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1 Shu 'Ansei Isshugin'

Issuer Ginza (Tokyo Silver Mint), Tokugawa Shogunate
Year 1854-1865
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Value 1 Shu (1⁄16)
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Obverse description Rectangular flan with a border of raised pellets encircling the entire perimeter. Four kanji characters arranged vertically in two columns across the central field, reading 常銀是座 (Joginza, denoting the Ginza silver mint authority). Superimposed at the upper centre is an incuse countermark stamp bearing the single character 定 (Jo), certifying authenticity and quality. The hammered surface displays a characteristic striated texture throughout the field.
Obverse script Chinese (traditional, regular script)
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The Ansei Isshugin was struck following the forced opening of Japanese ports under the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854, a direct response to Commodore Perry's expedition. Foreign merchants exploited the exchange rate between Japanese gold and silver — drastically out of alignment with global ratios — to drain the country of gold coins at enormous profit. The Shogunate's monetary reforms during this decade were partly an attempt to stem that hemorrhage, though they proved largely ineffective before the system collapsed entirely at the Meiji Restoration.

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