
This
undated copper 1 Mon coin of Japan was minted in the mid 18th century,
a time when the power of the
Shoguns was at its
peak.
It is in the traditional "cash coin" style featuring a round coin with
a square center hole. The round is said to represent heaven,
while
the square represents the earth, thus the coin is a perfect combination
of heaven and earth. A more realistic explanation is that because
the coin was cast, the square center hole made it easier file off the
casting
flans. Either way, it is an inexpensive and historic coin from
this
important period of Japanese history.

AN
UNUSUAL JAPANESE COIN
SILVER
COINS OF THE SHOGUNS OF JAPAN
These two unusual rectangular silver coins were issued
during the waning days
of the once powerful Shoguns of Japan. New ideas from the West
were
undermining the Shoguns authority. The small silver 1 Shu
was
issued from 1853 until 1865. The larger coin is a 1 Bu, which is
equivalent of 4 Shu. It was issued from 1837 to 1868. In 1867 the Meiji
restoration took place, overthrowing the Shoguns and opening Japan to
modernization.
These unusual undated, rectangular coins were soon replaced by the
modern
round coins.
GOLD
COIN OF THE MEJI RESORATION
This
rectangular gold 2 Bu (Ni Bu) was
minted in Japan in 1868 and 1869.
It was one of the first coins of the Meiji Restoration. The Meiji
Restoration
overthew the highly traditional and once powerful Shogun warlords and
restored
the Emperor as the center of the Japanese government. It
was also a modernization movement, that opened Japan to western ideas.
A
few years after this coin was introduced, Japan adopted western style
round
coins, so these coins were soon withdrawn from circulation and many
were
melted. The coin weighs approximately 3 grams. It is
an
interesting and historic gold coin that represents the end of Japan's
traditional
ways under the Shoguns and the introduction of new ways under the Meiji
Restoration.

2008 JNDA, THE CATALOG OF
JAPANESE COINS AND BANKNOTES
WWII
JAPANESE INVASION MONEY
JAPANESE
PUPPET STATE ISSUES FOR CHINA
FIBER COIN
FROM MANCHUKUO
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