How much could you buy with Korean cash? Find out here.

sumnom

I did some book shopping today in Insa-dong in Seoul and came home with the first five volumes of the diary of Yun Chiho (1865-1945). Yun was a political thinker, statesman, and among the very earliest Korean Protestants. He kept a diary from 1883 up into the 1940's recording not only his personal life but also his take on events of the period. The earliest entries are in Classical Chinese but he switches to Korean and then soon thereafter switches to English. The changes in language reflect the changes his own thinking was going through. It is a fascinating read.

I just stumbled across this entry from February 18, 1897 and thought it might be of interest to THE DARKSIDE.


"When I was fifteen years old, they charged from 15 to 20 cash for a good Corean meal in an inn. Now a respectful traveller has to pay from 300 to 600 cash for a meal. Fifteen years ago a chair coolie got from 20 to 25 cash; now he charges from 400 to 450 cash per 10 li."


Yun Chiho ilgi, Vol. 5, p. 29.

sumnom

It just occurred to me that this entry was written about six years after the last Korean cash coins were produced. I have read that in some areas of Korea, Korean cash circulated into the 1910's, many years after struck coins were introduced and more than a few years after the Japanese colonial government recalled them.

spoon

Interesting indeed! This is always something I like to find out but have such a hard time tracking down.. how much were these coins worth back then.

I guess it makes sense that the cash coins were still used at that late date. Weren't those early Korean standard coins issued in small numbers? I know they sure are expensive nowadays and not too easy to find nice (outside of KS that is).

Also, what was the extent of bartering as a means of trade (as opposed to coined money). I remember reading often that taxes were still paid in rice for quite a while around the turn of the century??

theboz11

That is some great reading on the affects of Inflation.

sumnom

Cash coins were produced in MASSIVE quantities during the Choson dynasty, especially in 1866 and 1883 to 1891. Pre-Choson cash coins are not so common but aside from a number of rarities, many of the 3,000 plus varieties of sangp'yong t'ongbo are pretty common.

For much of the Choson dynasty, rice and bolts of cloth were used as media of exchange. This was especially true during times of instability, deflation, or inflation. Rice and cloth were more stable than coin. I have heard that during and immediately after the Korean war (1950's), there were some areas where people were buying and selling in rice, since currencies had become worthless.

Inflation driven by the overproduction of debased coinage and widespread counterfeiting caused such serious inflation in the 1880's that people some people were unable to buy food because the prices were rising so fast. This is likely the inflation to which Yun referred, since he was 15 in 1880.

spoon

Ah, so was the milled coinage after 1892 just not popular or did it not circulate widely?

(sorry for the silly questions, my korean history is all foggy )

sumnom

The milled coinage of the early to mid-1890's did not circulate widely. I think it stayed mostly in Seoul/Inchon and a few select towns. The cash coins circulated in the provinces for quite a while though. Mexican silver dollars and Japanese silver yen got more circulation than the Korean government issues.

I actually don't know about the popularity question. By 1891, there were such serious problems with debasement and counterfeiting that I would imagine some people must have been relieved at the advent of monetary reform. It was a horrible mess up until then and didn't really calm down until the Japanese took over Korean currency in 1905, although there still some troubles through to around 1908 or so. That is when the Japanese authorities were recalling the old currencies.

sumnom

Spoon, here is a thread I posted back in the day about the Japanese recall of old Korean coins.

spoon

Fascinating stuff! Thanks for digging it back up

Askari

"Knowing the history increases the delight in the coin." -- Old Askari pseudo-Korean proverb.

sumnom

Indeed, Askari. Knowing the history enables me to enjoy even the homliest of crude cash issues.

Aethelred

Old Dead King Say: "He who knows the history of what he collects always gets more than he paid for."

sumnom

Yes!!!

sumnom

I have been thinking about history and numismatics as of late so I thought I would ttt this thread.

gxseries

How about a 5 yang coin:



The largest silver crown minted around that era, and probably is the only silver crown that you can get hold of. The other one, 1 hwan has a mintage of only 77 and that is almost impossible to obtain.

I am pretty sure this 5 yang coin is genuine but badly handled in the past as it has been mounted in an awkward fashion.

You can check the other Korean coins that I have on display... just a sad 1chon and a 1/2chon though...

My coin image link

shirohniichan

I have heard that during and immediately after the Korean war (1950's), there were some areas where people were buying and selling in rice, since currencies had become worthless.

That sounds like Japan right after the war.

It seems that collectors sometimes forget that coins were used as a medium of exchange. It's interesting reading to find out how they circulated and what they bought. Thanks for the info!

sumnom

gx, I hope that your 5 yang is real. I have never seen a real one but I cannot tell how many fakes I have seen. Where did you get it, if you don't mind me asking?


Shiro, your observation concerning the oversights of some collectors is timely. There is something in the air these days that troubles the mind.

sumnom

gx, I enjoyed the modified 1/2 chon piece. I have never seen one of those before. I wonder how common this scam was and how many people fell for it.

gxseries

That 5yang coin was actually sold by a desperate man down here in Australia - he was even selling a set of Australian gold coins, which easily worth more than 1grand. I honestly don't know if he really knew what he was bought was real or not, but meh, I knew the risk I would blow if this turned out to be a fake one. The real reason why this coin was sold real cheap is because it had some horrible metal solder on the reverse and as you can see, it has been removed pretty harshly, leaving behind bad scratch marks and ruined reverse. Nevertheless, I am assuming that it is a fake... Even if I were to sell it back at ebay, jesus, you know how many desperate people there are just to even get a scarce "copy".

That 1/2 chon really made me laugh and I thought I had to get one for such collection. I don't know how many people got into that scam but I guess that's the main reason why the 1chon got modified right away the following year didn't it?

sumnom

If I had to guess, I would say that the coins were reduced in size due to rising copper prices of the time. I think there was a global copper shortage around 1905-1906.

There are so many fake 5-yang pieces here in Korea. I can't imagine anyone craving them.