Exploring Historical Narratives of Two Chinese Coins from University of Regina Collection

In this blog post, Student Research Assistant Sisi Li delves into the historical narratives of two Chinese coins from the University of Regina Collection at the MacKenzie Art Gallery. These coins were donated to the University by Norman MacKenzie upon his passing in 1936.

Norman MacKenzie mntned a small collection of Chinese coins during the early twentieth century, which spanned various eras and regions within China. focuses on examining two of these remarkable coins that bear stories from different historical periods.

Figure 1 presents a Shangh silver coin minted in 1856 Fig. 1. Inscribed Xian Feng Liu Nian, Shang H Xian Hao, Shang Wang Yong Sheng, Zu Wen Yin Bing, the text elucidates its production in Shangh during Emperor Xianfeng’s sixth year 1856, with Wang Yongsheng as the manufacturer and it valued at one tael. A tael was a former unit of currency used in China, equivalent to the weight of standard silver.

In 1856, Shangh issued sets of silver coins bearing the names of three shipping companies: Wang Yongsheng, Yu Sensheng, and Jing Zhengji, each produced by their respective entities Fig. 2. The coin surface features no graphics but is adorned with text, indicating the year, location, manufacturer, supervisor name, craftsman’s name, color, weight, and other detls. With four lines of characters, each line consisting of four characters totalling thirty-two, this silver coin from Norman MacKenzie's collection is among the six types produced by the powerful Wang Yongsheng company.

Historically, Shangh issued these coins for two reasons in 1856: to address a shortage of circulating currency and as an attempt to boycott Mexican silver coins. Prior to China’s enactment of national currency regulations in 1914, Mexican silver coins were heavily circulated throughout the country due to their universally recognized monetary value不受国家边界限制。Furthermore, paper money's circulation relied on government coercion and the issuing bank's credit beyond governmental control. Unlike paper money, gold and silver retned inherent value.

A November 29, 1856 report in Shangh’s English newspaper Beihua Jiebao states that Shangh also promoted Mexican silver coins alongside Shangh silver coins. The Shangh government successfully manufactured a batch of these coins featuring intricate designs; each one weighs one tael. Although the people were expected to accept them, their impact on commerce was minimal due to only 3,000 pieces being produced monthly.

The Xianfeng Silver Coin is notably rare and all carry Xianfeng six years inscriptions. Their issuance duration of just half a year indicates a lack of smooth production process. Upon release, counterfeit versions soon flooded the market; thus, the Shangh government subsequently announced an to their issuance. Coupled with low output and high costs, these coins struggled to compete agnst Mexican coins in circulation at that time.

References:

Weidong Guo 2019. Chinese Coins and Mexican Silver Coins: The Circulation of Foreign Currencies in China 本洋”与“鹰洋”：近代流通中国主要外币的替换, FuJian LunTan 社会科学版, No.72019: 101-112.

Shen Baohe 2017. Journal of Ren Mo Shu Tui Zhi Zh忍默恕退之斋日记稿, Collection of Manuscripts and Notebooks and Diaries in Shangh Library 上海图书馆藏稿钞本日记丛刊 全86册 National Library of China Publishing House: Vol. 23.

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