This is a Guangxu Yuanbao coin minted between the 31st and 32nd years of Guangxu’s reign (AD 1905-AD 1906) by the “Tsing-Kiang Copper Coin Bureau,” organised by the Governor-General in charge of transportation, Lu Yuanding. It is the only mint not named after a province or administrative region. Although the Tsing-Kiang Copper Coin Bureau existed for less than a year, it produced over 740 million coins in at least 36 different varieties.
The central motif on the obverse side of the coin features a water dragon emerging from the water and breathing fire. There should be small five-petal flowers on both sides to demarcate the upper and lower edges, with the English phonetic transcription “CHING-KIANG” separating them. However, due to the passage of time, the details around the periphery of the coin are no longer visible, with only the letter “C” in the upper left corner barely discernible. The dragon motif on the obverse side has two versions: “water dragon” and “flying dragon,” with this coin being the former.
The reverse side of the coin features a beaded circle, categorised into three sizes: big, medium, and small, with this coin being the “big circle” version. Within the beaded rim, there are the four characters “Guangxu Yuanbao” written in regular script, along with a six-petal flower motif. On the outer periphery, the characters “Tsing Kiang” appear on both the left and right sides. The top edge bears the inscription “Guangxu Yuanbao” in Manchu script, while the bottom edge indicates the denomination as “Ten Cash.”
The Tsing-Kiang Copper Coin Bureau was in Huai’an City, Jiangsu Province. Since the Sui Dynasty, when the Grand Canal connecting the north and south was excavated, Huai’an became an important commercial hub. Following the Ming Dynasty’s system, the Qing Dynasty dispatched a Grand Canal Governor to oversee related affairs in the area, responsible for warehouses, shipping, shipbuilding, and other businesses.
In May of the 30th year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1904), Governor Lu Yuanding submitted a report reflecting the lack of currency in the area affecting commercial transactions. The request to establish a mint in the area was approved by the court. In February of the following year, with the successful installation of British machinery imported through Shanghai, the establishment of the “Tsing-Kiang Copper Coin Bureau” was officially announced.
However, in September of the 32nd year of the Guangxu reign (AD 1906), due to the collapse in prices caused by various provinces casting copper coins, the court requested the merger of the Tsing-Kiang Bureau into the Kiang-Nan Bureau in Nanjing, thus marking the end of its history.
