2016-06-03 Fri

A rare and one of the earliest machine-produced Chinese copper coin, Kwangtung pattern will be auctioned at the Hong Kong Signature Coin Auction which would be held from 22nd to 24th June. The coin was made by using equipment that was brought from the Heaton Mint in Birmingham, England.

The proposed fineness for the coin was changed from 7 mace and 3 candareens, to the standard that was followed till the end of the Empire, 7 mace and 2 candareens. The “reverse pattern” moniker remained and the English surrounding the Manchu and Chinese characters was later replaced in a way that it encircled the dragon. It became the first dragon dollar to be struck using modern equipment in China. All coin designs that followed, used this coin as a standard.

The coin is graded 64+ Brown by PCGS as it looks splendid with a full strike and glossy surfaces. The spotless brown coin has tinges of iridescent blue, green and gold. For accuracy, the coin has a few little ticks and two as-struck lint marks which has no effect on the coin’s beauty. The coin is significant because it, in a way defined the modern coinage of China.