Catalog
1 Mon 'Mannentsūhō' - Junnin
| Issuer | Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 760-765 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Mon |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Cast copper cash coin of the Japanese Nara period, featuring a central square perforation surrounded by a raised square boss. Four Chinese characters are arranged in the four cardinal positions around the central hole, reading clockwise from the top: 萬 (above), 年 (right), 通 (below), 寳 (left), together forming the legend 'Mannentsūhō' (Currency of Ten-Thousand Years). The characters are rendered in regular script (kaisho) in raised relief against a flat field. The obverse is bordered by a raised inner rim encircling the square boss and an outer raised rim defining the coin's perimeter, consistent with the aesthetic conventions of Tang-influenced Japanese coinage of the 8th century. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 萬 寳 年 通 (Translation: Currency of ten-thousands years (read clockwise)) |
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| Additional information |
The Mannentsūhō was issued under Emperor Junnin in 760 as part of Japan's early imperial coinage system, its value pegged at ten times the preceding Wadōkaichin — an ambitious denomination jump that the market largely refused to accept. Hoarding began almost immediately, as holders recognized the overvaluation, and the coins disappeared from circulation within years of issue.
Junnin himself was deposed in 764 by Empress Shōtoku, exiled to Awaji Province, and dead within a year under disputed circumstances. The coinage bearing his reign effectively ended with him.