Item number: A1264

Year: AD 7-14

Material: Bronze

Size: 28.6 x 28.6 x 2.2 mm

Weight: 7.35 g

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2016

This is a “Daquan Fifty” coin that circulated during the Western Han to Xin Dynasty periods. The coin is circular with a square hole in the centre. The obverse is inscribed with “Daquan Fifty,” with the reading order from top to bottom, and right to left. The reverse features a design resembling the Big Dipper constellation, which may represent a unique variation of this type of currency. During the Xin Dynasty, multiple currency reforms were implemented, and minting rights were delegated, resulting in a chaotic monetary system. This led to rampant counterfeiting by civilians. Therefore, this coin is likely either a special variant of an official coin or a privately minted coin from the general population. It is also possible that it is a modern counterfeit.

In the year AD 7 , Wang Mang took control of the government under the title of Duke of Anhan. During this time, he carried out the first currency reform of his reign, minting three new types of currency: “Daquan Fifty,” “Qi Knife Five Hundred,” and “Yidao Ping Five Thousand.” Except for “Yidao Ping Five Thousand,” which was inscribed with gold characters, these coins were primarily made of bronze. At that time, Wang Mang banned private ownership of gold and required people to exchange their gold holdings for these three types of currency. However, this move was essentially a disguised plunder of the people’s wealth, as the actual value of these coins was clearly much lower than their nominal value. For example, the “Daquan Fifty” had a nominal value equivalent to fifty Han Dynasty Wuzhu coins, but its actual weight was only three times that of a Wuzhu coin. Similarly, the “Qi Knife Five Hundred” and “Yidao Ping Five Thousand” had nominal values of 500 and 5,000 Wu zhu coins respectively, yet their actual weights were both less than ten times that of a single Wu zhu coin. From this, it is evident that all three of these coins were high-denomination fiat currencies, lacking real value.

In AD 8, Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty and established the Xin Dynasty. Following this, he implemented the second, third, and fourth rounds of currency reforms. During this period, Wang Mang issued a large variety of currencies, which were often so numerous and complicated that they were sometimes abolished in subsequent reforms. This caused chaos in the monetary system, leaving the people confused and discontented, with widespread complaints. Social order began to deteriorate, and this unrest became one of the main factors leading to the eventual downfall of the Xin Dynasty. Although the “Daquan Fifty” was one of the first currencies issued by Wang Mang, it circulated for a relatively long period compared to other Xin Dynasty coins. Even though Wang Mang officially abolished the “Daquan Fifty” in AD 14, it continued to circulate among the people, and private mints continued to produce more counterfeit “Daquan Fifty” coins.

物件編號: A1264

年代: 公元 7-14 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 28.6 x 28.6 x 2.2 mm

重量: 7.35 g

來源: 大城郵幣社 2016

這是一枚於西漢至新朝期間所流通的「大泉五十」錢幣，錢面為圓形、方形穿孔，正面書「大泉五十」，閱讀順序是從上往下、由右至左，背面則鑄有類似北斗七星之圖樣，疑似為此種貨幣之特殊變體。由於新莽時期執行多次貨幣改革，又將鑄幣權下放，幣制十分混亂，導致民間私自盜鑄行為猖獗。因而此一錢幣若非官錢當中較特殊之變體，便是出自民間的私鑄貨幣，當然也有可能為當代所仿製之贗品。

公元7年，王莽以安漢公的名義執掌朝政，當時王莽進行了他執政期間的第一次貨幣改革，鑄造了三種新的貨幣，分別是「大泉五十」「栔刀五百」「一刀平五千」，這三種貨幣除了「一刀平五千」上鑄有金字以外，基本全由青銅所鑄。當時王莽禁止私人持有黃金，並以這三種貨幣來兌換私人所持有的黃金，然而此舉實際上是變相掠奪民間財富，原因是這三種貨幣的實際價值明顯不如其幣值。如「大泉五十」幣值相等於五十枚漢朝五株錢，然而其實際重量僅為五株錢的三倍，另外「栔刀五百」「一刀平五千」的幣值分別為五百五株錢、五千五株錢，然而兩者實際重量皆不足五株錢之十倍。從此事可看出這三種貨幣皆為大額的虛值貨幣。

公元8年，王莽篡漢，建立新朝，此後王莽又實施了二次、三次、四次幣制改革，這段期間王莽多次發行種類極為繁雜的多種貨幣，而這些貨幣又可能在下次改革就被廢止，導致幣制混亂，百姓無所適從、怨聲載道，社會秩序混亂，最終使得新朝逐漸不得民心，成為其滅亡的主因之一。「大泉五十」雖是王莽最早發行的貨幣之一，但其流通的時間相較其他新朝貨幣而言較為長久，即便王莽在公元14年廢止「大泉五十」，但是其依然在民間流通，並持續生產更多私鑄的「大泉五十」。