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Yuan paper currency system

Type Object Region Asia Time 1260–1368

Yuan notes were a state-credit paper currency system beginning with Zhongtong and Zhiyuan notes under Kublai, replacing copper for taxes, military pa…

Timeline

  1. 1260Kaiping · Inner MongoliaFollowing the advice of Liu Bingzhong and Wang Wentong, Kublai printed Zhongtong Yuanbao jiaochao on paper, stipulating a silver base and unrestricted circulation, formally establishing the Yuan state paper currency system.
  2. 1287Dadu · DaduIn the 24th year of Zhiyuan, Zhiyuan Tongxing Baochao was promulgated, abolishing Zhongtong notes, setting a new note-silver exchange rate, and establishing Jiaochao Superintendent Offices in the circuits, unifying the national currency system and supporting finance and long-distance trade centered on Dadu.
  3. 1301–1310Dadu · DaduTo cover grants and expenditures, Chengzong and Wuzong repeatedly increased note printing; note values fell, silver outflow worsened, price fluctuations accompanied laws against counterfeit notes—a key stage of the Yuan note system's decline from prosperity.
  4. 1350–1368Dadu · DaduDuring the Zhizheng era, overissue of Zhizheng jiaochao and various new note types continued; the public refused them and barter prevailed, the Yuan note system's function as a state-credit medium collapsed, ending with the fall of the Yuan.

Sources