Coin China Tang - Cash, Hui Chang - 845 / 907 Runzhou

This Hui Chang cash is a bronze coin issued under the Tang dynasty, minted in the Runzhou region between 845 and 907.

This series is distinguished by the presence, on the reverse, of a character indicating the issuing mint (here ? for Runzhou), which sets it apart from earlier Tang issues.

The Huichang period (841?846) corresponds to the reign of Emperor Wuzong, notably marked by the great persecution of Buddhism in 845, known as the Huichang Suppression, during which numerous monasteries were dismantled and their assets confiscated to be recast into coinage. It was in this context that the Hui Chang cash series was launched, its production drawing in part on this recovered metal. After Wuzong's death in 846, the minting of these coins appears to have continued under his successors until the fall of the Tang dynasty in 907.

This late period is characterised by a progressive weakening of central authority, regional rebellions and growing political fragmentation, heralding the era of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. Runzhou, located in the present-day province of Jiangsu, nonetheless remained an active administrative and economic centre of the lower Yangtze basin.