← Explore on the interactive map

Jiao Chao of the Jin Dynasty

Type Object Region China Time 1150–1234

Jin dynasty paper money printed by the Ministry of Revenue, which became North China's main currency in the 1220s but was ruined by over-issuance.

Timeline

  1. c. 1150Jin Zhongdu (present-day Beijing) · North ChinaThe Jin dynasty had the Ministry of Revenue print jiao chao, with seven guan and five hundred wen counted as one guan, circulating alongside copper coins and replacing the various local notes, marking the Jurchen regime's adoption of a unified paper money system in Han territories.
  2. 1214Jin Nanjing Kaifeng · HenanWith the Mongol army approaching, Xuanzong moved south to Kaifeng; military expenses were enormous and copper scarce, so the court printed vast quantities of jiao chao to cover military pay and official salaries, sharply inflating denominations and volume and laying the groundwork for hyperinflation in the 1220s.
  3. 1220–1230Jin Nanjing Kaifeng and the Hebei and Shandong circuits · North ChinaBy the 1220s jiao chao had become the main medium of trade and tax payment in cities such as Kaifeng, Zhending, and Daming, with the guan used as the pricing unit; but repeated currency reforms and the parallel circulation of old and new notes forced merchants to exchange frequently, prices soared, and jiao chao's credit was severely damaged.
  4. 1234Caizhou (the Jin's last stronghold) · HenanIn 1234 the Jin fell at Caizhou, and jiao chao ceased issuance with the regime's collapse, its remaining notes becoming worthless; the Mongol Yuan promptly introduced the Zhongtong note in North China, and the Jin's jiao chao experience became an important reference for the Yuan paper money system.

Sources