Conveners
S76. MEDIEVAL AND MODERN TIMES 1. THE COINAGE AND PAPER CURRENCY OF MEDIEVAL AND EARLY-MODERN JAPAN
- Hisashi Takagi (Osaka University Of Economics)
Description
Org. and chair: Hisashi Takagi
This session reviews recent numismatic studies in Japan. It particularly focuses on bronze coins circulating in the 16th century, paper currency issued in the early-modern period, and a collection in a museum in Europe which includes gold and silver coins from Japan.
Conventional numismatic discourse on medieval and early-modern Japan has tended to focus on the identification of numismatic resources themselves. However, for the purpose of further discussion and subsequent development, this session will instead adopt perspectives generated by scholars working in social-economic historical studies. The background to this session thus lies in the development of analytical methods for the study of the monetary system in medieval Japan based on the integrated disciplines of numismatic archaeology and historiography, and in numismatic research focused on paper currency and credit money theory.
The presentations in this session will therefore showcase the following ground-breaking case studies: rethinking the definition of Bita, a subcategory of bronze coinage in 16th-century Japan; a numismatic study of paper currency issued by feudal domains in the Tokugawa period; a numismatic study of private paper currency in the Tokugawa period; and a study of Japanese coins preserved in a museum in Europe.
The common element in the first three presentations is the innovative focus on the common people as a determinant of the circulation of various types of currency. In addition, this session seeks to relativize conventional money commodity theory, or ‘metallism’, by showing the historical experiences of pre-modern Japan. Moreover, the last presentation will illustrate the history of the collection of Japanese coins in 19th-century Europe by discussing a collection in the National Museum of Denmark.
The conventional numismatic discourse on medieval and early-modern Japan has tended to focus on the identification of numismatic resources themselves. However, for the purpose of further discussion and subsequent development, this session will adopt instead perspectives generated by scholars working in social-economic historical studies. The background to this session thus lies in the...
This paper will introduce the Japanese coins in the collection of the National Museum of Denmark. In particular, the collection made by William Bramsen (1850-1881) in Japan in the early Meiji period (1871-1880) covers all Japanese coins and is outstanding in both quality and quantity. It includes examples of all the so-called Twelve Imperial Coins from the Wadōkaichin coins (708) to the...
Bita is a subcategory of bronze coin in circulation between th16th ane d 17th century in Japan.
Conventional discourse has described the historical significance of bita negatively, since bita originated from low quality domestically produced coins or deteriorated imported coins and people tended to avoid using it.
However, recent studies have come to describe bita positively and interpret it...
Yamada Hagaki （山田羽書）is Japan’s oldest private paper currency. It was issued by the town of Yamada（山田） in Ise（伊勢国, Ise Province, the gateway town（伊勢神宮門前町） to Ise Shrine, from around 1610 to the beginning of the Meiji era. Yamada Hagaki is categorized as a private paper currency（私札), and, as the root of banknotes such as the domain paper currency（藩札）, is thought to be indispensable to Japanese...
This study analyzes the diversity of paper money circulation in early modern Japan invoking the socio-economic background that created a competitive situation among paper money. In early modern Japan, many kinds of paper currency with various characteristics appeared. There was domain paper currency issued by feudal lords, private currency issued by wealthy merchants, and community-based...
