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5 Yen - Meiji Pattern
| Issuer | Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1870 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Obverse description | A boldly rendered coiled dragon occupies the central field, enclosed within a beaded inner circle. The dragon is depicted in high relief, facing right with an open mouth, rendered in a traditional East Asian style with detailed scales and claws. Chinese characters arranged in the outer annulus above read 'Great Japan, Year 3 of Meiji,' while the denomination 'Five Yen' (五圓) appears in large characters below the beaded circle. Two raised dots punctuate the legend at left and right, and the entire design is contained within a plain raised rim. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 年 三 治 明 · 本 日 大 · 圓 五 · (Translation: Great Japan · Year 3 of Meiji · Five Yen ·) |
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| Additional information |
This 1870 pattern was produced as Japan's new Meiji government worked to establish a Western-style decimal coinage system, a process formalized by the New Currency Act of May 1871. The 1870 patterns preceded that legislation, meaning this piece was struck before the legal framework for the coins it was testing even existed.
KM#Pn18 is among several gold pattern denominations from this period evaluated for the inaugural Meiji coinage series. Surviving examples are exceedingly rare, as patterns were produced in minimal quantities for official review rather than circulation.