Chapter 5 Section 3 Transformation from half tael to five baht

In the 94 years of the early Western Han Dynasty, the political situation was unstable, coupled with the use of foreign troops, the burden was heavy, and the currency situation was also fluctuating. After ten changes, the half-two coins gradually transformed into the five-baht coin system. (1) In 206 BC, when Liu Bang first established the Han Dynasty, after the wars between Chu and Han, the economy had not yet recovered, and the supplies were scarce. Because Qin coins were heavy and inconvenient to use, the people were allowed to cast half and two coins freely, so local forces and rich gentry and businessmen Taking the opportunity to cast bad money indiscriminately, it is called "pod money", that is, "elm pod half two".The body of the money is small and rough, the flesh is thin, and it is widely worn, just like an elm pod.At the beginning, it weighs three baht, and then it weighs two baht, about two grams, and then only about one baht.The profiteers hoarded and the prices soared. The price of rice was as high as 10,000 yuan per stone, and a horse was worth a hundred gold. This caused the first inflation in the Han Dynasty.

(2) In the second year of Gaohou (186 BC), the imperial court monopolized the right to mint coins and prohibited private minting by the people.Officially minted "eight baht eight taels", money and half taels, improved coinage quality, flat characters, large samples and thin meat.This is the first time that the Han Dynasty rectified the currency system. (3) In the sixth year of Gaohou (182 BC), since Empress Lu came to power, the two families of Liu and Lu fought fiercely for power.Lu's three kings monopolized power, and once again engaged in weight reduction of coins, recasting "five cents", Qianwen half two, heavy two baht and four tired, 1/5 of half two coins (Qin), and reduced weight to similar elm pod coins The petty evil money.In the early years of Emperor Wen, the currency depreciated again, and there was a second inflation.

(4) In the fifth year of Emperor Wen (175 BC), in order to stabilize the situation, five cents were canceled and "four baht and a half two" was recast. For example, Wu Wangbi and his favorite minister Deng Tong each cast a large amount of money, forming Wu Deng's money all over the world.At the same time, it also paid attention to let the people rest and reorganize, develop production, and tighten the currency until the time of Emperor Jing, which contributed to the first currency stability in the Han Dynasty. (5) In the first year of Emperor Wu Jianyuan (140 BC), he used troops every year at home and abroad, frequently recruited and transferred, and the national treasury was exhausted. As the article says, the more private castings, the lighter the money and the more expensive the things.Since then, for more than 20 years, it has been intermittent, sometimes light and sometimes heavy, and has been in a state of currency depreciation, resulting in the third serious inflation in the early Han Dynasty.

(6) In the fifth year of Jianyuan (136 BC), Emperor Wu had to abolish the three baht coin because it was too light, and cast four and a half baht coins.Qianwen half two, the real weight is four baht, also known as "three cents". (7) Not long after the three cents were issued, the imperial court still restored the three baht coins for financial needs, resulting in the flood of private minting, more money and thinner money, cheaper money, and higher prices. (8) In the fifth year of Yuanshou (118 BC), Emperor Wu once again canceled the three baht coins and ordered the county (equivalent to the local government) to cast five baht coins, commonly known as "the five baht of the county".Qian Wen's "five baht" is as important as its text. There are only outer gates on the front and inner and outer gates on the back, and the shape is irregular.Later counties and states competed to cast light, small and thin coins, with different shapes and weights, and the money system was chaotic.For example, the five baht of the county unearthed in Baqiao, Xi'an in 1982 weighs only 0.8 grams, that is, one baht, and has a diameter of 1.5 cm. 12.

(9) In the second year of Yuanding (115 BC), Emperor Wu took back the coinage right of the prefecture and country, and changed the "Zhongguan", an agency specializing in casting and issuing coins, to cast "Chiping five baht", also known as "Chiping money". ", "Red side money", "Cyan money", the front and back sides are neatly made.It was stipulated that this money should be used as five baht and five coins for the county and state, and only Chiping money should be used by tax officials, which was abolished after two years. (10) In the fourth year of Yuanding (113 BC), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty strictly prohibited the counties and states from casting coins, and specially ordered the three officials in Shanglin to cast and issue standard five baht coins.All previous coins were abolished and ordered to be recalled and destroyed.Since then, only "Shanglin Sanguan five baht coins" minted by circulation officials are allowed to be issued.This kind of standard official stove money, which is centrally cast and issued, weighs about four grams, is well-made, has fine grain patterns, simple and powerful characters, and is moderate in weight, so it is very popular.Since then, the five baht coin has been formulated and has been used for 2000 years.After Emperor Wu, the six emperors Zhao, Xuan, Yuan, Cheng, Ai, and Ping all continued to cast Shanglin three officials and five baht coins.For example, the five characters of "Xuandi Wuzhu" intersect and the two strokes shrink inward, the outer Guo is slightly wider, and the horizontal painting is added on top.From the five baht coins of the Western Han Dynasty to the time of Emperor Ping, a total of more than 28 billion coins were cast.

The birth of five baht coins and the finalization and customization of Shanglin Sanguan five baht coins are of great historical significance to the development of Chinese currency culture.First of all, it affirmed that the feudal dynasty must implement the centralization of currency casting and issuance, and clarified that whether the currency is stable or not has a great relationship with the country and society.Secondly, it created a new currency system for ancient Chinese currency, and determined a metal currency with square holes and round, well-finished meat, inner and outer shells, moderate weight, weight, and size, and mainly copper.