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1 Cash - Cảnh Hưng Đại Bảo
| Issuer | Empire of Vietnam |
|---|---|
| Year | 1740-1776 |
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| Composition | Copper |
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| Obverse description | Central square perforation characteristic of East Asian cash coinage, surrounded by four Chinese characters in regular script (kaishu) arranged in cruciform fashion and read in the traditional sequence: top, bottom, right, left. The four-character legend 景興大寶 (Cảnh Hưng Đại Bảo) fills the quadrants between the central hole and the plain raised rim. The characters are rendered in bold relief with a slightly coarse cast finish typical of Vietnamese Lê dynasty coinage of the period. No inner or outer rim ropes are present; the field between the characters and the rim is plain. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Chinese (traditional, regular script) |
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| Additional information |
Cảnh Hưng Đại Bảo cash coins were produced under Lê Hiển Tông, whose reign nominally spanned nearly five decades but whose actual authority was almost entirely eclipsed by the Trịnh lords governing from the north. The emperor functioned largely as a ritual figurehead while the Trịnh controlled the military and treasury. Coin production during this period was managed through Trịnh administrative channels, which accounts for the considerable variation in fabric and casting quality across surviving examples — output was decentralized and inconsistent.
Barker 77.1 distinguishes this type from several near-identical Cảnh Hưng issues by reverse configuration. The series is extensive; Toda catalogued multiple varieties across what is effectively a single long reign.