Item number: A154

Year: AD 1912

Material: Silver

Size: 12.5 x 12.5 mm

Weight: 1.51 g

Manufactured by: Fujian, Fookien Official Bureau

Provenance: Spink 2023 GmbH 2022

This coin, with a denomination of two dimes “Zhonghua Yuanbao,” was minted by the Fookien Official Bureau in the first year of the Republic of China (AD 1912).

On November 11, AD 1911, in response to the Wuchang Uprising, revolutionaries in Fujian successfully occupied Fuzhou and declared the establishment of the Republic of China Fujian Governor’s Office.

Facing urgent financial needs, the Provincial Department of Finance issued a decree on February 16 of the following year, deciding to mint silver subsidiary coins in denominations of two dimes, one dimes, and five cents.

This urged the Fookien Official Bureau, located at Nantai Cangxiazhou in Fuzhou, to resume its production line of silver coins by shifting its business focus from minting copper coins.

Thanks to the surviving machinery and technology, the Nantai Cangxiazhou factory immediately engaged in the production of silver coins.

In the following February, the obverse featured the “Iron-Blooded Eighteen-Star Flag,” symbolizing the military government, with a central sixteen-petal chrysanthemum engraved with the abbreviation for Fujian Province, “Min,” on the two dimes silver coin.

The upper and lower margins on the obverse were inscribed in English, with “FOO-KIEN” in the Wade-Giles system and “1 MACE AND 4.4 CANDAREENS ” indicating the coin’s value. Four-dot floral stars adorned the left and right sides.

Although there were no significant variations in the design, three variants existed for the English denomination inscription: “4.4,” “44,” and “44.” The latter two were particularly rare.

The reverse side of the coin features a beaded circle, with the inner part inscribed with “Zhonghua Yuanbao” and the character “Min” in the center. On the outer edge of the beaded circle, the inscription “Made by the Fujian Governor’s Office” is present above, while the coin’s value “1 Mace and 4.4 Candareens ” is inscribed below.

Additionally, the characters “Xin Hai” are located on the left and right sides, which often lead outsiders to mistakenly believe the coin was minted in the year AD 1911. However, it was minted in February of AD 1912 and ceased production in the same year, April.

物件編號: A154

年代: 公元 1912 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 12.5 x 12.5 mm

製造地: 福建, 福建官局

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

此硬幣為民國1年(公元1912年)，由福建官局鑄造的面額貳角「中華元寶」。公元1911年11月11日，響應武昌起義的福建革命黨人成功佔領福州，宣布成立中華民國福建都督府。需款孔急的省財政部在隔年2月16日，發布法令決定開鑄：貳角、壹角和伍分，三種面額的銀輔幣，敦促改以鑄造銅幣為業務的「福建官局」南台蒼霞洲廠，重啟其銀幣的生產線。

幸得機器和技術尚存，南台蒼霞洲廠立即投入銀幣的生產。隔年二月，正面以象徵軍政府「鐵血十八星旗」為主視覺，中央為一朵十六辦菊花，其花蕊處陰刻福建簡稱「閩」字的貳角銀幣出廠。正面的上下緣均署以英文，分別是威妥瑪系統拼寫的「福建」(FOO-KIEN)和幣值「一錢四分四釐」(1 MACE AND  4.4 CANDAREENS)，左右兩側飾以四點花星。雖無明顯版別差異，英文面額存有「4.4、44、44.」三種變體，尤以後兩種最為罕見。

硬幣的反面有一道環繞的珠圈，珠圈內側為「中華元寶」，中間鑄有「閩」字。珠圈的外緣，上環為發行者「福建都督府造」，下環為幣值「庫平一錢四分四釐」。另外有「辛亥」兩字在左右兩側，經常使外界誤會其鑄於公元1911年，實則鑄於公元1912年2月，旋即於同年4月宣告停鑄。