This is the “Songyuan Tongbao” cast in the first year of Jianlong (AD 960) by Emperor Taizu of the Song, the founding sovereign of the dynasty. It constitutes the first coinage issued under the Song.
The coin conforms to the traditional round cash form with a square central perforation characteristic of the Sinosphere. The obverse inscription reads “Songyuan Tongbao” in clerical script, to be read vertically from top to bottom and from right to left. The character “Song” approximates regular script in style, while “Yuan,” “Tong,” and “Bao” follow the clerical script style of the Tang “Kaiyuan Tongbao.” The square central aperture is relatively broad, a feature termed “wide perforation” (guang chuan). The characters “Tong” and “Bao” are comparatively elongated and narrow in form, described as the “long Tongbao” variety, while the character “Yuan” is relatively slender, referred to as the “narrow Yuan.” The field of the reverse is plain and smooth, without ornamentation. Its thickness is extremely slight, suggesting that it may be a privately cast issue.
Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin (r. AD 960–976), was the founding emperor of the Northern Song dynasty. Of military origin, he distinguished himself repeatedly during the reign of Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou and came to command the imperial guards. In AD 960, at Chenqiao Station, he was invested with the yellow robe in a military coup—known to history as the “Chenqiao Mutiny”—and, with the acclamation of his troops, ascended the throne, founding the Song dynasty and proclaiming the Jianlong era. After his accession, he pursued a strategy of “first the south, then the north,” gradually subduing the southern regimes and laying the foundation for the eventual unification achieved under the Northern Song.
Zhao Kuangyin recognised that the turbulence of the Five Dynasties period had stemmed from the overweening power of regional military governors and professional soldiers. He therefore adopted the policy later termed “relinquishing military power over a cup of wine,” persuading veteran commanders to surrender their commands in exchange for generous treatment. Military authority was thereby concentrated in the central government, and the civil bureaucracy strengthened. This measure established the Song political pattern of privileging civil over military authority, reducing the risk of warlord fragmentation, though it also constituted a remote cause of the dynasty’s later military weakness.
In domestic administration, he rectified official conduct, emphasised the civil service examinations, promoted scholars of humble origin, and reinforced centralised fiscal institutions. In foreign affairs, he adopted a combined strategy of offence and defence in dealing with Northern Han and the Khitan. His reign witnessed relative social stability and a gradual economic recovery, inaugurating the prosperity of the Song period. He died in AD 976 and was succeeded by his younger brother Zhao Guangyi, who reigned as Emperor Taizong of Song.
The monetary system of the Northern and Southern Song was complex. Officially circulating coinage was struck in both copper and iron, functioning in conjunction with paper currency. Silver gradually assumed increasing importance. Copper cash were issued in denominations ranging from one to ten. Different circuits cast coins according to local requirements: some employed only copper cash, others exclusively iron, and still others both. Calligraphic styles varied widely, including regular, clerical, seal, and Slender Gold script, among others.
