Catalog
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| Issuer | Northern Song Dynasty |
|---|---|
| Year | 1101-1106 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 聖 寶 宋 元 (Translation: Sheng Song Yuan Bao Imperial Song / Original currency) |
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| Mintage | ND (1101-1106) - Hartill#16.393: Bao with dot feet - ND (1101-1106) - Hartill#16.394: Bao with claw feet; regular Song - ND (1101-1106) - Hartill#16.395: Bao with claw feet; oblique Song - |
| Additional information |
Shengsong Yuanbao was issued under Emperor Huizong in the first years of his reign, before his administration settled into the political and artistic preoccupations that would define — and ultimately doom — the Northern Song court. The running script calligraphy on this type is attributed to Huizong himself, part of a broader court practice of having the emperor provide reign title inscriptions directly for coinage dies. Huizong was an accomplished calligrapher, and his hand is considered genuinely distinguishable across the several script styles produced during his reign.
The 2 cash denomination saw relatively brief production within the Shengsong series before larger denominations and subsequent reign titles displaced it.