Item number: A3285

Year: AD 1793

Material: Brass

Size: 44.7 x 44.7 mm

Provenance: Spink 2023

1. Spink 2023

2. Dr. Werner Klaus Burger Collection

This is a brass coin cast and circulated in the first year of Cảnh Thịnh (AD 1793), under the reign of Nguyễn Quang Toản, the last emperor of the Tây Sơn dynasty. This charm, known as Cảnh Thịnh Thông Bảo, was likely issued to commemorate the change of reign title and may have been minted in Phú Xuân (present-day Huế), the capital at the time.

Due to years of continuous warfare and a devastated economy, although the court made efforts to collect copper materials from the populace and mint currency, the craftsmanship and quality could not be maintained. Furthermore, given the intense internal power struggles and declining central authority, mint officials, casting sites, and furnaces were difficult to control. Consequently, the coins produced during this period exhibit significant variation in design, shape, weight, and decorative features.

The coin adopts the traditional fang kong yuan qian (square-holed round coin) form characteristic of the Sinosphere. The obverse bears the inscription Cảnh Thịnh Thông Bảo in standard script, to be read top-bottom, right-left. The strokes are bold and thick. Surrounding the inscription is a dual-ring design: an outer rim and an inner ring, with a meandering pattern between them. The surface of the coin features a decorative motif of dragons and fish. The dragon’s horns resemble those of an ox or a deer, and it bears whiskers like a catfish. The dragon’s head is positioned above the central square hole, with its whiskers hanging down along the left side. Its scaly body extends from the upper right of the square and fades into the background. A spread claw is visible to the right of the square. Fish leap from the lower left and lower right quadrants. The remaining background is filled with stylised water and wave patterns. Within the Sinosphere, dragons symbolise imperial authority; however, the specific symbolism of the dragon and fish motif during the Cảnh Thịnh era remains uncertain and warrants further study.

Nguyễn Quang Toản, known posthumously as Emperor Cảnh Thịnh, was the son of Nguyễn Văn Huệ (Emperor Quang Trung), the founding monarch of the Tây Sơn dynasty. He ascended the throne in AD 1792 at the age of ten, with real power held by regents such as Vũ Văn Dũng, Trần Quang Diệu, and Bùi Đắc Tuyên. During Nguyễn Văn Huệ’s reign, the administration was marked by extensive reform: a six-ministry bureaucratic system was established, commoners and military achievers were promoted to office, land redistribution and tax simplification were implemented, all contributing to social stabilisation. Militarily, he prioritised the development of firearms and naval power, and in AD 1789 personally led a successful campaign against the Qing army at the Battle of Đống Đa, compelling the Qing court to recognise his regime and grant him the title “King of Annam,” thereby establishing a brief tributary relationship.

However, upon Nguyễn Quang Toản’s accession, he failed to maintain his father’s political and military authority. Factional struggles within the court intensified, governance became inconsistent, and the Nguyễn claimant Nguyễn Phúc Ánh (later Emperor Gia Long of the Nguyễn dynasty), rising from the south with French support, gradually defeated the Tây Sơn forces. In AD 1802, he captured Thăng Long (modern-day Hanoi). Emperor Cảnh Thịnh fled north to Lạng Sơn, seeking aid once again from the Qing court, but to no avail. He was captured shortly thereafter and is believed to have either committed suicide en route to captivity or been executed. He died at the age of twenty, marking the end of the Tây Sơn dynasty.

物件編號: A3285

年代: 公元 1793 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 44.7 x 44.7 mm

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

1. 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

2. 布威納博士舊藏

這是一枚於景盛元年(公元1793年)，西山朝末帝阮光纘，所鑄行之「景盛通寶」，材質為黃銅。此花錢應為改元紀念，可能於當時都城富春(今順化)所鑄。

由於連年戰亂，經濟殘破，朝廷雖蒐羅民間銅料盡力鑄錢，但工藝與品質無法維持。又因中央傾軋，權威低落，鑄場、鑄主與鑄爐均難受管制，是以錢式複雜，形制、重量與紋樣均頗有落差。

錢幣形制為漢文化圈傳統的方孔圓錢造型。錢面錢文「景盛通寶」楷書。四字由上至下，由右至左對讀。筆劃粗肥。錢面幕外輪紋飾相同，內外側各有一環，環間為回紋盤繞。錢幕為龍與魚群，龍角似牛似鹿，鯰鬚。龍首位於錢穿上方，鯰鬚垂下至錢穿左側。遍鱗的龍身於錢穿右上隱沒至圖樣之外。龍爪箕張，位於錢穿之右。錢穿左下、右下各一魚躍出。地章空處填充以水花、浪花。龍於漢文化圈皆為皇權之象徵，然龍與魚群於景盛年間之具體寓意則待考。

西山朝景盛帝，原名阮光纘(Nguyễn Quang Toản)，是西山朝開國君主阮文惠(光中帝)之子，公元1792年繼位時年僅十歲，實權由權臣武文勇(Vũ Văn Dũng)、陳光耀(Trần Quang Diệu)與裴得宣(Bùi Đắc Tuyên)等人掌控。阮文惠在位期間大力改革，建立以六部為核心的中央官僚體系，重用寒門與軍功之士，並推行土地改革與稅制簡化，穩定社會秩序；軍事上則重火器與水軍發展，曾於公元1789年親率大軍在棟多(Đống Đa)大破清軍，迫使清朝轉而承認其政權，冊封為「安南國王」，建立短暫的宗藩關係。然而，景盛帝即位後未能延續其父政治與軍事上的威望，朝廷內部派系鬥爭激烈，政令不一，加之南方阮主餘脈阮福映(後為阮朝嘉隆帝)崛起並獲法軍支援，逐步擊敗西山勢力，最終於公元1802年攻入昇龍。景盛帝北逃至諒山，試圖再度依靠清朝，但清廷未予援助，他旋即被捕並於押送途中自縊或被處決，年僅二十歲，西山朝遂告終。