Item number: A2956

Year: AD 1912-1928

Material: Brass

Size: 27.9 x 27.8 x 1.3 mm

Weight: 6.7 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This is a privately cast ten-cash copper coin, modelled after the founding commemorative coin issued by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of China between AD 1912 and AD 1928.

On the obverse, the central inscription reads “十文” (ten cash) in what appears to be regular script. It is flanked on both sides by stylised bundles of grain stalks and grass leaves, with the lower ends of the grass leaves tied together using decorative cords, forming an elongated loop. A fine ring separates the inner and outer sections. At the upper part of the outer ring, the original design would typically bear the inscription “THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA”, denoting the national title. However, on this specimen, the inscription is vaguely rendered as “THE REIUBIIC OFT CH…”, with the latter characters illegible. Floral ornaments with four petals separate the inscriptions on both sides. The lower portion of the ring would normally bear the inscription “TEN CASH”, representing the denomination. On this coin, however, the inscription appears to read “ƎE…”, with the remaining characters worn and indistinct.

The reverse features a central crossed-flag motif. The flag on the right represents the “Five-Coloured Flag” of the Beiyang Government period, symbolising the unity of five ethnic groups. The flag on the left is the “Iron-Blood Eighteen-Star Flag”, adopted after the Wuchang Uprising to signify the federal republican unity of the eighteen Han Chinese provinces. The stripes of the Five-Coloured Flag are indistinct, while the stars on the Eighteen-Star Flag have been altered from pointed rays to petal-like forms. Each petal has a dot at the end, but the original nine-pointed star has been simplified to eight, resulting in only eight visible star dots, with an additional star dot placed in the centre. The two flags are crossed and tied with decorative cords forming three loops, with tassells hanging below and interlaced knots securing the junction. A beaded circle separates the central motif from the outer inscriptions. The upper ring bears the national title “中華民國” (“Republic of China”); however, the character “國” is rendered with a missing horizontal stroke in its left radical. The inscriptions on both sides are divided by hollow five-petalled floral decorations. The lower ring originally inscribed with “開國紀念幣” (“Founding Commemorative Coin”) is now severely worn, and the characters are largely illegible.

The edges of both the obverse and reverse exhibit raised rims, though the coin’s edge remains smooth and without ornamentation. It is likely that this coin was recast using a circulation coin as a mould through sand casting, or alternatively, inscriptions were tampered with by artisans unfamiliar with English lettering, who added strokes in areas where the original characters failed to appear clearly. As a result, numerous errors and omissions are evident.

In AD 1912 (1st year of the Republic), the Republic of China was established, marking the end of monarchy and the rise of republican governance. The new government decided to issue “Founding of the Republic Commemorative Coins” to promote republican ideals, stabilise public sentiment and finances, and to replace the traditional Chinese cash coins with square holes. The form and style of the new coinage aligned with international monetary standards. The initiative was first led by the Nanjing Provisional Government and subsequently continued under the Beiyang Government. Thereafter, due to prolonged political instability and the fragmentation of authority among regional warlords, copper coins, though nominally auxiliary currency, in practise formed a separate monetary system. Their exchange rate with the silver-based primary currency fluctuated constantly. Coin designs varied across regions, and there were considerable differences in minting quality and copper composition. The units of denomination were also diverse and complex, including wen, mei, fen, li, and xian. In AD 1935 (24th year of the Republic), the Nationalist government initiated further monetary unification, designating the Shanghai Mint as the sole institution authorised to issue coinage, thereby bringing an end to the copper coin system inherited from the late Qing dynasty and ushering in the era of legal tender currency.

In addition to disorder caused by a lack of central authority and rampant private minting, large-scale unauthorised official imitations also existed. In AD 1920 (the 9th year of the Republic), General Kong Fanjin, then Commander of the Longnan Garrison, was stationed in Tianshui. He ordered the mass sand-casting of imitation ten-cash and twenty-cash coins modelled after other provinces, with extremely poor craftsmanship and materials, to make up for fiscal shortages. This illicit minting continued for five years. In AD 1924, after acquiring new machinery, Kong shifted production to larger denominations—fifty-cash and one-hundred-cash coins—intended for sale and recasting. Ironically, the so-called “Tianshui sand-cast” inferior coins have become rare survivors and valuable artefacts for numismatic study today.

物件編號: A2956

年代: 公元 1912-1928 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 27.9 x 27.8 x 1.3 mm

重量: 6.7 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚以財政部於公元1912至1928年所發行之開國紀念幣之幣圖為範，私鑄之十文銅元。

銅元正面中央幣文為「十文」，似為楷書，兩側以嘉禾及草葉簇擁，兩側草葉於下方以纓相繫，結環稍長。以細環相隔，外圈上方原環列英文「THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA」即國號「中華民國」，此幣則隱約為「THE REIUBIIC OFT CH…」其後字跡漫漶；以四瓣花飾分列兩側，相隔兩行幣文；下方原環列「TEN CASH」，即「十文」，此幣則隱約為「ƎE…」其後字跡漫漶，無法識別。

銅元背面中央為雙旗圖，右為北洋政府時期之國旗五色旗，象徵五族共和；左為鐵血十八星旗，自武昌起義後象徵漢地十八省聯省共和。五色旗條帶模糊；十八星旗原星芒改為花瓣狀，僅花瓣末有點，原九星芒省略成八辦，故只存八星點，中央另有一星點。雙旗交叉，以纓相繫，呈三繩圈，有穗垂下，纓結交繞。以珠圈相隔，外圈上方環列國號「中華民國」，「國」字「或」旁左下橫省筆；以空心五瓣花分飾兩側相隔兩行幣文；下方環列「開國紀念幣」，文字漫漶不清。

銅元正背面幣緣似有隱起，幣稜光素無紋。此幣或以行用幣翻砂改鑄而成，或再經工人不識英字者於掛砂而字形不顯處加筆，故多有錯漏。

民國元年(公元1912年)，中華民國成立，帝制終結，共和方興。政府決定發行「開國紀念幣」，藉此宣揚共和理念、穩定民心與財政，同時替代傳統中國使用的方孔圓錢，形制上接軌世界。最初由南京臨時政府主導，隨後北洋政府繼續發行。此後，由於長期政局板蕩，軍閥割據，銅元名為輔幣，實則自成體系，與銀主幣匯率隨時而升降。幣圖各地不同，工藝與銅質更是差別頗大，紀值單位亦複雜多元，有文、枚、分、釐、仙等。民國二十四年(公元1935年)，國民黨政府開始進一步統一幣制，規定僅上海鑄幣廠有鑄幣權，終結作為晚清遺緒的銅元制，進入法幣時代。

除中央威權不彰，民間私鑄混亂外，另有官方大宗倣鑄者。民國九年(公元1920年)，孔繁錦任隴南鎮守使，駐防天水。孔繁錦並下令大量翻砂倣鑄他省十文、二十文幣，工藝、品質皆低劣，以補財政，其濫鑄達五年之久。但民國十三年(公元1924年)，孔新購機器後，購銷銅錢以改鑄五十文、一百文之大錢。所謂「天水砂版」劣錢如今反而存世不多。