1/2 Jiao - Guangxu Pei Yang Arsenal, type 1

The Pei Yang Arsenal at Tianjin — primarily a weapons manufactory — was authorized to strike silver coinage in the 1890s as the Qing government scrambled to standardize a fractional silver currency that provincial mints had been issuing with wild inconsistency. This half-jiao was among the earliest products of that effort. The Arsenal's coining operation was always secondary to its military production mandate, which likely explains why the series was short-lived and total output remained modest.

Y#61 is distinguished from the later type by specific reverse die characteristics. Survivors in any grade above heavily circulated are genuinely scarce.