Shu (coin)

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Obverse Isshugin, minted between 1853 and 1865
Reverse Isshugin, original size: 15 × 9 mm

A Shu ( Japanese 朱 ) was a Japanese coin denomination that was minted in gold and silver in the 19th century. It was defined in the Japanese coin system used until 1869 as 1 ⁄ 16 Ryō or 1 ⁄ 4 Bu .

These coins, minted according to the old system, were not round, but rectangular, and seldom also square. Only the copper and iron coins, the small change, were made around the Chinese model with a square hole in the middle. The design was without images. Instead of being embossed, a character could also have been hallmarked.

There were three types of coins:

  • The Isshukin ( 一 朱 金 ) had a face value of 1 Shu ( isshu ) and consisted of 12% gold ( kin ). It was issued from 1824 ( traditional date : Bunsei 7), which is why it is also called Bunsei Isshukin ( 文 政 一 朱 金 ). However, the coinage was stopped again in 1840.
  • The Isshugin ( 一 朱 銀 ) was first marketed in 1829 (Bunsei 12) - this variant is also called Bunsei Nanryō Isshugin ( 文 政 南 鐐 一 朱 銀 ) - and consisted of 2.62 g of almost pure silver. In 1854 (Kaei 7) this was replaced by a lighter variant weighing just 1.87 g with the same nominal value, i.e. H. devalued. This coin was equivalent to 250 Mon copper coins.
  • The Nishukin ( 二 朱 金 ) had a face value of 2 Shu ( nishu ). It was first minted in 1697 (Genroku 10), but discontinued after a few years. In 1832 (Tempō 3) it was reintroduced with a greatly reduced gold content and again devalued in material in 1860 (Man'en 1).

After the Shogunherrschaft in 1867 began under the Meiji - Tenno (1868-1912), a period of profound social reforms ( Meiji Restoration ). From 1870 onwards, the system of coins was completely converted to the decimal division, circularly minted according to the western model, and the yen was introduced.

  • Bunsei Isshukin (1824-1840)

  • Bunsei Isshugin (from 1829)

  • Kaei Isshugin (from 1853)

  • Ansei Isshugin (from 1850s)

  • Kaheishi Isshugin (1868-1869)

  • Tempō Nishūkin

  • Man'en Nishūkin

See also

literature

  • Günter Schön / Jean-Francois Cartier, world coin catalog 19th century, Battenberg Verlag, 11th edition, Augsburg, 1992, page 773, 783; ISBN 3-89441-062-0

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 一 朱 金 . In: ブ リ タ ニ カ 国際 大 百科 事 典 小 項目 事 典 at kotobank.jp. Retrieved July 5, 2016 (Japanese).
  2. ↑ 一 朱 銀 . In: 世界 大 百科 事 典 第 ２ 版 at kotobank.jp. Retrieved July 5, 2016 (Japanese).
  3. ↑ 二 朱 金 . In: ブ リ タ ニ カ 国際 大 百科 事 典 小 項目 事 典 at kotobank.jp. Retrieved July 5, 2016 (Japanese).