Digital museum showcasing the collection of worldwide legends over the years! 千古不朽博物館展示多年來收藏的世界傳奇故事!
Qing Dynasty
Guangxu Tongbao
Bao Zhe Bureau
(Unclear Characters &Privately Minted Version)
清 光緒通寶
寶浙局造
(文字不清私鑄版)
Item number: A1102
Year: AD 1875-1908
Material: Brass
Size: 21.2 x 21.0 x.1.2 mm
Weight: 3.05 g
Manufactured by: Bao Zhe Bureau
Provenance:
1. Noonans 2022
2. D. L. F. Sealy Collection
This coin is suspected to be a “Guangxu Tongbao.” Its distinguishing features include significant deterioration around the square hole and the inscriptions on the coin’s surface.
The obverse of this coin features a central square hole. The inscriptions surrounding the hole are heavily damaged, but it is roughly identifiable as the four characters “Guangxu Tongbao.” The reverse side also has a central square hole, with slight angular discrepancies at the four corners and some damage to the slopes inside the hole. On both sides of the coin, faint traces of Manchu script reading “Bao Zhe” can be discerned, indicating that it was minted by the Bao Zhe Bureau.
The Bao Zhe Bureau was initially established in the 6th year of the Shunzhi reign (AD 1649) under the administration of the Zhejiang Provincial Government. It was originally named the “Zhejiang Provincial Bureau” but was later renamed during the Yongzheng period when minting factories were uniformly designated with the character “Bao” in their names.
During the Qing Dynasty, currency was issued by various regional mints, and measures such as adding or closing mints and reducing the number of furnaces were used to control the circulation of currency. Due to insufficient copper production in Zhejiang, the operations of the Bao Zhe Bureau were intermittent.
In the Xianfeng era, the government began minting high-denomination coins with nominal values, but the issuance of these large coins ironically increased opportunities for private minting. In the 10th year of Guangxu’s reign (AD 1884), various provinces resumed the production of standard coins to stabilise the market economy.
Meanwhile, Zhejiang gradually adopted machine minting techniques, starting with the Zhejiang Arsenal in the 13th year of Guangxu’s reign (AD 1887) and later, in the 29th year of Guangxu (AD 1903), with the establishment of the Zhejiang Copper Coin Bureau. This development led to the gradual cessation of traditional minting practises at the Bao Zhe Bureau.
Although the reverse side of this coin bears the official mint mark of “Baozhe Bureau,” its overall appearance shows significant damage. In particular, the central square hole and the inscriptions are severely eroded, raising the possibility that this coin might be a forgery.