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Northern Song Dynasty
Tianxi Tongbao
(Big Coin)
北宋
天禧通寶
(大錢)
Item number: A808-2
Year: AD 1017-1021
Material: Bronze
Size: 24.7 x 24.8 x 1.4 mm
Weight: 5.05 g
Provenance:
1. Noonans 2022
2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection
This coin, inscribed with “Tianxi Tongbao,” was minted during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, the third emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty. It was produced during the period corresponding to his third era name, “Tianxi.” Throughout Emperor Zhenzong’s 24-year reign, he employed a total of five different era names.
The coin follows the typical square-holed design. The coin weighs 5.05 g, exceeding the general standard of 3.8 g. On the obverse side, the four Chinese characters “Tianxi Tongbao” are inscribed in regular script in a clockwise order. The “Tianxi Tongbao” coins are categorised into two types based on the size of the characters: a big script version and a small script version. This particular coin belongs to the big script variant, where the radical “⻎” in the character “通” is written as a continuous stroke.
In the early years of Emperor Zhenzong’s reign, the Northern Song Dynasty faced persistent harassment from the neighbouring Liao Empire. This culminated in the signing of the “Treaty of Chanyuan,” in which the Song agreed to pay tribute in exchange for peace. This treaty set a precedent for the Song Dynasty, which later followed a similar strategy of securing peace with the Western Xia and the Jin Dynasty through the payment of annual tributes.
During the Song Dynasty, in addition to bronze coins, one notable feature was the widespread circulation of iron coins, a phenomenon rarely seen in other dynasties. This practise arose primarily for two reasons: first, the domestic shortage of copper resources; and second, the need to prevent copper coins from flowing into the hands of northern rival states, such as the Western Xia, Liao, and Jin. As a result, the Song court initially began minting iron coins, and later introduced early forms of paper money, such as Jiaozi and Huizi, as alternative currency.