Item number: A951

Year: AD 1621-1627

Material: Bronze

Size: 24.5 x 24.7 x 0.9 mm

Weight: 3.15g

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This coin was minted during the reign of Emperor Xizong of the Ming dynasty.

The obverse side of the coin is round with a square hole in the centre, featuring both an outer and inner rim. The outer rim is relatively wide, while the inner rim is narrower. Within the inner rim, the inscription “Tianqi Tongbao” appears in regular script, read in pairs.

The characters are full and open, with a particular elegance seen in the “Tong” and “Bao” characters, which carry a hint of the Slim Gold style. It is widely believed that the style of the Tianqi Tongbao characters was influenced by the Slim Gold calligraphy used in the Song coins, “Daguan Tongbao” and “Chongning Tongbao.”

Most notably, the “Qi” character on the Tianqi Tongbao minted during the Ming period has a distinctive feature. The upper left part of the character, the “Hu” (戶)radical, is written with a horizontal line instead of a dot, and it is not connected to the lower part, the “Shi”(尸) radical. In the Yuan “Tianqi” coin, however, the “Shi” radical in the “Qi” character is connected to the horizontal line above it. This is the most distinguishable difference between the Ming and Yuan versions of the Tianqi Tongbao.

On the reverse side of the coin, there is a “ten” (十) symbol at the top, indicating its denomination. Some versions also feature the “ten” symbol at the bottom.

Emperor Xizong of Ming, whose reign title was Tianqi, is recorded in history as an emperor who never received formal education and was considered illiterate. He is also known for his interest in carpentry, earning the title of the “carpenter emperor.”

Politically, Emperor Xizong alternated between supporting the Donglin faction and non-Donglin officials. Among the latter, he notably favoured the eunuch Wei Zhongxian, whose rise to power led to the “Donglin faction struggle” – a violent purge of Donglin officials by non-Donglin forces. This internal strife drained the empire’s resources.

At the same time, the emergence of the Later Jin posed significant border security issues for the Ming dynasty, contributing to the eventual collapse of the state.

Amidst these internal and external challenges, Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Youjian, ascended to the throne.

物件編號: A951

年代: 公元 1621-1627 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 24.5 x 24.7 x 0.9 mm

重量: 3.15g

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是一枚出自明朝熹宗皇帝的錢幣。錢幣正面為圓形，方形穿孔，具內外廓，外廓稍寬，內廓細窄，在內廓文字為「天啓通寶」四字，楷書對讀，字型飽滿、開闊，尤其是「通」字和「寶」二字，具有瘦金體風味。一般認為，天啓通寶的字型承襲了宋錢「大觀通寶」和「崇寧通寶」使用瘦金體的習慣。

最特別的是，明朝天啓通寶中「啓」字左上部的「戶」字，其上不是一點，而是一橫，與下部「尸」字不相連；而在元朝「天啓」中，「啓」字上的“尸”字上方一橫是連線的，二者有明顯不同。這是鑑別明朝天啓通寶和元朝天啓通寶錢最明顯的特徵。

錢幣背面上方的「十」字，表示其面額，亦有「十」字在下方的版本。

明熹宗朱由校，在位期間年號為天啓，號天啓帝，史書記載，明熹宗一生並未受過正統教育，是一位文盲皇帝，同時，也是一位喜好手工的木匠皇帝。

在政治上，明熹宗分別重用東林黨人、非東林黨人，在非東林黨人中，他特別重用的是閹黨宦官—魏忠賢，魏忠賢的崛起引發朝堂的「東林黨爭」，即非東林黨人對東林黨人的大屠殺，此使得明朝國力被內鬥消耗。

與此同時，後金的出現使得明朝的邊防出現問題，成為明朝末年崩潰的近因之一。在這內憂外患的同時，明思宗朱由檢登基了。