a silver coin with an image of a woman and a dragon on it
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Estimate €6,000
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Description
JAPAN Mutsuhito or Meiji (1867–1912). Trade dollar, Year 10 (1877). Obv. 420 GRAINS. TRADE DOLLAR. 900 FINE. / (date). Coiled dragon. Rev. Within a wreath formed of two branches, (denomination) beneath a chrysanthemum flower. KM.Y#14 - Dav.275; Silver – 27.17 g – 38.5 mm – 6 h NGC MS 62 (8772184-012). Only minimal signs of handling on the fields, with slight flattening on the high reliefs. Barely scuffed on the reverse. The patina is grey, with iridescent highlights. Superb to Proof condition. This commercial dollar was minted exclusively between 1875 and 1877, during the reign of Emperor Meiji Mutsuhito (1867–1912). Its issue came at a pivotal moment in Japanese history: twenty years earlier, the American Commodore Matthew Perry (1794–1856) had forced Japan to establish trade and diplomatic relations with the West, a catalytic event that spurred Japan to modernise and undergo radical Westernisation. Whilst the reverse is relatively understated, the obverse features a stylised dragon with large, bulging eyes, sharp claws and scales. In Shintoism, the body of religious beliefs and practices in Japan, dragons had long been both feared and revered. Many followers of Shinto believed that dragons would only appear during periods of great social upheaval, such as the era in which this dollar was minted, when Japan underwent profound transformations
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About the sale Numismatics
Auction location
Auction time 10/15/2026 at 9:30 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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