Item number: A3656

Year: AD 1679-1681

Material: Brass

Size: 24.3 x 24.4 x 1.1 mm

Weight: 3.4 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This is a “Honghua Tongbao” coin minted in the 18th year of the Kangxi reign (AD 1679), following the death of Wu Sangui, who had proclaimed himself emperor and established the “Great Zhou” regime. Wu Sangui’s reign lasted less than a year before his passing, and the coin was minted by his grandson, Wu Shifan, who succeeded him and continued to issue coins under the era name “Honghua.”

The coin follows the traditional round shape with a square hole at the centre. The obverse features the inscription “Honghua Tongbao” in standard Chinese calligraphy, engraved in the order of top, bottom, right, and left. The character “Bao” (寶) has a wider “bei” (貝) radical, which is referred to as “wide-bei Bao.”

The reverse side of the coin bears the character “Gong” (工) on the right, indicating that the coin was minted by the Ministry of Works, a department under the Great Zhou government responsible for construction, military works, and supplies. The “Gong” character is smaller than usual, referred to as “small Gong,” and the vertical stroke is broken.

The “Honghua Tongbao” coins are generally categorised into two types: plain-backed and those with inscriptions or marks on the reverse. The latter is usually of higher quality. However, because the “Honghua Tongbao” was minted during the final days of the Great Zhou regime, the coin’s weight, quality, and inscription clarity are often subpar.

In AD 1678, after five years of rebellion against the Qing Dynasty, Wu Sangui formally declared himself emperor in Hengyang, Hunan. However, he passed away from illness less than a year later. Since his son, Wu Yingxiong, who was in Beijing, had been placed under house arrest and executed by the Qing court, the throne was passed to his 15-year-old grandson, Wu Shifan. Wu Shifan moved the capital to Guiyang in Guizhou and later retreated to Kunming in Yunnan.

Due to Wu Shifan’s youth, the morale of his forces weakened, leading to internal discord. Taking advantage of this, Qing troops pursued the remnants of Wu’s forces back to their stronghold in Kunming. In late AD 1681, as Kunming fell to Qing forces, Wu Shifan committed suicide, marking the end of the eight-year-long Revolt of the Three Feudatories.

Starting in AD 1659, after Wu Sangui took control of Yunnan, the region’s remoteness made it difficult for Central Plains coins to circulate there. To address this, Wu Sangui took advantage of Yunnan’s abundant copper resources to mint his own coins, which were used in Yunnan and Guizhou and became widely circulated even in neighbouring Annam (modern-day Vietnam). After the Qing court successfully suppressed Wu Sangui’s forces in AD 1681, the government made two attempts to recall the coins minted by the Great Zhou regime. However, these efforts were largely ineffective, and the coins continued to circulate locally until the late Qing period.

物件編號: A3656

年代: 公元 1679-1681 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 24.3 x 24.4 x 1.1 mm

重量: 3.4 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚康熙18年 (公元1679年)，吳三桂稱帝建立「大周」政權未滿一年病逝後，接替其位的孫子吳世璠按照年號所鑄造的「洪化通寶」。

這枚錢幣的形制為典型的方孔錢。錢幣正面按照上、下、右、左的順序，依序以漢字楷書鐫刻「洪化通寶」四字。「寶」字「貝」旁較寬，稱「寬貝寶」。

錢幣背面右側鐫刻一漢字「工」，代表這枚錢幣是由大周政權轄下負責建築營造、軍工軍資的「工部」鑄造。「工」字較小，稱「小工」，且豎劃斷筆。

洪化通寶大抵分為：光背和背字兩種類型，後者的品質較為精美。由於洪化通寶時值大周政權將要覆滅之際所鑄造，錢幣的重量、品質和字體多不甚良好。

公元1678年，起兵反抗清廷的第五年後，吳三桂正式於湖南衡陽自立為皇帝，但不到一年便因病過世。由於遠在北京的兒子吳應熊遭到朝廷軟禁和處決，因此帝位被傳給年僅15歲的孫子吳世璠。吳世璠將首都遷至貴州貴陽，後續再退回雲南昆明。麾下軍隊因為主君年幼導致軍心渙散，清兵趁勢追擊至大本營昆明。公元1681年底，吳世璠於昆明城破之際自刎，宣告長達八年的三藩之亂結束。

自公元1659年，吳三桂入主雲南後，由於地處偏遠使得中原的錢幣無法進入雲南。吳三桂便利用雲南豐富的銅礦自行鑄造錢幣，供雲南和貴州兩地使用，甚至在比鄰的安南也極為流通。公元1681年，清廷成功平定吳三桂的勢力後，先後曾經兩度要求地方回收大周政權鑄造的錢幣，然而效果不彰直到清末仍在當地持續流通使用。