10 Yuan Year of the Rat

China's lunar silver series launched in 1981 with the Year of the Rooster, making the 1984 Rat issue the fourth in the sequence — still early enough that the People's Bank had not yet standardized production runs or distribution channels. Initial allocations went heavily toward export markets, particularly the overseas Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia and North America, meaning many examples spent their entire existence in collector hands rather than passing through domestic circulation. The .850 fineness is notably lower than the .999 fine issues the series would later adopt.