Dragon silver · one yen

Meiji Silver Yen

The Meiji Silver Yen links the New Currency Act, machine striking, dragon design, foreign trade, later standard changes, and Gin countermarks.

明治一円銀貨

Obverse of an 1889 Meiji 22 one-yen silver coin — Петров Эдуард · CC0 1.0 · exact 1889 representative

Reverse of an 1889 Meiji 22 one-yen silver coin — Петров Эдуард · CC0 1.0 · exact 1889 representative

Core routes: 15
Issue studies: 12
Cleared image pairs: 10
Indexable routes: 27

Context

Historical and monetary setting

The silver yen’s monetary role changed across the Meiji period. Its 1897 domestic withdrawal and later production contexts must not be collapsed into one unchanging circulation claim.

Identification

How to classify the evidence

Read 明治 and the era year, then compare dragon, wreath, denomination, legends, mass, diameter, edge, and subtype. Copies are common.

Evidence boundary

What this page does not claim

Trade Yen is separate. A Gin mark is a post-strike event on a host coin, not a new base issue.

Silver roles

Subsidiary, yen, and trade identities

Image	Series	Denominations	Purpose	Status
Not available	Early Meiji subsidiary silver	5 Sen, 10 Sen, 20 Sen, 50 Sen	domestic decimal subsidiary coinage	review_required
Representative contextual image: Obverse and reverse of an 1889 Meiji 22 one-yen silver coin.↗	Meiji Silver Yen	1 Yen	silver yen with domestic and foreign-trade contexts that changed over time	review_required
Representative contextual image: Obverse and reverse of a Meiji 8 (1875) Trade Yen of Japan.↗	Trade Yen	Trade Yen	A distinct trade coin intended to compete with Mexican silver dollars in East Asian settlement.	review_required

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Related transition references

Bakumatsu and Early Meiji Coinage Foreign Silver in Japan New Currency Act of 1871 Early Meiji Gold Coinage Early Meiji Silver Coinage Early Meiji Copper and Bronze Coinage Japanese era-date guide

Evidence

Sources and scope

These links support the claims on this page. Source authority does not imply permission to republish source images.

Coins from the Meiji era onward Bank of Japan Currency Museum

Official museum comparison table for modern coin denominations and specifications.

Open source

Japan Mint essay on the one-yen coin Japan Mint

Domestic withdrawal of the silver yen after the 1897 law and later production context.

Open source

150 Years of the Japan Mint Japan Mint

Osaka mint establishment, modern machinery, institutional history, and coin standards.

Open source