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5 Sen - Shōwa Pattern
| Issuer | Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1938 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 5 Sen (0.05 JPY) |
| 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 |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 錢 五 (Translation: Five sen) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Chinese |
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| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
This is a pattern strike, not a circulation issue — Japan was searching for a cheaper coinage material as military expenditure consumed an ever-greater share of the national budget in the lead-up to and during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Aluminium was the leading candidate precisely because it was being aggressively stockpiled for aircraft production, which made its eventual adoption for coinage a bureaucratic balancing act between the navy, the army, and the mint.
The aluminium 5 sen did reach circulation, but not until 1940. The 1938 date places this piece in the trial phase, before the alloy was formally approved.