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2 Mun Kum; Infinite Time
| Issuer | Joseon (1392-1897) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1753 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 2 Mun (0.002) |
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| 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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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Chinese (traditional, regular script) |
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| Reverse description | The reverse displays Chinese characters arranged around the central square perforation, serving as mint and denomination marks. The character 禁 (Kum), denoting the Court Guard Military Unit (Geumo) responsible for minting, appears at the top. The character 宙 (Chu), meaning infinite or boundless time, appears at the bottom. A crescent-shaped symbol is present at the right of the central hole, serving as an additional mint or batch identifier. The characters are cast in regular script consistent with standard Joseon cash coinage practice of the mid-eighteenth century. |
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| Additional information |
The "Infinite Time" (無窮) designation on this 2 Mun issue refers not to mystical ambition but to a specific furnace authorization system used by the Joseon court to manage the chronic copper shortages of the mid-18th century. Minting rights were parceled out to Buddhist temples, military offices, and government bureaus under rotating permits — the inscription identified the issuing authority's casting series rather than a denomination variant.
By 1753, Joseon's monetary policy was still recovering from the chaotic over-issuance that followed the 1678 introduction of the Sangpyeong Tongbo coinage system. Provincial casting quality varied wildly across authorized furnaces.