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RyoGold
| Issuer | Daijo-kan (Grand Council of State) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1868 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Ryo |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is vertically formatted, with a decorative border of scrolling vine motifs enclosing two columns of brushwork kanji inscriptions. The upper right reads 慶應戊辰發行 (Keio Boshin year issue), and the central left column reads 通用十三年限 (valid for thirteen years), with a red official seal affixed to the lower portion of the text panel. |
| Reverse lettering | 慶應戊辰發行 通用十三年限 |
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| Comments |
The Daijo-kan notes of 1868 were among the first paper currency instruments issued by the new Meiji government, printed almost immediately after the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate. The timing was not coincidental — the new administration urgently needed a circulating medium it controlled, having inherited a monetary system fragmented by clan-issued hansatsu and debased coinage.
Mulberry paper, the traditional substrate for Japanese paper money going back centuries, was specified partly by convention and partly because domestic supply was reliable. The single official seal as the primary security measure reflects how rudimentary anti-counterfeiting infrastructure was in that first revolutionary year.