Item number: A4364

Reference number: DCD#523-1

Year: AD 911-913

Material: Bronze

Size: 33.0 x 32.5 x 3.0 mm

Weight: 17.05 g

Provenance: Spink 2023

This exceptionally rare specimen is a Yingsheng Yuanbao, minted following the imperial ascension of Liu Shouguang, who, alongside his father Liu Rengong, seized control of Youzhou and established a secessionist regime during the transitional chaos between the late Tang Dynasty and the early Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

The coin adopts the traditional square-holed round configuration characteristic of the Sinospheric cultural realm. The obverse bears the four-character inscription Yingsheng Yuanbao rendered in a regular script with cursive tendencies, intended to be read in a clockwise rotation. The reverse features the numeral shi (拾), denoting a value of ten, positioned above the central aperture. The calligraphic strokes exhibit inconsistent thickness, with the character sheng (聖) appearing notably smaller and detached from both the inner and outer rims. The central square aperture is narrow, and the aperture of the obverse is wider than that of the reverse.

The trajectory of the Youzhou regime during the late Tang and Five Dynasties was defined by the Liu father and son, who maintained regional hegemony for nineteen years. In AD 895 (the second year of the Guanning era), Liu Rengong secured the office of Jiedushi (Regional Governor) of Youzhou through the patronage of Li Keyong of Hedong, whom he promptly betrayed. Exploiting the strategic importance of the Yan region as a northern military bulwark and the formidable martial spirit arising from local “Hu-influenced” (nomadic) cultural tendencies, he established an autonomous power base. The Liu regime pursued a policy of political opportunism among the Khitan, the Later Liang, and the Jin (Hedong) powers, employing tribute, matrimonial alliances, and military force to navigate relations with the Khitan while manoeuvring between Zhu Wen and Li Keyong for survival. However, in his later years, Liu Rengong retreated into a decadent lifestyle at Mount Da’an, prompting his son, Liu Shouguang, to usurp the throne and imprison his father in AD 907. Upon assuming power, Liu Shouguang’s administration became increasingly tyrannical. Following a series of strategic miscalculations, he proclaimed himself Emperor of the “Great Yan” in AD 911 (the first year of the Qianhua era) under the reign title “Yingtian,” an intentional echo of the earlier insurgent regimes of An Lushan and Shi Siming. Plagued by perpetual belligerence, the over-extraction of civilian wealth, and deteriorating relations with both the Jin and Later Liang, the Great Yan state became diplomatically and militarily isolated. In AD 913, Youzhou was captured by the forces of Li Cunxu, Prince of Jin; the Liu family was subsequently executed, bringing an end to the Yan regime and facilitating the region’s integration into the Later Tang domain.

Beset by continuous warfare and the necessity of sustaining immense military expenditures, the Liu regime in Youzhou resorted to independent minting to alleviate fiscal crises. Historical records indicate that Liu Rengong implemented extreme monetary policies, mandating the circulation of coins fashioned from fine clay (jinni) while confiscating and secreting civilian copper currency within caverns atop Mount Da’an, subsequently executing the craftsmen to ensure secrecy. Although extant examples of “clay money” are exceedingly rare, the discovery of a substantial quantity of copper and iron coinage near Mount Dawang at the Juyong Pass in Beijing provides significant empirical evidence for this period. This assemblage includes the renowned Yong’an series with denominations of ten, one hundred, five hundred, and one thousand. While scholars once debated their attribution to the Western Xia, Northern Liang, or Southern Tang, they are now generally identified as productions of the Liu regime, with the massive Yong’an Yiqian iron coin being particularly noted for its exceptional weight. Following Liu Shouguang’s imperial declaration in AD 911, he oversaw the minting of fiduciary high-denomination coins, including the Yingtian Yuanbao (bearing the character wan on the reverse), the Yingsheng Yuanbao, and the Qiansheng Yuanbao; given their scarcity today, these may not have served as general circulation currency. Furthermore, the regime extensively repurposed ancient moulds to cast iron coins, such as imitations of the Sui Dynasty Wuzhu, the Xin Dynasty Huo Bu (with added denominations of one hundred or two hundred), and Shi Siming’s Shuntian Yuanbao (with added denominations of one hundred or one thousand), resulting in an exceptionally complex and disordered monetary landscape.

物件編號: A4364

參考書目編號: DCD#523-1

年代: 公元 911-913 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 33.0 x 32.5 x 3.0 mm

重量: 17.05 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚十分罕見，晚唐至五代十國初期之際，趁著混亂局面控制幽州建立政權的劉仁恭和劉守光父子，於劉守光稱帝後所鑄造的「應聖元寶」。

錢幣形制為漢文化圈傳統的方孔圓錢。正面錢文「應聖元寶」四字，楷書近行，自上而右旋讀。錢背錢穿上方有「拾」紀值。筆劃粗細不均，「聖」字獨小，離輪離廓。方穿狹窄，面寬於背。

唐末五代時期，幽州政權的興衰以劉仁恭與劉守光父子為核心，前後割據達十九年之久。乾寧二年(公元895年)，劉仁恭在河東李克用的扶持下取得幽州節度使之職，隨即背叛河東，利用燕地作為北方軍鎮的戰略位置與本地胡化傾向帶來的強悍兵風，建立起割據政權。劉氏政權長期於契丹、後梁與晉(河東)三方勢力間採取政治投機策略，透過歲幣、聯姻或武力與北方契丹交涉，同時在朱溫與李克用之間反覆周旋以求自保。然而，劉仁恭後期耽於大安山的奢靡生活，導致其子劉守光於公元907年發動篡位並囚禁其父；劉守光上台後政風更趨殘暴，且在政治判斷上接連失誤，於乾化元年(公元911年)僭號稱帝，國號「大燕」，改元「應天」，呼應此前安祿山、史思明的政權。大燕政權因窮兵黩武、過度動員民間財力並同時與晉、梁惡化關係，終在外交與軍事上陷入孤立，最終於公元913年遭晉王李存勗統軍攻陷幽州，劉氏父子被俘殺，燕地政權至此覆滅，該區域亦隨之併入後唐版圖。

幽州劉氏政權因連年戰亂且需支應龐大軍費，遂自行鑄行貨幣以解決財政困境。史載劉仁恭曾採行極端的貨幣政策，以「墐泥」作錢強制行使，並將民間銅錢斂藏於大安山巔的鑿穴中，隨後殺害工匠以滅口。儘管「泥錢」實物傳世極罕，但近代於北京居庸關大王山一帶出土的大量銅鐵錢，為這段歷史提供了重要實證。這批錢幣包括著名的「永安一十、一百、五百、一千」系列大錢，雖然學界對其歸屬曾有西夏、北涼或南唐等爭論，但現今多定為劉氏父子所鑄，其中「永安一千」大鐵錢更以其厚重體質聞名。至劉守光於後梁乾化元年(公元911年)僭稱「大燕皇帝」改元應天後，又相繼鑄造了「應天元寶」(背「萬」字)、「應聖元寶」及「乾聖元寶」等虛價大錢，由於存世稀少，或非行用錢。此外，劉氏政權亦大量利用舊範翻鑄鐵錢，如仿隋五銖、仿莽貨布(加鑄「一百」或「二百」)及仿史思明的順天元寶(加鑄「百」或「千」)，十分繁雜混亂。