"After winning the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu became the supreme ruler over Japan. He organized all the Daimyos (feudal lords) into around 300 Han, a type of fief, or domain, from which he demanded loyalty. ... Hansatsu were issued in the different hans and they circulated primarily within the han they were issued in, though there were a few exceptions. Hansatsu were based on the gold, silver and copper coinage of the time, but there were a few that that were to be exchanged for commodities such as rice and fish. In 1707 the controlling Tokugawa Shogunate banned the use of paper money, due to abuses of the system. However, in 1730, the practice of issuing Hansatsu was officially resumed. ... When Tokugawa Yoshinobu resigned in 1867, the result was the Boshin War in January of 1868, in which the Shogunates forces were defeated and the Emperor declared himself to be restored to power. This period is known as the Meiji Restoration. At this time the government began an exchange program for people to turn in their Hansatsu for the new national currency called the Dajoukansatsu, which was the first banknote issued by a central government in Japan. This was met with reluctance, however, and the exchange ran until 1879." -- Japanese Banknotes
Type: Silver 1 Monme
Date: Tenpo 3 (1832)
Province: Kii
Domain: Wakayama (Kishu)
Han: Administered from Wakayama Castle by the Kishu-Tokugawa Han
Reference: Hansatsu Zuroku 776 (rarity 12x)
Notes: Exchange by the MITSUI-GUMI (small red stamps on the lower face and reverse) - the Mitsui-gumi became the MITSUI BANK.
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