Item number: A115

Year: ND

Size: 27.78 x 27.77 mm

Weight: 6.05 g

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a charm coin issued to support Zenko-ji Temple, located in the historical administrative region of Shinano Province (now Nagano Prefecture) during the Edo period in Japan. The coin’s design emulates the square-holed coins influenced by Chinese styles, with a granular texture decorating the inner circle.

On the obverse side, the characters “Fubao” are inscribed above and below the square hole. To the right of the hole, the location “Shinano Province” is inscribed, while to the left is the name of the temple, “Zenko-ji.” The reverse side features the Buddhist invocation “Namu Amida Butsu” engraved in a clockwise circular arrangement.

Zenko-ji Temple, founded in AD 644, is one of Japan’s oldest Buddhist temples. The temple’s most significant treasure is a statue of Amitabha Buddha, which was introduced from the ancient Korean kingdom of Baekje. The statue is so revered that even the temple’s chief priest is not permitted to view its visage.

物件編號: A115

年代: ND

尺寸: 27.78 x 27.77 mm

重量: 6.05 g

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是為供養日本江戶時期的令制國「信濃國」內，現今長野縣的善光寺所發行的花錢。錢幣外觀仿效深受中國影響的方孔錢，內圈表面以顆粒狀為飾。錢幣正面以方孔為基準點，上下鐫刻著「福寶」兩字，右側是寺廟所處的地點「信濃國」，左側則是寺廟的名字「善光寺」。背面按順時針環繞，刻有佛教誦詞「南無阿彌陀佛」六個字。

善光寺創建於公元644年，是日本歷史最為悠久的佛寺之一。寺廟最為重要的資產，是從朝鮮半島古代的百濟引進的阿彌陀如來像，其容貌甚至連貴為寺廟的住持都不得窺看。