Coin Japan 4 Mon, Kanei Tsuho, Meiwa - 1769 / 1820 Edo

This 4 mon Kanei Tsuho is a Japanese coin struck in brass (Meiwa).

The coin is characteristic of traditional Japanese coinage from the Edo period, featuring a central square hole allowing it to be threaded onto strings to facilitate the transport and counting of currency. The obverse is adorned with the inscription Kanei Tsuho (????), divided into four sinographic characters around the central opening. The reverse features 11 stylised waves, a distinctive motif of 4 mon denominations, distinguishing them from 1 mon coins.

The period in question corresponds to the reign of several Tokugawa shoguns, notably Tokugawa Ieharu (1760-1786) and then Tokugawa Ienari (1787-1837). Japan was then living under a strict isolation policy, the sakoku, severely restricting trade with foreign countries, with the exception of the Dutch and Chinese through the port of Nagasaki. This period was marked by internal economic hardships, including the Tenmei famines (1782-1788), which weakened the shogunal power and fuelled growing social tensions. Edo, the administrative and cultural capital, nevertheless experienced significant demographic and artistic growth.