Republic of China silver dollar
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
Republican era
Issuing entity
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China silver dollar encompasses crown-sized one-yuan silver coins minted under the Republican government to standardize the domestic currency and replace foreign silver coinage and imperial dragon dollars. The denomination originated with limited 1912 commemorative issues depicting Sun Yat-sen and Li Yuanhong, followed by the mass-produced Yuan Shikai dollar authorized by the 1914 Legal Tender Act, and later types including the revived memento dollar and the junk dollar.
National production halted when China abandoned the silver standard in 1935, though regional issues continued and official restrikes briefly returned in 1949 in response to hyperinflation.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 3
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Following the 1911 Revolution, the Beiyang government reaffirmed the silver yuan as China's standard monetary unit, passing the 1914 Legal Tender Act to assert centralized minting rights over disparate provincial issues and circulating foreign silver. Millions of Yuan Shikai dollars were struck across the country until the Nationalist government halted their official production following the Northern Expedition in 1927. The Nationalists revived Sun Yat-sen's 1912 memento design, later replacing it with the junk dollar in 1932. Although China abandoned the silver standard in 1935, currency collapse during the Chinese Civil War prompted the Canton Mint to briefly resume striking silver dollars in 1949.
Identification
- Recognition pointers (from background sources)
- Check the portrait: standard circulation types depict either a left-facing bust of Yuan Shikai with a crew cut in military uniform or a portrait of Sun Yat-sen. Examine the reverse design, which typically bears the denomination 壹圓 ('one yuan') enclosed by a wreath of grain, rice, or beans. Look for bilingual legends on Sun Yat-sen memento dollars, which include the English text 'Memento' and 'Birth of Republic of China' flanked by stars (1912 issue) or rosettes (1927 issue).
Documentation checklist
- Denomination
- Research required
- Issue or mint date
- Recorded
- Material
- Research required
- Weight
- Research required
- Mint or printer
- Research required
- Mint or printer mark
- Research required
- Catalogue reference
- Research required
- Attached photograph (check rights)
- Recorded
Recorded means a field is present, not independently verified. Read its wording, supporting source and the entry’s confidence level.
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Type list, portrait varieties and provincial mint attributions require transcription from a specialist reference
- Extensive contemporary and modern counterfeits exist; diagnostic details not yet documented here