page_title: Economy of the Han dynasty
section_title: Variations in currency
hierarchical_section_title: Economy of the Han dynasty / Monetary system and urbanization / Variations in currency
caption_attribution_description: English: The front and reverse sides of a metal coin, 25.5 mm in diameter, issued during the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 141&#8211;87 BCE) of the early Han Dynasty of China.
context_page_description: The economy of the Han dynasty of ancient China experienced upward and downward movements in its economic cycle, periods of economic prosperity and decline. It is normally divided into three periods: Western Han, the Xin dynasty, and Eastern Han. The Xin regime, established by the former regent Wang Mang, formed a brief interregnum between lengthy periods of Han rule. Following the fall of Wang Mang, the Han capital was moved eastward from Chang'an to Luoyang. In consequence, historians have named the succeeding eras Western Han and Eastern Han respectively.
  The Han economy was defined by significant population growth, increasing urbanization, unprecedented growth of industry and trade, and government experimentation with nationalization. Another large component of the government is that it was run by influential families who had the most money. In this era, the levels of minting and circulation of coin currency grew significantly, forming the foundation of a stable monetary system. The Silk Road facilitated the establishment of trade and tributary exchanges with foreign countries across Eurasia, many of which were previously unknown to the people of ancient China.
context_section_description: During the early Western Han period, founding Emperor Gaozu of Han (r. 202–195 BC) closed government mints in favor of coin currency produced by the private sector. Gaozu's widow Empress Lü Zhi, as grand empress dowager, abolished private minting in 186 BC. She first issued a government-minted bronze coin weighing 5.7 g (0.20 oz), but issued another, weighing 1.5 g (0.053 oz), in 182 BC. The change to the lighter coin caused widespread inflation, so in 175 BC Emperor Wen of Han (r. 180–157 BC) lifted the ban on private minting; private mints were required to mint coins weighing exactly 2.6 g (0.092 oz). Private minting was again abolished in 144 BC during the end of Emperor Jing of Han's (r. 157–141 BC) reign. Despite this, the  2.6 g (0.092 oz) bronze coin was issued by both central and local commandery governments until 120 BC, when for one year it was replaced with a coin weighing 1.9 g (0.067 oz). Other currencies were introduced around this time. Token money notes made of embroidered white deerskin, with a face value of 400,000 coins, were used to collect government revenues. Emperor Wu also introduced three tin-silver alloy coins worth 3,000, 500, and 300 bronze coins, respectively; all of these weighed less than 120 g (4.2 oz).
  In 119 BC, the government issued the bronze wushu (五銖) coin weighing 3.2 g (0.11 oz); the coin remained the standard currency in China until the Tang dynasty (618–907 AD). During the brief interruptive Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) of Wang Mang (45 BC – 23 AD), the government introduced several new denominations in 7, 9, 10, and 14 AD. These new units (including bronze knife money, gold, silver, tortoise, and cowry shell currencies) often had a market price unequal to their weight and debased the value of coin currency. Once the widespread civil wars following Wang's overthrow abated, the wushu coin was reintroduced by Emperor Guangwu of Han (r. 25–57 AD) in 40 AD at the instigation of Ma Yuan (14 BC – 49 AD). Since commandery-issued coins were often of inferior quality and lighter weight, the central government closed all commandery mints in 113 BC and granted the central government's Superintendent of Waterways and Parks the exclusive right to mint coins. Although the issue of central government coinage was transferred to the office of the Minister of Finance (one of Nine Ministers of the central government) by the beginning of Eastern Han, the central government's monopoly over the issue of coinage persisted.
  Gary Lee Todd (Ph.D. in History from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Professor of History at Sias International University in Xinzheng, Henan, China) provides the following images of coins issued during the Western Han and Xin periods on his website:
caption: A wushu (五銖) coin issued during the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 141–87 BC), 25.5 mm (1 in) in diameter
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