Item number: A1256

Year: AD 1075-1077

Material: Bronze

Size: 24.57 x 24.43 mm

Weight: 3.81 g

Manufactured by: Hengyang, Hunan

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2016

This is a “Xining Yuanbao,” minted during the reign of Emperor Shenzong, the sixth emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty, using his first era name, “Yuanfeng.” Emperor Shenzong ruled for 18 years and adopted two era names during his reign.

The coin is in the typical square-hole shape. On the obverse side, the characters “Xining Yuanbao” are inscribed in clerical script, arranged in a clockwise order. The reverse side of the coin features the character “Heng” at the top, indicating that this coin was minted in Hengyang, Hunan. “Xining Yuanbao” coins are categorised into three script styles: clerical script, running script, and seal script.

In the 8th year of Xining (AD 1075), Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty established a dedicated Money Casting Bureau, known as the “Xining Bureau,” in Hengzhou (modern-day Hengyang). The bureau’s annual output was significant, reaching up to 200,000 strings of coins. Coins from this bureau, such as the Xining Yuanbao with the character “Heng” on the reverse, are relatively rare. Their quality, however, tends to vary considerably.

In the early years of Emperor Shenzong Zhao Xu’s reign during the Northern Song Dynasty, he faced significant challenges, including an overstaffed bureaucracy and military, as well as the need for increased revenue to fund military campaigns. In response, Shenzong decided to support the reformist faction, known as the “New Policies” group, led by Wang Anshi. However, Wang Anshi’s series of rapid and sweeping reforms caused further domestic unrest and provoked strong opposition from the conservative faction, represented by Sima Guang.

In AD 1084, as Emperor Shenzong lay on his deathbed, he appointed Sima Guang from the conservative faction to serve as regent for the crown prince, effectively acknowledging the failure of Wang Anshi’s reforms. Nonetheless, the conflict between the reformist and conservative factions only intensified in the years that followed.

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: A1256

年代: 公元 1075-1077 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 24.57 x 24.43 mm

重量: 3.81 g

製造地: 衡陽，湖南

來源: 大城郵幣社 2016

這是北宋的第六任皇帝神宗，以其第一個年號鑄造的「熙寧元寶」。神宗在位期間十八年，先後使用過兩個年號。

錢幣形制為典型的方孔錢。錢幣正面按順時針順序，依序以隸書書法鐫刻「熙寧元寶」四字。錢幣背面的上方有一個「衡」字，代表這一枚錢幣於湖南衡陽鑄造。熙寧元寶按書法差異，分為隸書、行書和篆書三種版本。

熙寧8年(公元1075年)，宋神宗於衡州(今衡陽)增設專責鑄錢的錢監「熙寧監」，發行量一年能達到20萬貫十分可觀。這種背面帶「衡」字的熙寧元寶數量較為稀少，品質多半良莠不齊。

宋神宗趙頊登基初年，面對北宋國內官員和軍隊冗員眾多的問題，以及斂取更多財產以應付對外用兵的需求，決定重用以王安石為代表的新黨。然而王安石一連串的倉促改革，卻導致國內更大的動盪和司馬光為代表舊黨的反撲。公元1084年，宋神宗彌留之際，指定舊黨司馬光輔佐太子，等於承認王安石變法失敗，但新舊兩黨之間的衝突卻越演越烈。

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。