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1 Monme
| Issuer | Japan (Local merchant / temple issue) |
|---|---|
| Year | |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 140 × 50 mm |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 備中津寺 銀壹匁 通用手形 引請 大阪 米屋 青札 (Translation: Bicchu Tsuji [Temple/Place] / Silver 1 Monme / General circulation exchange note / Guarantor / Osaka / Rice dealer / Blue paper money) |
| Reverse description | The reverse is entirely covered with vertical columns of Chinese-style classical script in letterpress. The upper third contains a decorative vignette of stylised floral motifs, partially obscured by three official seals — one in red and two in black. A framed cartouche in the lower third bears bold inscriptions relating to the exchange office (kaisho). |
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| Comments |
Monme-denomination notes were issued by a sprawling, decentralized network of private merchants, temples, and domain authorities across Edo-period Japan — not by any central banking apparatus, which wouldn't exist until the Meiji reforms of the 1870s. Individual issuers backed their notes against rice, silver, or copper coinage depending on region and date, meaning two superficially similar notes could represent entirely different promises of redemption.
Temple-issued examples were often tied to pilgrimage routes and accepted primarily within the immediate locality — sometimes only at specific markets or on specific days. Survival rates are low; most were redeemed or destroyed as intended, and private archival preservation was rare.