Friday already? METAL PORN!

Here's a non-bullion piece I picked up last week with a really cool precious metals component.

In the late 19th century, Japan was moving from a silver standard to a gold standard. For a period of time, the Japanese government allowed people to exchange silver for gold. With no need for the silver that was exchanged, they sold their redeemed silver coins to other countries where silver was still being used. In order to keep the same coin being redeemed over and over, the Japanese mint struck the kanji for silver, "gin" or 銀 on the reverse of the coin. That mark on the right side of the back indicated it was redeemed in Tokyo. On the left, like mine, it was redeemed in Osaka.

1896 Japan Yen
.900 silver 26.96 grams
Osaka 銀 countermark
NGC MS63