The ritsuryo code-based government minted 12 kinds of copper coins, including the Wado Kaichin. Face value of the coins was higher than the actual value of the metal they were composed of therefore the government could earn seigniorage from the mintage.įrom the 8th to 10th centuries Decline in the usage of coins The government used the coins to cover the costs of building the Heijo imperial palace. The government strived to expand the use of the coins through various measures such as rewarding those who had saved a large number of coins with a court rank. The mintage was regarded as an essential tool for the Japanese government to display the independence and the authority of the nation, both inside and outside the country.

The ritsuryo code-based government, while actively assimilating social systems and culture from China, minted the Wado Kaichin coin in 708, which was modeled after the Kai Yuan Tong Bao coin of the Tang Dynasty. The silver coins mentioned in the above rescript are thought to be the Mumon Gin-sen coins, which were unearthed at 15 or more sites in Japan (located primarily in the Kinki area).īeginning of the 8th century Issuance of Wado Kaichin The Fuhon-sen coin is thought to be the coin referred to in the following rescript mentioned in the Nihon Shoki (written in 683): “From now on, use the copper coins instead of the silver coins.” From the ruins, Fuhon-sen coins were unearthed together with the molds, pots and other instruments used to mint them. Latter half of the 7th century Coins used before the mintage of Wado KaichinĪn archaeological survey conducted at the Asukaike Ruins in 1998 revealed that coins known as Fuhon-sen had been minted in the latter half of the seventh century. However, Japan subsequently suspended the mintage and circulation of coins. Three types of copper coins were minted in the Nara period (eighth century), including the Wado Kaichin coin, and nine types in the Heian period (from the end of the eighth century). During this process, coins modeled after Chinese ones were issued.

From the end of the seventh century to the eighth century, Japan introduced various social systems from China (Tang Dynasty) in order to build a centralized government based on the “ritsuryo” code.

Ancient japanese coins