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'Tenpō Mameitagin' Large 保
| Issuer | Japan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1837-1858 |
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| Currency | Monme Silver / Monme-Gin / Ginme (1601-1874) |
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| Obverse description | Central field dominated by a stylized depiction of Daikoku, the deity of wealth, rendered in relief in a bold, archaic hammered style characteristic of Edo-period mameitagin coinage. Above the figure, a crown-like decorative element surmounts the composition, while flanking strokes representing hakumai (rice bales) appear below, alluding to Daikoku's traditional iconography. The kanji character 保 (Hō), denoting the Tenpō era, is struck prominently within the design. The entire composition is contained within an irregular, organically shaped flan typical of bean-form silver coinage produced under the Tokugawa shogunate. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain (irregular, hammered) |
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| Additional information |
The Tenpō Mameitagin was issued by the Tokugawa shogunate in response to a severe fiscal crisis — chronic budget deficits and the near-exhaustion of higher-purity silver reserves forced a dramatic debasement from the preceding Bunsei coinage. The silver content dropped sharply, a fact the shogunate attempted to obscure through official proclamations insisting on equivalent face value. Merchants weren't fooled, and the coins were widely discounted in trade almost immediately.
The "Large 保" variety is distinguished by the oversized character in the assayer's mark, a die characteristic documented under DH#9.53 that separates it from the more common small-character strikes of the same emission period.