Item number: A3762

Year: AD 1054-1056

Material: Iron

Size: 35.5 x 33.3 x 3.3 mm

Weight: 14.0 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

During the Zhihe reign of Emperor Renzong of the Northern Song (AD 1054–1056), the reign-title coinages Zhihe Yuanbao, Zhihe Tongbao, and Zhihe Zhongbao were cast and circulated. Among these, Zhihe Zhongbao exists in clerical, regular, and seal scripts, and was produced in both copper and iron; the present object is of iron.

The coin conforms to the traditional square-holed round form of the East Asian cultural sphere. The obverse bears the regular-script inscription Zhihe Zhongbao, read from the top character and proceeding clockwise to the right. The character Zhong is comparatively small, and the inscription is worn and indistinct. Comparable types have been excavated in regions such as Gansu and Shaanxi.

Throughout the Northern and Southern Song periods, the casting of iron coinage was driven primarily by shortages of copper resources and the pressure of military expenditure. This was especially pronounced from the middle to late Northern Song, when frequent warfare along the north-western frontiers prompted the central government, in order to conserve copper for armaments and to regulate frontier economies, to implement iron-coin policies in areas including Shaanxi, Hedong, and the Liangzhe circuits. Iron coins were inexpensive to produce and relatively easy to smelt, and they proved effective in the short term. However, owing to their inferior material quality, difficulty of long-distance circulation, and susceptibility to corrosion, together with their inability to be exchanged at parity with copper coins, they generated market disorder, price volatility, and widespread popular resentment. The Southern Song inherited these practices and continued to cast iron coinage in large quantities in regions such as Sichuan and Liangzhe, yet circulation difficulties persisted. Private smelting and illicit casting of iron coins even emerged, further exacerbating monetary imbalance. Overall, iron coinage reflects a stopgap response to fiscal strain under the Two Song dynasties: while it temporarily alleviated shortages of currency, deficiencies in quality and institutional design ultimately intensified popular hardship and undermined confidence in the state.

Large-denomination iron coins circulated mainly in the Shaanxi region during the middle and late Northern Song. Because copper supplies were scarce in frontier areas and military expenditures were heavy, the court substituted iron for copper in coin production to conserve copper resources and, through the iron-coin system, centralised control over military provisioning. At the same time, the inflow of copper coins from the Central Plain into the Western Xia borderlands was prohibited, in order to weaken the enemy’s economic capacity and prevent the outflow of strategic resources. Yet iron coins, being prone to deterioration and difficult to transport over long distances, severely impeded local markets. The disparity in value and the chaotic exchange rates between iron and copper coins further produced monetary disequilibrium, eroding public trust in currency. Coupled with the frequent reversals of central economic policy and the failure to establish a stable system of exchange and supply, these problems ultimately affected morale at the front.

During the Qingli reign, owing to border conflicts between the Northern Song and Western Xia and Liao, iron coins with a nominal value of ten were cast to “support military expenditures in Guanzhong”. Toward the end of the Qingli period, because “unscrupulous persons engaged in illicit casting, and their use grew ever lighter”, coins originally valued at ten were revalued as three; during the Huangyou reign they were further revalued as two.

Emperor Renzong of Song, Zhao Zhen (reigned AD 1022–1063), was the fourth emperor of the Northern Song. His reign was marked by political stability and relative social prosperity, traditionally described as the “flourishing governance of Renzong”. Politically, he promoted civil administration and appointed eminent officials such as Fan Zhongyan, Bao Zheng, Han Qi, and Ouyang Xiu, advancing reforms of the civil service examinations and state institutions. Although these measures encountered repeated opposition from conservative factions, they laid the groundwork for the later reforms of the Xining era. Renzong was noted for his magnanimous and benevolent character, his tolerance toward officials, and his willingness to heed remonstrance. Despite recurrent factional strife, overall political order was maintained. During his reign he personally adjudicated wrongful convictions on several occasions and promoted Confucian learning while practising frugality. In foreign affairs, he maintained peace agreements with Liao and Western Xia, avoiding large-scale warfare and securing frontier stability through the payment of annual subsidies. Cultural life flourished under his rule, with a profusion of literati, marking the maturity of Song political and cultural development.

物件編號: A2738

年代: 公元 1054-1056 年

材質: 鐵

尺寸: 35.5 x 33.3 x 3.3 mm

重量: 14.0 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

北宋仁宗至和年間（公元1054-1056年）曾鑄行「至和元寶」、「至和通寶」、「至和重寶」年號錢，其中「至和重寶」有隸、楷、篆三種書體，並且分為銅、鐵兩種材質，本物件材質為鐵。

錢幣形制為漢文化圈傳統的的方孔圓錢。錢幣正面楷書錢文「至和重寶」，自上而右旋讀。「重」字較小，錢文漫漶。類似的版式曾於甘肅、陝西等地出土。

兩宋時期，鐵錢的鑄行主要緣於銅資源緊張與軍費壓力，尤其在北宋中後期，隨著西北戰事頻仍，中央為節銅以供軍器及控制邊地經濟，遂於陝西、河東、兩浙等地推行鐵錢政策。鐵錢成本低廉，冶煉便捷，初期頗具成效，然因其質地粗劣、難以長途流通、易生鏽蝕，加之無法與銅錢等值兌換，致使市場混亂，物價波動，民間怨聲載道。南宋承北宋之制，於四川、兩浙等地仍大量鑄行鐵錢，但流通困難依舊未解，民間甚至出現冶鐵自鑄之風，進一步加劇貨幣失衡。整體而言，鐵錢反映了兩宋財政壓力下的權宜之計，雖能短期補足貨幣需求，卻因品質與制度設計不善，最終成為加重民困與削弱政權信任的因素之一。

大值鐵錢主要流通於北宋中後期的陝西地區。由於邊地銅源匱乏、軍費沉重，朝廷轉以鐵為材鑄錢以節省銅料，並透過鐵錢制度集中軍需支配權。並禁止中原地區的銅錢流入西夏邊境，藉以削弱敵對政權的經濟能力並防止物資外流。然而，鐵錢本身因易於朽壞、難以長距離攜行，對地方市場造成極大阻礙；其與銅錢間的價差與匯率混亂進一步引發通貨失衡，削弱民間對貨幣的信任。加以中央經濟政策反覆無常，未能有效建立穩定的兌換與物資供應體系，最終影響到了前線士氣。

慶曆年間，由於北宋與西夏、遼國的邊境衝突，故鑄當十大鐵錢，「助關西軍費」。慶曆末，由於「奸人盜鑄，其用日輕」，以折十錢改值折三，皇祐年間又改為折二。

宋仁宗趙禎(公元1022–1063年在位)，是北宋第四位皇帝。仁宗統治時期國力穩定，社會相對繁榮，史稱「仁宗盛治」。政治上，他推崇文治，重用范仲淹、包拯、韓琦、歐陽修等名臣，推動科舉與制度改革，雖屢遭保守勢力反對，但為後世熙寧變法奠定基礎。仁宗性格寬厚仁慈，對臣下多寬容，善於納諫，儘管治下黨爭時起，但整體政局安定。他任內多次親自裁決冤獄，並提倡儒學與。節儉在外交上，與遼、西夏維持和議，避免大規模戰爭，透過歲幣換取邊境和平，形成北宋中期的穩定局面。仁宗時期文化興盛，文人輩出，是宋代政治與文化的成熟階段。