5 Cash - Xuantong Pattern, copper

Produced in the final year of the Qing dynasty, this pattern was struck as the imperial government scrambled to modernize its coinage infrastructure — an effort overtaken by the Wuchang Uprising of October 1911 and the abdication of the Xuantong Emperor in February 1912. The piece never entered circulation. Patterns from this reign are complicated by the involvement of multiple provincial mints alongside the Tianjin Central Mint, and attributing specific dies to specific facilities remains contested among specialists.

Hsu's reference remains the more granular guide for Qing patterns of this type; Y#26 conflates several die varieties that Hsu distinguishes separately.