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1 Bu Gin Ansei
| Issuer | Tokugawa Shogunate |
|---|---|
| Year | 1859-1868 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Irregular rectangular hammered silver flan with a deeply struck rectangular inner border framing the central field. Three large Kanji characters are arranged vertically in relief: 一 (Ichi, One) at the top, 分 (Bu, the denomination) in the center, and 銀 (Gin, Silver) at the base, together reading 一分銀 (Ichibu-gin, One Bu Silver). As on the obverse, the border is densely ornamented with a repeated row of incuse six-petalled floral stamps, consistent across all four sides. The flan edges are irregular, reflecting the hand-cut and hammered production method of the Ginza mint during the Ansei era. |
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| Mint | Ginza (Silver Mint) |
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| Additional information |
The Bu Gin series was minted in direct response to the forced opening of Japanese ports under the Harris Treaty of 1858, which created an immediate crisis: foreign merchants discovered they could exploit the official gold-to-silver exchange rate and drain Japan's gold reserves through arbitrage. The Shogunate debased the silver coinage to close the gap, and the Ansei Bu — named for the era — was the instrument of that adjustment. It circulated through the final convulsions of Tokugawa rule, surviving into the Meiji transition before being demonetized.
The .873 fineness reflects a deliberate reduction from earlier Bu coinage, a compromise the Shogunate's finance officials calculated would neutralize foreign arbitrage without triggering domestic panic.