Japan 1891 (M24) yen
This specimen was lot 23160 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Las Vegas, August 2020), where it sold for $336. The catalog description[1] noted, "JAPAN. Yen, Year 24 (1891). Mutsuhito (Meiji). PCGS MS-62+ Gold Shield. A lovely example of the type with bold strike, full silky luster, and attractive light champagne toning throughout. From the BKingdom Collection." This type, roughly equal to a silver dollar, was struck 1874-1912. The diameter was slightly reduced in mid-1886, creating two varieties for 1886-87 which cannot be told apart without a micrometer. The last silver yen was struck in 1917. Prior to the opening of Japan in the 1850's and 1860's, Japanese coins were a mix of Chinese-style cast copper cash, silver rectangular "bu" and rare, gold "oban."
Recorded mintage: 7,518,021, common.
Specification: 26.96 g, 0.900 fine silver, .780 troy oz ASW, 38.1 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM-Y-A25.3; JNDA 01-10A.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- The Catalog of Japanese Coins and Banknotes, Tokyo: JNDA (Japanese Numismatic Dealers Assn.), 2014.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Richard Ponterio and Kyle Ponterio, The August 2020 ANA Auction: World Coins, featuring the Duke of Lansing Collection, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2020.
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