1 Cash - Tianming Tongbao, Regular script

The Tianming Tongbao was among the first coinage issued by Nurhaci after he proclaimed the Later Jin state in 1616, marking a deliberate assertion of political legitimacy through the act of minting — a practice carrying deep institutional weight in Chinese tradition. The reign title Tianming, "Heaven's Mandate," was itself a pointed claim. Nurhaci had spent decades consolidating Jurchen tribes against Ming authority before feeling confident enough to issue coin.

Relatively few examples circulated widely; the early Jin economy remained heavily dependent on barter and silk exchange. Most specimens found today come from hoards in Liaoning province.