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Later Lê dynasty
Lê Nhân Tông
Tài Hòa Thông Bảo
後黎朝
黎仁宗
太和通寶
Item number: A3144
Year: AD 1443-1453
Material: Bronze
Size: 20.2 x 19.9 x 0.6 mm
Weight: 1.8 g
Provenance: Spink 2023
This is a privately cast coin modelled after the Tài Hòa Thông Bảo (太和通寶), associated with the first era name “Đại Hòa” used by Lê Nhân Tông, the third ruler of the Later Lê dynasty. It was likely produced unofficially by local or civilian sources.
The coin adopts a square-holed design strongly influenced by traditional Chinese cash coins, with the central square hole taking on a diamond-shaped orientation. On the obverse, the inscription “太和通寶” (Tài Hòa Tōng Bǎo) is engraved in regular script Chinese characters, arranged in a clockwise order: top, bottom, right, and left. The reverse side is blank, with no additional inscriptions or decorative elements.
In AD 1442, Emperor Lê Thái Tông’s young son, Lê Bang Cơ, ascended the throne at the age of two. Empress Dowager Tuyên Từ (Nguyễn Thị Anh) acted as regent, and the reign title was changed to Thái Hòa. In AD 1453, Lê Nhân Tông assumed personal rule, though he continued to share authority with the Empress Dowager. In AD 1454, the Ming Emperor Jingtai officially conferred upon him the title King of Annam, and within the same year, Lê Nhân Tông changed the reign title to Diên Ninh. During the Đại Hòa and Diên Ninh periods, multiple coinage issues were minted, with successive refinements leading to a more standardised monetary system, influencing later Vietnamese coinage designs. In AD 1459, Lê Nhân Tông’s elder brother, the deposed Crown Prince Lê Nghi Dân, staged a coup, assassinating both the emperor and the Empress Dowager. Proclaiming himself emperor, he issued coins inscribed with the reign title “Thiên Hưng Thông Bảo”, but his rule lasted less than a year before he was overthrown by his ministers.