Item number: A3975

Reference number: DCD#77-5

Year: AD 1032-1033

Material: Bronze

Size: 25.1 x 24.9 x 0.6 mm

Weight: 2.6 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This is the Mingdao Yuanbao (明道元寶) minted during the second regnal era of Emperor Renzong (仁宗) of the Northern Song (北宋) dynasty, who was the fourth sovereign of the line. Throughout his forty-one-year reign, Zhao Zhen (趙禎) utilised a total of nine distinct era names.

The numismatic form adheres to the traditional “round coin with a square hole” (方孔圓錢) characteristic of the Sinospheric cultural sphere. The obverse inscription features the four characters “Mingdao Yuanbao” (明道元寶) rendered in seal script , following a top-to-right clockwise reading order. Compared to other variants, the outer rim on the obverse is slightly broader. A perforation is present in the lower-left quadrant, likely resulting from the uneven flow of molten copper during the casting process. The outer rim on the reverse is wider than that of the obverse and is nearly flush with the surface, while the field remains plain and unadorned, devoid of any decorative motifs or inscriptions. The coin body is thin and lightweight, suggesting that it may be a private minting.

Emperor Renzong Zhao Zhen reigned from AD 1022 to 1063 and was the fourth emperor of the Northern Song. During his reign, the strength of the state remained stable and society was relatively prosperous, a period traditionally known as the “Flourishing Governance of Renzong”. Politically, he esteemed civil governance and employed eminent ministers such as Fan Zhongyan, Bao Zheng, Han Qi, and Ouyang Xiu. He promoted the civil service examinations and institutional reform, and although these measures repeatedly encountered opposition from conservative forces, they laid important foundations for the later Xining Reforms. Renzong was by temperament tolerant, humane, and lenient towards his officials, and he was willing to accept remonstrance. Although factional conflict periodically arose during his reign, the political situation as a whole remained stable. On several occasions he personally reviewed miscarriages of justice, and he also advocated Confucian learning and frugality. In foreign affairs, he ultimately chose to maintain peace agreements with the Liao and Western Xia, thereby avoiding large-scale warfare. By exchanging annual payments for frontier stability, he helped create the comparatively stable situation that characterised the middle Northern Song period.

The monetary system of the Northern and Southern Song was highly complex. Among officially circulating media, both copper and iron coinage were employed, alongside paper currency, which functioned in parallel. Silver also gradually assumed increasing importance. Copper coins were issued in denominations ranging from value one to value ten. The various circuits minted coinage according to local demand: some used only copper coinage, some only iron coinage, and some employed both. The calligraphic styles used on coins were likewise diverse, including regular script, clerical script, seal script, and Slender Gold script. The simultaneous issue of coins bearing multiple scripts first appeared with the Chunhua Yuanbao under Emperor Taizong, whereas the first issue of true matched coins—that is, series of coins similar in form but differing in calligraphic style—appears to have begun with the Tiansheng Yuanbao under Emperor Renzong.

物件編號: A3975

參考書目編號: DCD#77-5

年代: 公元 1032-1033 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 25.1 x 24.9 x 0.6 mm

重量: 2.6 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是北宋的第四位皇帝宋仁宗，以其使用的第二個年號鑄造的「明道元寶」。宋仁宗趙禎在位的41年間，先後使用過九個年號。

錢幣形制為漢文化圈傳統的方孔圓錢。錢面錢文為篆書「明道元寶」，四字自上而右旋讀。錢幣正面與其他版式相較，外輪略寬。左下有一破孔，疑為澆鑄時銅液流動不均所致。背面外輪較正面更寬，近乎平夷，地章光素，沒有任何圖案或文字。錢體輕薄，疑為私鑄。

宋仁宗趙禎，公元1022–1063年在位，為北宋第四位皇帝。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，最終決定與遼、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。

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。首度同時發行多書體錢幣，自太宗淳化元寶始，而首度發行對錢，即形制相仿但書體不同的系列錢幣，大概自仁宗天聖元寶始。