My World Crown Affair
19th Cent, Vietnam 7 Tien

Owner Comments:

Dragon Dollars or Silver Dragons are names for the Asian silver dollar sized coins issued in China and Japan at the end of the 19th Century in emulation of the Spanish Colonial and Mexican 8 reales that were the dominant trade coin. But the first of these silver coins with a prominent dragon design was actually issued by Emperor Minh Mang of Viet Nam. The earliest of these are undated and the first dated coins show the number 13 indicating the regnal year, 1832. The specific denomination that corresponds to the 8 reales trade standard is the 7 tien, weighing almost 27 grams. The casting of coins in East and Southeast Asia had been established since ancient times and some opinions that you may find on the internet claim that the silver issues of Minh Mang and subsequent rulers were also cast. Fortunately, there are more informed resources to consult. The Standard Catalog of World Coins lists these as milled as do many of the top auction house catalogs. And a few of the finest examples are encapsulated in mint state grades by TPGs indicating that the coin surfaces still exhibit the luster that occurs from the metal flow when a planchet is struck. If you examine enough good photos of these you can notice some instances where the planchet was not perfectly centered -- a feature of a coin struck in a open collar press.

My example is from the 14 regnal year, 1833, shown in Chinese characters beneath the dragon, the obverse shows the characters for Minh Mang and Thong Bao (general currency). It exhibits circulation wear and environmental damage in addition to the holes where it was likely used as a garment adornment.