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4 Mon 'Bunkyūeihō' Bosen, tin alloy, cursive script, KŌKAKU KATSUEN
| Issuer | Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1863-1868 |
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| Reference(s) | KM# Pn10 |
| Obverse description | Round cast tin-alloy coin featuring a central square hole surrounded by the four-character legend 文久永寶 (Bunkyū Eihō) rendered in flowing cursive (grass script / sōsho) style Chinese characters. The legend is arranged in the traditional East Asian coin format: one character above, one below, and one to each side of the central aperture. The character 攵 (variant of 文) appears above the hole, 久 below, 永 to the right, and 寶 to the left. The broad, wide rim (kōkaku katsuen) is a defining feature of this mother-coin (bosen) pattern, distinguishing it from circulation issues. The field and characters display the smooth, slightly lustrous surface characteristic of a tin-alloy casting master. |
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| Obverse script | Chinese |
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| Additional information |
The Bunkyu Eiho 4 mon pieces in tin were trial issues — pattern coins, not circulating currency — produced as the Tokugawa shogunate experimented with alternative compositions during a period of acute copper shortages. The Kōkaku Katsuen attribution identifies the specific casting authority, a detail that matters for provenance within a series where multiple foundries produced nearly indistinguishable types. Tin was ultimately rejected for general circulation, making the surviving examples products of administrative deliberation rather than monetary deployment.