Item number: A888

Year: AD 1165-1173

Material: Bronze

Size: 27.8 x 27.8 x 1.7 mm

Weight: 6.95 g

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This coin was minted during the reign of the second emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, Emperor Xiaozong, under his second reign title, “Qiandao.” The coin, known as “Qiandao Yuanbao,” is made of bronze. Based on differences in calligraphy, the Qiandao Yuanbao coins are categorised into two distinct types: regular script and seal script.

The coin follows the typical form of square-holed coins, with a slightly chipped outer edge on the lower side. On the obverse, the four Chinese characters “Qiandao Yuanbao” are inscribed in regular script in a clockwise sequence. The reverse side is plain, without any patterns or inscriptions. In terms of weight, the Qiandao Yuanbao corresponds to a denomination known as “two-cash,” meaning it is equivalent to two one-cash coins.

Emperor Xiaozong of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhao Shen, was a collateral relative of the dynasty’s founding emperor, Gaozong. After ascending the throne, Xiaozong rehabilitated the reputation of the general Yue Fei, posthumously honouring him as Eguo Gong, and purged the faction of the infamous minister Qin Hui. However, following the failed Northern Expedition against the Jin dynasty in AD 1164, Xiaozong signed the Longxing Peace Treaty and changed the era name to Qiandao, securing over forty years of peaceful development. In AD 1189, Xiaozong abdicated in favour of his son, Emperor Guangzong, and passed away five years later.

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.

物件編號: A888

年代: 公元 1165-1173 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 27.8 x 27.8 x 1.7 mm

重量: 6.95 g

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是南宋第二任皇帝宋孝宗，以其使用的第二個年號所鑄造的「乾道元寶」，材質為青銅。乾道元寶按書法差異，分為楷書和篆書兩種版型。

錢幣形制為典型的方孔錢，下方的外緣有些許缺角。錢幣正面按順時針順序，以楷書書法依序鐫刻漢字「乾道元寶」四字。錢幣背面為光背，沒有任何圖案或文字。乾道元寶的重量換算成面額，為得以兌換兩枚小平錢的折二錢。

宋孝宗趙昚為南宋第一任皇帝宋高宗的旁系。孝宗繼位後平反岳飛的聲譽，追封其為鄂國公，並且清除秦檜的黨羽。然而公元1164年，北伐金國失敗後簽訂「隆興和議」並將年號改為乾道，卻也換取長達四十餘年的和平發展。公元1189年，宋孝宗將皇位禪讓兒子光宗，並於五年之後駕崩。

兩宋時期的錢幣以青銅為材料外，其特色尚有大規模的鐵幣流通，為其他朝代少見的現象。之所以如此，一來是國內的銅礦資源缺乏；二來是防止銅錢流入競爭對手，諸如西夏、遼和金等北方政權，使得兩宋朝廷先是鑄造鐵錢，後來更出現紙幣雛形的「交子、會子」作為貨幣。