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10 Cash Yongtong Quanhuo, bronze
| Issuer | Southern Tang Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 959-964 |
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| Composition | Bronze |
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| Obverse description | Four Chinese characters in regular script (kaishu) are arranged in cruciform around a central square hole, reading top to bottom and right to left: 永 (Yong), 通 (Tong), 貨 (Huo), 泉 (Quan), together forming the legend 永通泉貨 (Yongtong Quanhuo, meaning 'Eternally Circulating Coin'). The boldly cast characters occupy the four quadrants of the coin field, each flanked by the inner rim of the square perforation and the raised outer rim. The coin displays a broad, well-defined outer rim and a relatively large square central hole characteristic of high-denomination Southern Tang cash coinage. The fields show a smooth, slightly concave surface with traces of verdigris patination consistent with age. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Chinese (traditional, regular script) |
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| Additional information |
The Southern Tang issued these large-denomination cast bronzes in the final years of the kingdom, a period of acute fiscal pressure as the state hemorrhaged territory to the expanding Song. The Yongtong Quanhuo ("Perpetual Currency of Overflowing Goods") was an explicitly inflationary move — a 10-cash piece tariffed far above its metal value to fund military expenditure against Zhou and later Song incursions. The kingdom fell to Song forces in 975, making the entire production window for this type less than two decades.