Item number: A3891

Year: AD 976-984

Material: Bronze

Size: 25.4 x 25.4 x 1.0 mm

Weight: 3.55 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This coin, inscribed “宋元通寶” (Songyuan tongbao), was cast in the first year of the Jianlong era (AD 960) by Emperor Taizu, the founding emperor of the Song dynasty. It represents the first coinage issued by the Song dynasty.

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.” On reverse, above the central perforation appears an inverted crescent mark, while below there is a so-called “nail mark” (jia hen). Such nail marks are frequently encountered on coinages from the Tang period onwards. A popular legend relates that an empress consort once scratched a mark with her fingernail into the wax model, and that the craftsmen, not daring to remove it, faithfully reproduced it in the cast coin. In reality, the mark was most likely produced by pressing the edge of a mother coin into the mould, serving as an identifying mark of the casting furnace.

Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, reigned from AD 960 to AD 976 as the founding sovereign of the Northern Song dynasty. Of military background, he distinguished himself under Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou and came to command the imperial guard. In AD 960, at Chenqiao Station, he was ceremonially invested with the yellow robe by his troops in what became known as the “Chenqiao Mutiny”, and, supported by the army, ascended the throne, founding the Song dynasty and proclaiming the Jianlong era. After his accession, he adopted a strategy of “pacifying the south before turning north”, gradually subduing the southern regimes and thereby laying the foundation for the reunification achieved under the Northern Song.

Zhao Kuangyin recognised that the turbulence of the Five Dynasties period had stemmed from the dominance of regional military governors and the overweening power of generals. He therefore implemented the policy later known as “releasing military power over a cup of wine”, persuading senior commanders to relinquish their commands in exchange for generous treatment and secure retirement. Military authority was thus centralised, and the civil bureaucracy strengthened. This policy established the Song dynasty’s characteristic emphasis on civil governance over military power, reducing the danger of regional warlordism, though it also contributed in the long term to relative military weakness.

In domestic administration, he reformed official conduct, placed great importance on the civil service examinations, promoted men of modest background, and strengthened centralised fiscal institutions. In foreign affairs, he maintained a combined strategy of defence and offence in relation to Northern Han and the Khitan Liao. During his reign society was comparatively stable and the economy gradually recovered, 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.

The monetary system of the Northern and Southern Song dynasties was complex. Copper and iron were both employed as official coinage materials, supplemented by the circulation of paper currency. Silver gradually assumed an increasingly significant role. Copper cash were issued in denominations ranging in accounting value from one to ten units. Individual circuits minted coinage according to regional demand: some used exclusively copper coinage, others exclusively iron, while some employed both concurrently. Calligraphic styles varied considerably, including regular script, clerical script, seal script, and the Slender Gold style, among others.

物件編號: A3891

年代: 公元 976-984 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 25.4 x 25.4 x 1.0 mm

重量: 3.55 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是於建隆元年(公元960年)，宋朝開國皇帝宋太祖所鑄造的「宋元通寶」，為宋朝鑄造的第一款錢幣。

錢幣形制為漢文化圈傳統的方孔圓錢。錢面錢文隸書「宋元通寶」，自上而下，自右而左對讀。「宋」字近楷書。「元、通、寶」同唐開元通寶之隸書。錢幕上方有一仰月紋，下方則有一甲痕。甲痕常見於唐以後鑄幣上，曾有后妃以指甲在蠟樣上劃出甲痕，匠人不敢去除而鑄成的傳說。實際應為工匠以母錢邊緣壓印而成，用作爐別的記號。

宋太祖趙匡胤，為北宋開國皇帝，公元960至976年在位。其出身軍旅，後周世宗時屢立戰功，掌握禁軍實權。公元960年於陳橋驛黃袍加身，發動兵變，史稱「陳橋兵變」，在將士擁戴下即帝位，建立宋朝，改元建隆。其即位後奉行「先南後北」策略，逐步削平南方諸國，為北宋統一奠定基礎。

趙匡胤深知五代以來藩鎮跋扈、武人專權為政局動盪之源，故採取「杯酒釋兵權」之策，勸說宿將交出兵權，改以優厚待遇安置，使軍權收歸中央，強化文官體制。此舉奠定宋代重文抑武的政治格局，減少軍閥割據之患，但亦為後世軍力黯弱的遠因。

在內政方面，他整飭吏治，重視科舉，提拔寒門士人，強化中央集權與財政制度；對外則與北漢、契丹保持攻守並行的策略。其統治時期社會相對安定，經濟逐漸恢復，為宋代繁榮開啟序幕。公元976年崩逝，其弟趙光義即位，是為宋太宗。

兩宋幣制複雜，正式行用的幣材便有銅鐵兩種，配合紙幣相權。白銀則逐漸佔有重要地位。銅幣面額折一至折十不等。各路依需求各自鑄錢，有些只用銅錢，有些只用鐵錢，有些銅鐵兼用。字體則楷書、隸書、篆書、瘦金體等不一而足。