Item number: A3899

Year: AD 960-1885

Material: Bronze

Size: 23.9 x 23.9 x 0.6 mm

Weight: 2.6 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This coin is plausibly a Vietnamese imitation of the “Songyuan Tongbao”, originally cast in AD 960, the first year of the Jianlong reign, by Emperor Taizu, the founding emperor of the Song dynasty, and the earliest coinage issued by the Song.

The coin conforms to the Sinosphere tradition of the round coin with a square central perforation. The obverse bears the clerical-script inscription “Songyuan Tongbao”, read in paired sequence from top to bottom and from right to left. The calligraphy is irregular and slants noticeably, with multiple broken strokes. The reverse field is plain and uninscribed, and is almost entirely flat.

In calligraphic style and metallic appearance, the piece resembles the Vietnamese “broad-rim, small-character” style (kuo yuan xiao zi shou), a category encompassing locally cast imitations of both indigenous Vietnamese issues and earlier Chinese coinages. However, the outer rim is comparatively narrow, possibly owing to abrasion or to the removal of copper filings.

Zhao Kuangyin, Emperor Taizu of Song, reigned from AD 960 to AD 976 as the founding emperor of the Northern Song. With a military background, he achieved repeated successes under Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou and came to control the elite palace forces. In AD 960, at Chenqiao Station, he was acclaimed by his troops and donned the imperial yellow robe in what is traditionally termed the “Chenqiao Mutiny”, thereby ascending the throne, founding the Song dynasty, and adopting Jianlong as the reign title. After his accession he pursued a strategy of “pacifying the south before turning north”, gradually eliminating the southern regimes and laying the groundwork for Northern Song reunification.

Recognising that the turbulence of the Five Dynasties period stemmed from powerful regional military governors and the dominance of armed men in politics, Zhao Kuangyin adopted the policy later encapsulated as “releasing military authority over a cup of wine”, persuading veteran commanders to relinquish their commands and resettling them with generous provisions. Military power was thus recentralised, and the civil bureaucracy strengthened. This helped to establish the Song political pattern of privileging civil governance over military power and reduced the danger of warlord separatism, though it has also been regarded as a long-term contributing factor to later military weakness.

In domestic administration, he rectified officialdom, emphasised the civil service examinations, promoted scholars of humble origin, and reinforced centralised authority and fiscal institutions. In foreign policy, he adopted a dual strategy of offence and defence in dealing with Northern Han and the Khitan. His reign was comparatively stable, and the economy gradually recovered, inaugurating the conditions for subsequent Song prosperity. He died in AD 976 and was succeeded by his brother Zhao Guangyi, Emperor Taizong of Song.

The coinage system of the Northern and Southern Song was complex. Copper and iron served as official coin metals, operating alongside paper money, while silver gradually assumed increasing importance. Copper coin denominations ranged from equivalent values of one to ten. Regional circuits cast coin according to local needs: some used only copper coin, some only iron coin, and others employed both. Calligraphic styles likewise varied widely, including regular, clerical, seal script, and the so-called Slender Gold style, among others.

Across successive dynasties, Annam (Vietnam) both imported and circulated coinage from China, Japan, and Korea, and at times produced official imitations, particularly in coastal regions. Owing to the scarcity of historical documentation, the details of these practices remain unclear.

物件編號: A3899

年代: 公元 960-1885 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 23.9 x 23.9 x 0.6 mm

重量: 2.6 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚可能為越南所仿，原於建隆元年(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。字體歪斜，多處斷筆。錢幕光素無文，近乎平夷。

錢文風格與材質類似越南所仿鑄本國及中國歷代錢幣之「闊緣小字手」，但外輪較窄，或遭磨取銅屑。

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。

安南於歷朝歷代，皆有引進或行用中國、日本、朝鮮的錢幣的現象，甚至由正式政權所仿鑄，尤以沿海地區為盛。但由於史料的缺乏，詳情仍不明朗。