Yuan paper money

Timeline

1. 1351–1353Dadu Ministry of Revenue Jiaochao Printing Bureau · North ChinaIn the eleventh year of Zhizheng the court printed new notes to fund the suppression of the Red Turban army, with denominations from one guan to five hundred guan. The notes bore inscriptions such as 'Zhongtong Jiaochao' and 'Zhiyuan Baochao' along with images of coin strings, but the public exchange rate against silver deteriorated sharply and the currency system existed in name only.
2. 1354–1357Hangzhou · JiangnanIn the prosperous Jiangnan region merchants and landlords generally refused the depreciated official notes, settling large transactions in silver ingots, copper coins or goods. Local gazetteers and literati notes recorded that 'notes were light and goods heavy'; paper money in circulation became a token for tax payment rather than a medium of daily exchange.
3. 1358–1360Yingzhou · Huai River basinRed Turban-controlled areas cut fiscal ties with Dadu; local regimes minted their own coins or issued new notes, and Yuan court notes lost their coercive force amid the fighting. Archaeological finds and surviving pieces from this period often show Yuan note fragments with damage and overlapping traces, reflecting the collapse of the monetary system.