Catalog
5 Silver Yen
| Issuer | Nippon Ginko / Bank of Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1888 |
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| Currency | Yen (1871-date) |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 日本銀行兌換銀券 五圓 第壱号 六壱九九九 |
| Reverse description | Printed in green on cream paper, the reverse carries a large ornate numeral 5 vignette at left composed of fine guilloche lacework. At upper centre, the issuer name NIPPON GINKO is rendered in decorative Roman lettering flanked by foliate ornaments. A flowing script inscription occupies the right field, and two red official seal impressions in kanji appear at lower centre. |
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| Comments |
The Bank of Japan's earliest note issues were printed domestically after the government made a deliberate political decision to end reliance on German and Italian printers who had produced the preceding convertible note series. The Kobayashi Shinbundo bureau — later reorganized as the Tokyo Printing Bureau — was developing its intaglio capabilities through the late 1880s, and this note sits within that transitional production period.
Convertibility to silver was suspended in 1917, but in 1888 that promise was real. The "Silver Yen" designation was not decorative — holders could legally demand specie at the counter.