Item number: A435

Year: AD 1904-1909

Material: Copper

Size: 28.0 x 28.0 x 1.4 mm

Weight: 7.3 g

Manufactured by: Kaifeng, Honan Copper Coin Bureau

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a Guangxu 30th Year to Xuantong 1st Year (AD 1904 to AD 1909) “Guangxu Yuanbao” Western-style copper coin, denominated at ten cash, minted by the Honan Copper Coin Bureau located in the provincial capital, Kaifeng. Despite being a relatively late adopter of machine minting, Honan’s copper coins exhibit a rich diversity of designs.

The coin depicts a five-clawed dragon leaping out of the water, with four four-petal floral ornaments on each side. Due to its age, two of the floral ornaments on the left side have been worn smooth. The upper edge bears the Wade-Giles romanisation “HO-NAN,” while the lower edge indicates the denomination as “TEN CASH,” with the first letter “T” worn away.

The reverse side of the coin features a beaded rim, with the central inscription “Guangxu Yuanbao” in Chinese characters and an engraved Taiji symbol. The central Taiji symbol is a distinctive mark of the Honan Copper Coin Bureau, with various versions including both engraved and relief varieties, as well as different orientations such as upright, horizontal, tilted, and inverted. On both sides, from left to right, the Manchu characters “Bao He” are engraved to serve as dividers. The upper edge is inscribed with the words “Made in Honan Province,” while the lower edge indicates the denomination as “Each one equivalent to Ten Cash.”

In AD 1904, during the 30th year of the Guangxu reign,Chen Kuilong, the Governor of Honan, petitioned the imperial court to establish a copper coin bureau in Kaifeng to address the shortage of copper coins in Honan Province. Upon approval from the court, Chen Kuilong purchased machinery from the Ferracute Machine Company in New Jersey, USA, to commence the production of Western-style copper coins.

In the 32nd year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1906), the mint was renamed as the “Central Mint Honan Branch” and became the least productive among the nine remaining mints nationwide. In the same year, the Ministry of Revenue issued an order requiring it to mint Great Qing Copper Coins bearing the provincial abbreviation “Bian” for the court. Consequently, the factory ceased the production of Guangxu Yuanbao coins.

物件編號: A435

年代: 公元 1904-1909 年

材料: 紅銅

尺寸: 28.0 x 28.0 x 1.4 mm

重量: 7.3 g

製造地: 開封, 河南銅元局

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是光緒30年至宣統元年(公元1904至1909年)，位於省會開封的河南銅元局鑄造之「光緒元寶」西式銅元，其面額為十文。河南是較晚以機械造幣的省份，不過其銅元卻有著豐富的版型變化。

錢幣正面是一隻從水面躍出的五爪龍，龍的左右兩側各有四朵四瓣花飾，由於年代久遠，左側有兩朵花飾已經遭到磨平。上緣以威妥瑪拼音標示「河南」(HO-NAN)，下緣則是面額「十文」(TEN CASH)，第一個字母「T」已遭到磨蝕消失。

錢幣背面有一道珠圈，中央寫有「光緒元寶」漢字和陰刻的太極圖樣。中央的太極為河南銅元局的特殊標記，其版型非常多元，不僅有陰刻和陽刻的分別，尚有：直立、水平、傾斜和倒置等不同種類。兩側從左至右，鐫刻滿文「寶河」兩字作為分界。上緣鐫刻「河南省造」字樣，下緣則是面額「當制錢十文」。

光緒30年(公元1904年)，河南巡撫陳夔龍上奏朝廷在開封設立銅元局，以解決河南省缺乏銅元的窘境。陳夔龍經過朝廷核准後，從美國紐澤西的漢立克納浦廠(Ferracute Machine Company)購置機器，開始鑄造西式銅元。

兩年後的光緒32年(公元1906年)，造幣廠更名為「度支部造幣汴廠」，為當時全國僅存的九家造幣廠中產量最少的一座。同一年，戶部頒布命令要求其鑄造帶有省分簡稱「汴」的大清銅幣，工廠就此停止鑄造光緒元寶。