Catalog
1 Cash - Thiên Phúc Trấn Bảo
| Issuer | Empire of Vietnam |
|---|---|
| Year | 986-1005 |
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| Currency | Cash (970-1868) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Cast copper cash coin featuring a central square hole surrounded by a plain raised rim on both inner and outer borders. Four Chinese characters in regular script (kaishu) are arranged in cruciform fashion around the central perforation, reading top to bottom and right to left: 天 (Thiên) at top, 寶 (Bảo) at bottom, 鎮 (Trấn) at right, and 福 (Phúc) at left, together forming the reign era legend Thiên Phúc Trấn Bảo. The characters are boldly cast in relief against a flat field, displaying the typical style of early Vietnamese imperial coinage. The coin shows a green-grey patina consistent with aged copper alloy. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 天福鎮寶 (Translation: Thiên Phúc Trấn Bảo — Thiên Phúc era of Lê Hoàn, 980-988 / Local currency) |
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| Additional information |
Issued under Lê Hoàn, founder of the Early Lê dynasty, who seized power in 980 following the death of Đinh Tiên Hoàng and repelled a Song Chinese invasion the same year. The Thiên Phúc reign period — from which this cash takes its name — ran until 988, though coins bearing the type continued circulating well beyond that date under his rule, which lasted until 1005.
The Toda#3 variety designation signals minor calligraphic differences in the inscription casting, a common source of confusion in Vietnamese cash attributions where mold-made production introduced subtle but catalogable variations across workshop runs.