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10 Cash - Qianyuan Zhongbao
| Issuer | Tang Dynasty |
|---|---|
| Year | 758-759 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 10 Cash |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Cast copper cash coin with a central square perforation surrounded by a raised square rim. Four large clerical-script (lishu) characters are arranged in the traditional cross pattern around the central hole: 乾 (top), 重 (right), 寶 (left), and 元 (bottom), reading clockwise as 乾元重寶. The boldly rendered characters exhibit the characteristic flat-topped strokes and angular forms of Tang-period clerical script. The coin is bounded by a raised outer rim and an inner rim flanking the square hole, with a flat, unadorned field between the inscriptions and the periphery. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain reverse with a central square perforation enclosed by a well-defined raised square boss. The field between the inner square and the outer rim is flat and unadorned, displaying no inscription, symbols, or mint marks. The surface shows characteristic casting texture with patchy dark patination across the field, and the outer rim is raised and clearly defined. This plain reverse is typical of the standard 10-cash Qianyuan Zhongbao type as catalogued by Hartill. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
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| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Issued by imperial decree in 758 under Emperor Suzong as an emergency fiscal measure during the An Lushan Rebellion, the Qianyuan Zhongbao was assigned a face value of ten cash — ten times a standard single-cash piece — while containing far less than ten times the copper. The scheme was a deliberate debasement, and the population knew it. Merchants refused the coins at face value almost immediately, and within months a second variety valued at fifty cash was introduced, compounding the problem.
The resulting monetary chaos forced a formal revaluation in 759, collapsing the ten-cash piece to a single-cash in official exchange. Production ceased shortly after.