Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
50 Cash - Xianfeng Zhongbao, Boo-gung
| Issuer | Empire of China |
|---|---|
| Year | 1854-1857 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Cash |
| 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 |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 咸 寶 重 豐 (Translation: Xian Feng Zhong Bao Xianfeng (Emperor) / Heavy currency) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | ND (1854-1857) - Hartill#22.807: Curved Gung - ND (1854-1857) - Hartill#22.808: Straight Gung - |
| Additional information |
The Xianfeng reign (1851–1861) produced some of the most chaotic coinage in Qing dynasty history. The Taiping Rebellion had devastated tax revenues and disrupted supply chains for copper, forcing the Board of Revenue to authorize brass alloys and a proliferation of high-denomination cash — multiples of 10, 50, and 100 — to cover military expenditures. These large-denomination pieces were deeply unpopular with the public, who recognized immediately that face value bore no relationship to intrinsic metal worth.
Boo-gung denotes the Gongbu mint, the Board of Works facility in Beijing. Its output during this window was inconsistent, and 50-cash pieces from this mint are notably scarcer than equivalent issues from the Board of Revenue mint across the city.