Item number: A372

Year: AD 1862

Material: Copper

Size: 42.2 x 42.1 x 2.9~3.2 mm

Weight: 36.9 g

Provenance: Noonans 2022

This coin was minted in the 2nd year of the Bunkyū era (AD 1862), during the late Edo period, in the Akita Domain located in the Tōhoku region of Japan. It was made from copper ore mined from the Ani Copper Mine within the domain and was circulated locally.

The coin is circular in shape, with the front featuring engraved lines that form a repetitive wave pattern, totalling seven waves. This design gives the coin its name, “Akita Wave Coin.” The back of the coin is a plain circular surface, except for the centre, which bears the character “秋” (Aki), symbolising the Akita Domain. Initially, the exchange rate of the Akita Wave Coin to the Edo Bakufu-issued Kan’ei Tsūhō was set at 1:100, but it later devalued to 1:80.

At the beginning of the Edo period, Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Edo Bakufu and standardised the Japanese monetary system with the Kan’ei Tsūhō as the benchmark. However, towards the end of the Bakufu era, as the central government’s influence waned, many local daimyo began to mint their own currencies. This trend was particularly prevalent in regions like Akita and other areas in northeastern Japan, where harsh environmental conditions hindered agricultural activities, but rich mineral resources were abundant.

Akita Domain possessed the Anini Copper Mine, one of the most important copper-producing regions in Japan during the Edo period. It is estimated that the Anini Copper Mine accounted for more than half of the national copper production during this time.

物件編號: A372

年代: 公元 1862 年

材料: 紅銅

尺寸: 42.2 x 42.1 x 2.9~3.2 mm

重量: 36.9 g

來源: 諾南斯 2022

這是在文久2年(公元1862年)，江戶幕府末年於日本東北地區的秋田藩，以領地內的阿仁銅山開採之銅礦，鑄造在地方上流通的錢幣。

錢幣外觀為圓形，正面鐫刻的線條構成重複的波浪紋飾，總計有七道波浪，故這枚錢幣被稱作為「秋田波錢」。錢幣背面是單調的圓形平面，但在中間打印一個象徵秋田藩的「秋」字。秋田波錢和江戶幕府發行的寬永通寶匯率，起先設定為1:100，後續貶值為1:80。

德川家康奠定江戶幕府之初，以寬永通寶為基準針對日本貨幣制度進行規範。然而進入幕末，隨著江戶幕府的威望逐漸低落，各地的大名開始盛行私自鑄造貨幣。包含秋田藩在內，領地的環境惡劣不適合農業活動，卻坐擁豐富礦產的東北地區更是如此。尤其秋田藩的轄地內，具有豐富銅礦資源的阿仁銅山是江戶時期日本最為重要的產區。據統計江戶時期阿仁出產的銅礦，其產量占到日本全國的一半以上。