西與直隸地區情勢多變。順治五年(公元1648)年，宣府所屬的大同府之明降將姜瓖起事，響應南明，並在當地改鑄「大明通寶」以表忠於明室，原有的順治錢卷多被焚毀。順治六年(公元1649年)，清軍平定叛亂後屠城，大同錢局毀於戰火，鑄幣中止。與此同時，清廷開始整併直隸區域的政務體系。順治六年以後，為提升行政效率、削減地方支出並強化中央集權，陸續裁撤天津、保定與宣府巡撫等機構。順治八年(公元1651年)，順治親政，以「經費未定，用度浩繁」，行鈔「以濟錢法之窮」，加以直隸區域職位調整，故宣府鎮局暫停鑄錢。順治九年(公元1652年)宣府巡撫被正式裁撤，其所屬延慶、保安等地歸併入宣大總督轄區。

明末清初，宣府商業因對蒙、俄貿易，逐漸向張家口轉移。因努爾哈赤、皇太極多次征伐察哈爾蒙古，漠南多歸附，宣府不再位於前線，戰略與軍事角色逐漸淡化，地位由軍鎮轉型為地方行政區。順治十年(公元1653年)，宣府在政局趨穩與軍政需求持續下重新設局復鑄，然其性質已與初年直接應對戰爭的財政功能不同，更近似為地方補充財政與調節市場需求的設施。