Item number: A4666-2、A4666-1

Reference number: XM#1004; L&M#875-876

Year: AD 1938

Material: Stainless Steel

The results after XRF testing (A4666-2)

The results after XRF testing (A4666-1)

Size: 38.5 x 38.5 x 29.8 mm (A4666-2), 38.5 x 38.5 x 40.3 mm (A4666-1)

Weight: 294.55 g (A4666-2), 393.85 g (A4666-1)

Manufactured by: Central Mint, Shanghai

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2008

These are two coining dies: the die face of the obverse die bears the obverse design of the ‘Commemorative Coin for the Chastisement of China’, whilst that of the reverse die corresponds to the obverse of the ‘Year 3 of the Republic of China Yuan Shikai One-Yuan Silver Coin’.

The die face presents a mirror image of the finished coin. At the centre of the obverse die face are a crossed military sabre and rifle, surmounted by a steel helmet, all of which constituted standard-issue equipment of the Imperial Japanese Army at the time. Flanking these motifs horizontally are Chinese characters in seal script reading ‘Commemorative of the Chastisement of China’ (征支紀念). Inscribed along the upper periphery is ‘Shōwa Years 12 and 13’ (昭和拾貳參年), denoting the period AD 1937 to AD 1938, whilst the lower periphery bears the inscription ‘Military Service with the Shanghai Expeditionary Army’ (上海派遣軍從軍). Inward-pointing denticles line the rim to protect the design elements of the coin.

At the centre of the reverse die face is a bareheaded profile portrait of Yuan Shikai in military uniform. Inscribed along the upper periphery is ‘Third Year of the Republic of China’ (中華民國三年), denoting AD 1914. Inward-pointing denticles likewise line the rim for the protection of the coin’s design.

Common reverse designs associated with the Commemorative Coin for the Chastisement of China include the reverse of the ‘Junk Dollar’ (featuring a sailing junk), as well as both the reverse (the wreathed open-grain motif) and the obverse (the portrait) of the ‘Yuan Datou’ (Yuan Shikai dollar).

Apart from their engraved faces, the two dies used for striking the obverse and reverse are virtually identical in structural form, save that the shank of the obverse die is longer, whereas that of the reverse die is shorter. An annular groove, termed a rim gutter or rim cavity, encircles the outer circumference of each die face; under the mechanical pressure of striking, displaced metal flows into this recess to form the raised, protective rim of the coin. Extending from the perimeter of the die face to the neck is a subtly inclined, bevelled surface known as a chamfer or bevel, which serves to alleviate edge stress concentration during coining and minimise the risk of edge spalling or die breakage (cud formation). Situated beneath the chamfer is the die neck, a slightly constricted or extended short cylindrical segment. Below the neck lies the die shoulder, which slopes gently outwards to expand to the full diameter of the die shank. The shank itself consists of a substantial, heavy cylinder that forms the primary body absorbing the striking shock, with lateral grooves along its sides providing a keyed mortise-and-tenon interface for securing the die firmly within the press machinery.

The Battle of Shanghai, which erupted in the twenty-sixth year of the Republic of China (AD 1937), was the largest and most fiercely contested campaign of the early phase of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, as well as the strategic turning point at which the Nationalist Government enacted its grand strategy of ‘protracted resistance’. Within the broader strategic landscape, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident of 7 July had originally been a localised military clash in North China; the decisive catalyst that impelled both China and Japan to mobilise fully and commit their principal armed forces was the Battle of Shanghai on 13 August. This engagement shattered the Japanese military’s strategic ambition of achieving a ‘swift and decisive victory’, steering the conflict definitively onto a course of protracted attrition and exerting a profound, lasting impact on the subsequent evolution of the war as well as the political architecture of modern China.

Prior to the outbreak of the campaign, the Japanese military intended to consolidate its hold over North China and thrust southwards along the Beiping–Hankou Railway to seize Wuhan directly. Had this stratagem succeeded, the Chinese theatre of operations would have been severed longitudinally, isolating the economic resources of the south-east from the strategic base of the interior rear. On the basis of assessments formulated at the Luoyang Military Conference in October of the twenty-fifth year of the Republic of China (AD 1936) and counsel tendered by the German military adviser Alexander von Falkenhausen, the Nationalist Government resolved to seize the initiative by opening a second front in Shanghai. This manoeuvre exploited the interlaced waterways of the Shanghai–Wusong region to circumscribe the mobility of Japanese mechanised units, thereby redirecting the Japanese operational axis from a north-to-south advance into an uphill, westwards push along the Yangtze River from east to west. Simultaneously, given Shanghai’s status as an international concession hub and financial centre, engaging the enemy there was also calculated to command international attention and secure indispensable time for strategic preparation.

Following the Hongqiao Airport Incident on 9 August, the situation between China and Japan escalated precipitously. Hostilities erupted in earnest on 13 August, with the Japanese establishing the ‘Shanghai Expeditionary Army’ to enter the fray. Amidst the spreading conflagration, the Central Mint situated in Zhabei was forced to suspend operations on the morning of 13 August and formulated plans to evacuate westwards to Wuchang. However, owing to the sudden outbreak of hostilities and the severance of transport networks, substantial quantities of machinery and metal bullion could not be evacuated. On 27 October of that year, the Zhabei defensive line fell, and the mint premises were occupied by Japanese forces. The abandoned plant and materials were subsequently requisitioned as munitions stores, and the facility was at one stage converted into headquarters installations for the Imperial Japanese Navy’s China Area Fleet. Following their seizure of the mint, the Shanghai Expeditionary Army commandeered the residual silver and brass bullion abandoned on the premises and compelled local artisans to engrave specialised steel dies to strike ‘Commemorative Coins for the Chastisement of China’—serving both as tokens of solace and as campaign trophies—for distribution to participating officers and men.

The Battle of Shanghai endured for nearly three months, during which the Japanese military progressively committed nearly 300,000 troops. Although Chinese forces sustained grievous casualties and eventually withdrew westwards, the Japanese main strength had been decisively diverted to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, thereby consolidating the Nationalist Government’s grand strategy of trading space for time through protracted warfare.

物件編號: A4666-2、A4666-1

參考書目編號: XM#1004; L&M#875-876

年代: 公元 1938 年

材質: 不鏽鋼

XRF分析結果(A4666-2)

XRF分析結果(A4666-1)

尺寸: 38.5 x 38.5 x 29.8 mm (A4666-2), 38.5 x 38.5 x 40.3 mm (A4666-1)

重量: 294.55 g (A4666-2), 393.85 g (A4666-1)

製造地: 上海中央造幣廠

來源: 福君錢幣 2008

這是兩件模具，正面模具模面為「征支紀念幣」的正面；背面為「民國三年袁世凱像壹圓銀幣」的正面。

模面為該幣成品的鏡像。錢幣正面模面中央為交錯的軍刀和步槍，上方為頭盔，均為當時日軍的制式裝備。兩側橫列篆體漢字「征支紀念」。上緣環列｢昭和拾貳參年｣，即公元1937至1938年；下緣環列「上海派遣軍從軍」。幣緣有細齒向內，作保護幣圖之用。

錢幣背面模面中央為袁世凱側面像，身著免冠戎裝。上緣環列「中華民國三年」。幣緣有細齒向內，作保護幣圖之用。

征支紀念幣常見的背圖有「船洋」背圖、「袁大頭」背圖、面圖等

壓印正背面的兩個模具，形制除模面外基本一致，唯正面模具模身較長，背面模具模身較短。其模面外緣均有一圈凹溝，稱為緣槽（Rim Gutter / Rim Cavity），金屬受擠壓流入此溝槽後，形成錢幣外側凸起的保護邊環（Rim）。模面邊緣延伸至模頸之間，有一的微小的傾角削面，稱為倒角（Bevel / Chamfer），有助於在壓印時降低邊緣應力集中，減少邊緣崩裂（Cud）的風險。模頸則位於倒角下方，為稍作收窄或延伸的短圓柱段。模頸下方為模肩，稍微傾斜並擴增至模身的寬度。模身則為厚重的圓柱，為承受衝擊的主體，側邊則有凹槽，提供固定於機械上的榫卯結構。

民國二十六年(公元1937年)爆發的淞滬會戰，是抗日戰爭初期規模最大、戰況最為激烈的戰役，也是國民政府落實「持久抗戰」大戰略的轉折點。在整體戰略格局上，七七盧溝橋事變原屬華北地區的局部軍事衝突，真正促使中日兩國全面動員並投入主力作戰的關鍵，在於八一三淞滬會戰。此役打破了日軍「速戰速決」的戰略企圖，將戰局正式導入長期消耗的軌道，對後續戰局演進與近代中國的政治格局產生了深遠影響。

戰役爆發前，日軍意圖控制華北後沿平漢鐵路南下直取武漢，若其得逞，中國戰場將遭縱向截斷，東南經濟資源與大後方基地亦將被分割。依據民國二十五年十月洛陽軍事會議的評估及德國軍事顧問法肯豪森的建議，國民政府決定主動在上海開闢第二戰場，利用淞滬地區水網交錯的地貌限制日軍機械化部隊推進，進而將日軍由北向南的作戰線轉換為沿長江自東向西仰攻。同時，上海具備國際租界與金融中心的特性，在此作戰亦包含爭取國際關注與戰略準備時間的考量。

八月九日虹橋機場事件後，中日局勢迅速升級。八月十三日戰事全面爆發，日方組建「上海派遣軍」投入戰鬥。戰火蔓延之際，位於閘北的中央造幣廠被迫於十三日上午停工並計畫西遷武昌，但因戰事突發且交通受阻，大量機具與金屬原料未能全數撤出。同年十月二十七日閘北防線失守，造幣廠廠區遭到日軍占領，其滯留物資與廠房隨後被充作軍火倉庫，並一度改建為日本海軍駐華艦隊設施。日軍占領造幣廠後，上海派遣軍利用廠內遺留的白銀與黃銅原料，令工匠雕造專用鋼模，鑄造帶有慰問與戰利品性質的「征支紀念」幣發放給參戰官兵。

淞滬會戰持續近三個月，日軍先後投入近三十萬兵力，中國軍隊亦承受重大傷亡並最終西撤，但日軍主力已被實質牽引至長江下游地區，確立了國民政府以空間換取時間的持久戰戰略。