Item number: A737

Year: AD 1735-1796

Material: Brass

Size: 16.8 x 16.6 x 1.0 mm

Weight: 1.7 g

Manufactured by: Bao Yuan Bureau

Provenance:

1. Noonans 2022

2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection

This is a “Qianlong Tongbao,” a square-holed coin issued by the Bao Yuan Bureau under the administration of the Ministry of Works during the reign of Qianlong, the sixth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, from AD 1735 to AD 1796.

This coin has been deliberately damaged, leaving only the inner rim where the inscriptions are located. On the obverse, the inner rim bears the Chinese characters “Qianlong Tongbao” (乾隆通寶). On the reverse, the inner rim is inscribed with the Manchu script “ᠪᠣᠣ ᠶᡠᠸᠠᠨ” (Bao Yuan).

Since the Warring States period, there has been a practice in China known as “removing copper from coins,” where individuals would profit by grinding or cutting copper from coins. During the Eastern Han dynasty, “borderless molds” were even used to produce coins without edges, leading to severe inflation and economic disorder.

In the early Qianlong period, the value of silver was low, and copper coins were highly valued, creating an incentive for the practice of edge-clipping coins. By removing copper through edge-clipping and then returning the clipped coins to circulation, individuals could maximize their profits.

物件編號: A737

年代: 公元 1735-1796 年

材質: 黃銅

尺寸: 16.8 x 16.6 x 1.0 mm

重量: 1.7 g

製造地: 寶源局

來源:

1. 諾南斯 2022

2. 大衛.萊斯利.福布斯.西利舊藏

這是清朝第六任皇帝乾隆在位期間(公元1735至1796年)，由工部管轄的「寶源局」發行之「乾隆通寶」，其外觀為方孔錢。

此枚錢幣的外廓被人為破壞僅存內緣文字。正面的內廓鐫刻漢字「乾隆通寶」四字。背面的內廓則鐫刻滿文「ᠪᠣᠣ ᠶᡠᠸᠠᠨ」（寶源）二字。

中國從戰國以來，就有「損錢取銅」的情形，透過磨、剪等方式，從銅錢上獲取利益。東漢時甚至出現，「無邊模具」直接生產製造無邊的銅錢，導致嚴重的通貨膨上與經濟混亂。乾隆前期銀賤錢貴，在利益驅使下，出現剪邊錢也是情有可原。透過剪邊獲得的銅料，再將剪邊錢放回市場流通，以獲得更多的利益。