10 Cash - Zhizheng Tongbao

The Zhizheng Tongbao series was commissioned by the Yuan dynasty's last emperor, Toghon Temür, as part of a broader monetary reform effort launched around 1350 — a moment when the dynasty was already hemorrhaging control of its own territory to Red Turban rebels. The large-denomination cash coins of this issue were an attempt to stabilize a currency system collapsing under decades of paper money overissue, but the reform came far too late. Within two decades, Zhu Yuanzhang had swept the Mongols from Beijing entirely.

The 10-cash denomination is the heaviest and least commonly encountered of the series in well-preserved condition, having circulated through the final convulsions of Yuan rule.