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15 Monme "Tenmei Kikin Satsu"
| Issuer | Sendai Domain (Japanese feudal domains) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1784 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 天保 定尓 ア 十五匁 (Translation: Heaven protects and establishes thee. Fifteen Monme.) |
| Reverse description | Plain paper with multiple black hand-applied seals: a large circular seal at top, a small circular seal and a small square seal at centre left, and a larger rectangular square seal at lower centre, all impressed in black ink. |
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| Comments |
The Tenmei Kikin Satsu — "Tenmei Famine Notes" — were emergency scrip issued by Sendai Domain in direct response to the Tenmei famine of 1782–1788, one of the deadliest crop failures in Edo-period Japan. Sendai, heavily dependent on rice agriculture in Tōhoku, was among the hardest-hit domains; estimates put regional mortality in the hundreds of thousands. The notes were issued as a liquidity measure when the domain's rice-based economy effectively seized.
The 15 monme denomination is an unusual fractional unit, reflecting the ad hoc nature of the issue rather than any standardized currency architecture.