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2 Cash - Yuanfeng Tongbao, Running script, with crescent, iron
| Issuer | Empire of China |
|---|---|
| Year | 1078-1085 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| 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 |
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| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Chinese (traditional, running script) |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain reverse field surrounding the central square hole, with a single crescent-shaped mark (moon crescent) positioned above the hole with the opening facing downward. The reverse is otherwise uninscribed, with raised inner and outer rims framing the flat field. The crescent serves as a mint or furnace identifier mark, characteristic of Song dynasty iron cash varieties. |
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| Additional information |
The Yuanfeng reign period (1078–1085) under Emperor Shenzong of the Northern Song was marked by the contentious implementation of Wang Anshi's New Policies — a sweeping fiscal reform program that included, critically, an expansion of iron cash production to supplement the chronic copper shortage. Iron coinage was struck at regional foundries rather than centralized mints, which accounts for the considerable die variety across surviving specimens. The crescent mark on this piece likely identifies a specific furnace or casting supervisor, a practice used for quality accountability that numismatists have only partially decoded.
Hartill 16.256 is among the scarcer die varieties of the Yuanfeng iron series. The running script rendering is notably less common than the seal script issues from the same reign.