Item number: A587-1

Year: AD 1850-1861

Material: Brass

Size: 18.7 x 17.8 x 0.9 mm

Weight: 1.8 g

Manufactured by: Bao Guang Bureau

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a “Xianfeng Tongbao” coin minted during the Xianfeng period by the Bao Guang Bureau, which was under the jurisdiction of Guangdong. The coin follows the typical square-holed design, is made of brass, weighing only 1.8 g. This unusually light weight suggests that it may have been privately minted by civilians rather than being an official issue.

On the obverse, the four Chinese characters “Xianfeng Tongbao” are inscribed in the sequence of top, bottom, right, and left, with the script appearing particularly bold and rounded. The reverse side features the Manchu script “ᠪᠣᠣ ᡤᡠᠸᠠᠩ” (Bao Guang) on the left and right sides, indicating the issuing authority as the Bao Guang Bureau. The type of Manchu documents exhibit different formats, as can be seen in other archival collections.

The Xianfeng period was one of the most chaotic times for Qing dynasty coinage, primarily due to the rapid spread of the Taiping Rebellion, which created an urgent need for military funding to suppress the uprising. In response, Emperor Xianfeng accelerated the production of currency by issuing coins with large denominations and reopening or establishing new mints that had been long inactive. As a result, the number of mints during the Xianfeng era reached 28, producing coins with denominations ranging from smaller values of four cash to as high as one thousand cash. This rapid expansion, however, also led to severe inflation within the empire.

物件編號: A587-1

年代: 公元 1850-1861 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 18.7 x 17.8 x 0.9 mm

重量: 1.8 g

製造地: 寶廣局

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是一枚咸豐年間，廣東省的寶廣局鑄造的「咸豐通寶」。錢幣為典型的方孔錢形制，材質為黃銅，其重量僅有1.8克，可能為民間私下所鑄造。

錢幣正面按上、下、右、左的順序，依序鐫刻漢字「咸豐通寶」四字，字體極為厚重圓滿。錢幣背面的左右兩側是標示鑄造單位的滿文「ᠪᠣᠣ ᡤᡠᠸᠠᠩ」(寶廣)。寶廣局的滿文有不同模式，詳細可見其他館藏。

咸豐年間為清朝錢幣最為混亂的時期，主要原因是太平天國之亂的迅速蔓延，使得朝廷亟需軍費以平定叛亂。咸豐為加快籌錢的速度，一面鑄造大面額的錢幣，一面增設或恢復停工已久的鑄錢局，使得咸豐時期的鑄錢局達到28間，面額從較小的四文到一千文不等，卻也導致國內面臨嚴重的通貨膨脹。