Until the 19th century, Japan was a feudal state, which, despite the presence of the Emperor in the country, was actually ruled by military rulers - the shoguns. At the beginning of the second half of the 19th century, the political situation in Japan escalated, and in 1867 a peaceful transfer of power was carried out from the shoguns to the Emperor. Adherents of the "shogunate" form of government, disagreeing with this decision, made unsuccessful attempts to armed resistance to the new government, but by 1869 the last dissatisfied were forced to admit defeat.
The 122nd Emperor of Japan Mutsuhito (睦仁), when he ascended the Japanese throne, turned 15 years old. This did not stop him and his government from introducing reforms called the Meiji Renewal, which allowed Japan to transform from a backward, isolated agrarian country from the outside world into one of the world's leading economies. "Meiji" (明治) is the motto of the Emperor, which means "enlightened rule," and also refers to the era of his reign and the posthumous name of the Emperor.
Emperor Mutsuhito of Japan (reigned 1867-1912).
In 1870, the Japanese Empire carried out a monetary reform, the result of which was the introduction of the yen as a national currency to replace the Tokugawa monetary system that had existed since 1603.
C # 7, 100 Mon 1835 (ND), Bronze, 484 M Ex., Single Year of Manufacture
At the same time, the circulation of clan paper money was canceled, which was issued by "everyone who is not lazy": 244 clans, 14 magistrates and 9 servants of the shogunate (a total of 1,694 denominations). The name of the yen currency itself came from China and is called "yuan" in Chinese. The fractional derivatives of yen were rin - 1⁄1000 yen and sen - 1⁄100 yen.
On coins of Japan, dating comes from the beginning of the reign of the next Emperor, that is, for example, for Emperor Mutsuhito, the number "3" indicated on the coin indicates the 3rd year of the Meiji era or 1870 according to the Gregorian chronology. The Japanese also borrowed the numbers from China.
Here are their designations 1 (一), 2 (二), 3 (三), 4 (四), 5 (五), 6 (六), 7 (七), 8 (八), 9 (九), 10 (十)
Coins of the first issue of 1870, 1871 depicted a dragon on the obverse and a large sun on the reverse. Coins were issued in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50 sen and 1 yen on silver blanks of 800 samples.
Y # 6.2, 5 Sep 1871 (4) "late type," silver 0.800, 1.7 M ex, single year of issue
Y # 2, 10 Sep 1870 (3) "deep flakes," silver 0.800, 6.1 M ex. only year of issue
Y # 3, 20 Sep 1870 (3) "fine flakes," silver 0.800, 4.3 M ex, single year of manufacture
Y # 4a.1, 50 Sep 1871 (4) "circle 19 mm," silver 0.800, 2.6 M ex. years 1870-1871
For the first time, a new denomination appeared in the coin line of the second issue - rin, produced until 1884.
Y # 15, Rin 1883 (17), Copper, 14 M equivalent, years 1873-1884.
Copper coins in ½, 1 and 2 hay were issued in two types: from 1873 to 1877 with "rectangular" scales on the dragon, and from 1877 to 1888 with "triangular." Instead of the large "Sun," the reverse depicts a chrysanthemum at the top and a floristic ornament on the sides of the face value in the Japanese version of the spelling of the numeral.
"Rectangular" scales.
Y # 16.1, ½ Sep 1876 (9), copper, 24.3 M equivalent, years 1873-1877
Y # 17.1, 1 Sep 1877 (10), copper, 98 M ex, years 1873-1877
Y # 18.1, 2 Sep 1875 (8), copper, 22.8 M ex, years 1873-1877
"Triangular" scales.
Y # 16.2, ½ Sep 1877 (10), copper, 29.3 M ex, years 1877-1888
Y # 17.2, 1 Sep 1883 (16), copper, 47.6 M ex. years 1880-1888
Y # 18.2, 2 Sep 1882 (15), copper, 43.6 M ex, years 1877-1884
The design of silver coins follows the design of copper ones. Silver sample 0.800 for coins in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50 sen, and 0.900 for coins in 1 yen.
Y # 22, 5 Sep 1875 (8), Silver 0.800, 6.4 M ex. years 1873-1880
Y # 23, 10 Sep 1885 (18), silver 0.800, 9.8 M ex, years 1873-1906
Y # 24, 20 Sep 1899 (32), silver 0.800, 15 M ex, years 1873-1905
Y # 25, 50 Sep 1898 (31), Silver 0.800, 22.8 M ex. years 1873-1905
Y # A25.3, 1 yen 1904 (37), silver 0.900, 7 million ex. years 1886-1912
Coins in denominations of 1 yen in the period from 1874 to 1887 had a diameter of 38.6 mm. and weight 29.96, and in the period from 1886 to 1912 - a diameter of 38.1 mm. and a weight of 26.96 g.
On the third, and last, variety of coins issued during the reign of Emperor Mutsuhito, on the obverse of the coins, the image of the "Dragon" replaced the "Sun."
Y # 20, 1 Sep 1899 (32), Bronze, 9.8 M ex. years 1898-1902
In 1889-1897, a coin of 5 sen was issued on copper-nickel blanks in the original design. The reverse depicts the now large Chrysanthemum.
Y # 19, 5 Sep 1890 (23), copper-nickel alloy, 39.3 M equivalent, years 1889-1897
Starting in 1897, the design of copper-nickel 5 sen changed and began to look more like a 1 sen coin.
Y # 21, 5 Sep 1899 (32) , copper-nickel alloy, 10.7 M equivalent, years 1889-1897
Silver coins of the same line.
Y # 29, 10 Sep 1908 (41), Silver 0.720, 12.3 M ex. years 1907-1912
Y # 30, 20 Sep 1910 (43), silver 0.800, 21.2 M ex. years 1906-1911
Y # 31, 50 Sep 1911 (44), Silver 0.720, 9.9 M ex. years 1906-1912
In 1912, Emperor Mutsuhito passed away. His third son Yoshihito (嘉仁) ascended the throne of Imperial Japan. The motto of the reign is "Taisho" (大正) (great justice). The same is the posthumous name and name of the era of government.
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Emperor Yoshihito of Japan (reigned 1912-1926).
A coin with a face value of 5 rin has not yet been issued before it.
Y # 41, 5 Rin 1916 (5), Bronze, 8 M Ex., years of issue 1916-1919.
The monarch did not rule for long, but managed to release a couple of varieties of each of the denominations.
The 1 sen coin was originally issued in a design similar to the 1 sen coin issued in the last years of the reign of Emperor Mutsuhito (see Y # 20).
Y # 35, 1 Sep 1915 (4), Bronze, 13 M ex. years 1913-1915
Then, in 1916, the coin was issued in a completely different style. The obverse depicts a composition of paulownia and cherry leaves.
Y # 42, 1 Sep 1919 (8), Bronze, 210 M ex. years 1916-1924
The 5 sen coin also took on a new look and received a blank with a hole in the middle. Coins were issued in two versions, differing only in diameter.
Y # 43, 5 Sep 1920 (9), copper-nickel alloy, diameter 20.6 mm., 22 million equivalent, years of production 1917-1920
Y # 44, 5 Sep 1922 (11), copper-nickel alloy, diameter 19.1 mm., 164 million equivalent, production years 1920-1923
10 Sep until 1917, 720 samples were now produced from silver, and, starting from 1920, as well as 5 Sep in copper-nickel, moreover, made in a similar style to it.
Y # 36.2, 10 Sep 1917 (6), Silver 0.720, 35.2 M ex. years 1913-1917
Y # 45, 10 Sep 1920 (9), copper-nickel alloy, 4.9 M equivalent, production years 1920-1926
50 Sep of the first type initially continued to be produced in the type Y # 31. The same sample and design, differing only in the name of the motto of the board.
Y # 37.2, 50 Sep 1916 (5), silver 0.800, 8.7 M ex, years 1913-1917
On the reverse of 50 sen coins of the second type, a new character appears - two phoenix birds.
Y # 46, 50 Sep 1925 (14), Silver 0.720, 47.8 M ex. years 1922-1926
Shortly before Yoshihito's death, in 1921, his son Hirohito (裕仁), who became Emperor in 1926, was appointed regent for the seriously ill Emperor.
Emperor Hirohito of Japan (reigned 1926-1989).
The era of Hirohito's rule - "Showa" (昭和), which translates as "Enlightened World," fell on World War II, where Japan pursued an aggressive policy in its region, justifying its actions by the decisiveness of taking measures against the penetration of communist influences on the Japanese nation. Speaking on the side of Germany, Japan lost the war, but this did not affect the further rule of Hirohito as Emperor.
The first issue "by tradition" repeated the design of the coins of the previous monarch.
Y # 47, 1 Sep 1936 (11), Bronze, 109.2 M ex. years 1927-1938
Y # 48, 5 Sep 1932 (7), Copper-Nickel Alloy, 8 MMexe, Single Year of Manufacture
Y # 49, 10 Sep 1928 (3), copper-nickel alloy, 41.5 M equivalent, production years 1927-1932
Y # 50, 50 Sep 1932 (7), Silver 0.720, 24.1 M ex. years 1928-1938
While 50 sen continued to be produced unchanged until the outbreak of World War II, the design of small denominations in 1, 5 and 10 sen was periodically updated.
In 1933, coins were issued on pure nickel blanks . Their coinage had to be completed in 1938, as Japan entered large-scale hostilities in Southeast Asia and China and nickel was required for military needs.
Y # 53, 5 Sep 1933 (8), nickel, 16.2 M ex. years 1933-1937
Y # 54, 10 Sep 1936 (11), nickel, 78 M ex. years 1933-1937
The line of junior denominations was updated in 1938. The 1 sen coin was first issued in bronze, and then in aluminum.
Y # 55, 1 Sep 1938 (13), Bronze, 113.6 million exes, single year of issue.
Y # 56, 1 Sep 1940 (15), Aluminium, 601.1 M ex. years 1938-1940
5 and 10 sen began to be produced on aluminum-bronze alloy blanks, which had not been used before when issuing coins in Japan.
Y # 57, 5 Sep 1938 (13), aluminum-bronze alloy, 40 MM equivalent, years 1938-1940
Y # 58, 10 Sep 1938 (13), aluminum-bronze alloy, 47 MMexe, years 1938-1940
In 1940, all coins were issued in aluminum.
Y # 59, 1 Sep 1941 (16), aluminium, 1.017 BCM, years 1941-1943
Y # 60, 5 Sep 1942 (17), aluminium, 478 M ex. years 1940-1943
Y # 61, 10 Sep 1942 (17), aluminium, 944.9 M ex. years 1940-1943
Coins of the 1944 model were issued in a new design on tin-zinc blanks.
Y # 62, 1 Sep 1944 (19), tin-zinc alloy, 1.630 billion equivalent, years of production 1944-1945
Y # 63, 5 Sep 1944 (19), tin-zinc alloy, 70 MMexe, single year of manufacture
Y # 64, 10 Sep 1944 (19), Tin-Zinc Alloy, 450M equivalent, Single Year of Manufacture
In 1945, 5 sen and 10 sen of aluminum with a new legend were produced in the same metal. The name of the state "Great Japan" (大日本) on the coins changed the inscription "Government of Japan" (日本政府).
Y # 65, 5 Sep 1945 (20), Tin-Zinc Alloy, 180 MM equivalent, years 1945-1946
Y # 66, 10 Sep 1945 (20), Aluminium, 237.6M equivalent, years 1945-1946
Issued in 1946, the 50 sen coin with the same legend was the last coin of the Empire of Japan.
Y # 67, 50 Sep 1946 (21), brass, 268.2 M ex. years 1946-1947
Since 1947, with the adoption of the new Constitution, the name of Japan has been replaced by the "State of Japan" (日本国 ). The Great Japanese Empire ceased to exist.
The history of the Japanese Empire of that period cannot be considered in isolation from the history of its closest neighbor - the Korean Empire (한제).