Item number: A63

Year: AD 1859-1868

Material: Silver

Size: 92.48 x 30.79 mm

Weight: 147.05 g

Provenance: Auction World 2023

This artefact is an example of the Ansei Chogin, minted and issued during the Ansei era in Japan (AD 1859-1868). It is a form of metage silver coin, representing the final type of metage currency circulated during the Edo period in Japan.

The morphology of this Ansei Chogin is characterised by a flattened, bar-shaped silver ingot with circular seals at eacdh end bearing the character “政” (polity), serving as a symbol signifying its minting during the Ansei era.

In AD 1853, during the sixth year of the Kaei era, with the arrival of the Black Ships, Japan was compelled to open its ports, triggering disputes over currency exchange with Western nations.

The controversy caused domestic economic turbulence in Japan, prompting the shogunate to propose the issuance of a nominal currency known as Ansei Chogin as a solution to obtain recasting profits. However, the actual minting did not commence until six months later. Ansei Chogin had a silver content roughly equivalent to one Ichibugin per tael, becoming a distinctive silver coin during a specific period in Japanese history, reflecting the economic and monetary crisis of the time.

Black Ships:
The name given to Western vessels arriving in Japan in the 16th and 19th centuries, also called 黒船 or Kurofune.
1. In the 16th century, Portuguese Carracks that went to Japan for trade, had the hull painted black with pitch, hence the name.
2. In the 19th century, warships of the United States Navy that went to Japan to force the trade with the west, had coal-fired steam engines that belched black smoke, hence the name.

In May of the fourth year of Keiō (AD 1868), the Meiji Restoration government promulgated the “Decree on the Abolition of Silver Standards,” resulting in the cessation of circulation for both the Chogin and Mameitagin.

物件編號: A63

年代: 公元 1859-1868 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 92.48 x 30.79 mm

重量: 147.05 g

來源: 環球拍賣 2023

此物件為日本安政年間(公元1859-1868年)鑄造並發行的安政丁銀，為秤重銀幣的一種，也是日本江戶時代流通的最後一種秤重貨幣。

此枚安政丁銀的外型為扁平的條狀銀錠，末端分別有「政」字的圓形蓋印，是安政年間鑄造的象徵。

黒船:
公元16 世紀和公元19 世紀抵達日本的西方船隻稱號，也被稱作Black Ships或Kurofune。
1. 公元16世紀，葡萄牙卡拉克船前往日本貿易，船體用瀝青塗成黑色，因而得名。
2. 公元19世紀，美國海軍前往日本，強行逼迫日本與西方進行貿易的軍艦，由於裝有燃煤蒸汽機，噴出黑煙，因而得名。

慶應四年五月(公元1868年)，明治維新政府頒布了「銀目廢止令」，丁銀與豆銀一同停止了流通。