Item number: A713-2

Year: AD 1735-1796

Material: Brass

Size: 22.5 x 22.5 x 0.3 mm

Weight: 1.45 g

Manufactured by: Bao Quan Bureau

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a “Qianlong Tongbao,” a coin with a square hole, issued by the Bao Quan Bureau under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Revenue during the reign of the sixth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, Qianlong, from AD 1735 to AD 1796.

The coin’s outer rim, inner rim, and central square hole are very clear. The obverse side features the four Chinese characters “Qianlong Tongbao” inscribed on the inner rim, though they are heavily worn. The reverse side displays the Manchu inscription “ᠪᠣᠣ ᠴᡳᠣᠸᠠᠨ” (Baoquan) on the inner rim.

In the Qing Dynasty, most coins did not explicitly indicate their denominations but were distinguished by size and weight. The typical cash had a diameter ranging from 24.2 to 28.0 mm and weighed between 3.8 and 4.2 g. This Qianlong Tongbao coin, however, has a diameter of 22.5 mm and weighs only 1.45 g. Given the significant prevalence of private minting during the Qianlong period, it is speculated that this coin may be a privately minted piece.

After the Manchus entered China and established the Qing Empire, they continued the Ming Empire’s practice of minting currency through two central agencies: the Bao Quan Bureau and the Bao Yuan Bureau. The Bao Quan Bureau was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Revenue, responsible for fiscal matters, while the Bao Yuan Bureau was overseen by the Ministry of Works, responsible for construction. The highest-ranking official of the Bao Quan Bureau was the Han Chinese Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Initially established to distribute military salaries, the Bao Quan Bureau later became the most important central minting institution of the Qing Dynasty.

In the early Qianlong period, silver was relatively inexpensive while copper coins were more valuable, with the exchange rate sometimes falling below 700 copper coins per tael of silver (the Qing Dynasty established that “each thousand copper coins is equivalent to one tael of silver”). Even though the government minted a large quantity of copper coins in an effort to stabilize prices, the circulation and supply of copper coins still fell short of market demand. This led to practices such as hoarding and private minting and trading of copper coins for profit.

However, despite the large scale of private minting, it did not significantly impact the exchange rate between silver and copper coins. Instead, it helped alleviate trade difficulties caused by the shortage of official coins. As a result, the Qing government did not impose strict measures against private minting during the early years of Qianlong’s reign. It was only in the later years, once the price of copper coins had stabilized, that the government began to collect privately minted coins from the market and replace them with officially minted ones.

物件編號: A713-2

年代: 公元 1735-1796 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 22.5 x 22.5 x 0.3 mm

重量: 1.45 g

製造地: 寶泉局

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是清朝第六任皇帝乾隆在位期間(公元1735至1796年)，由戶部管轄的「寶泉局」發行之「乾隆通寶」，其外觀為方孔錢。

錢幣的外廓、內廓和中央的方孔十分清晰。正面的內廓鐫刻漢字「乾隆通寶」四字，磨損嚴重。背面的內廓則鐫刻滿文「ᠪᠣᠣ ᠴᡳᠣᠸᠠᠨ」（寶泉）二字。

清代的錢幣大多不會特別標示面額，僅用大小與重量作為區別，一般的小平錢大小為24.2 ~ 28.0 mm、重量為3.8 ~ 4.2 g，而此枚乾隆通寶的尺寸為22.5 mm，重量僅有1.45 g，由於乾隆時期私鑄幣現象十分嚴重，因此推測可能為私鑄幣。

滿州人入關建立清帝國後，沿襲明帝國於中央層級負責鑄造貨幣的「寶泉局」和「寶源局」兩個部門，前者是負責財政稅收的戶部，後者則是主責建設的工部管轄。寶泉局最高長官為戶部的漢右侍郎，最初設立目的是為了頒發兵餉，後成為清朝最重要的中央鑄錢單位。

乾隆前期銀賤錢貴，一兩銀錢可兌換的銅錢數量有時甚至低於700枚銅錢(清朝明定「每錢一千，值銀一兩」) 。即使政府大量鑄造銅錢，想平抑價格，但銅錢流通與數量仍不夠市場需求。在利益的驅使下，出現囤積銅錢、或者私鑄販運等情形。不過儘管私鑄規模龐大，並未嚴重影響銀錢的價比，反而彌補官錢不足造成商民貿易的困擾。因此，乾隆朝前期即便有私鑄的情形，仍未嚴加打擊，直到統治後期錢價穩定後，開始已官鑄制錢收繳市場上私人小錢。