The importance of metallic currency appeared to Japanese nobles, probably leading to some coin minting at the end of the 7th century, such as the Fuhonsen coinage (富本銭), discovered in 1998 through archaeological research in the area of Nara. The first Japanese embassy to China is recorded to have been sent in 630, following with Japan, who adopted numerous Chinese cultural practices. Japanese cash coins were officially demonetised in 1891 after officially circulating as a division of the Japanese yen with an exchange rate of 10.000 mon for 1 yen.

After the Tokugawa shogunate banned Bitasen in 1608 they started producing their own coinage and after 1859 provincial authorities were allowed to mint their own coinages. As many cash coins circulated in the market for a long time their quality diminished over time becoming known as Bitasen (鐚銭, 'bad metal money'). But the quality of these cash coins varied severely depending on the mint. The Japanese started locally imitating Chinese cash coins, which were known as Shichūsen (私鋳銭). From the 12th century onwards the Japanese started importing Chinese currency again even while the Southern Song dynasty banned the export of its coinage, while the import of Chinese cash coins surged again during the Ming dynasty era when large amounts of Ming Chinese cash coins were imported. In 760 Japanese currency was reformed and gold and silver cash coins were introduced, however by the end of the 10th century the value of Japanese coinage had severely fallen combined with a weak central government led the Japanese to return to barter. The first Japanese cash coins were the Wadōkaichin (和同開珎) which were produced from 29 August 708. Because these currencies were so similar cash coins around the Far East were interchangeable and Japanese cash coins circulated in other countries while foreign cash coins also circulated in Japan. Chinese cash coins also circulated in other countries and inspired similar currencies such as the Korean mun, Ryukyuan mon, Vietnamese văn, while they also circulated as far south as Indonesia. Known cash coin types of Japan produced from 708 to 958, chronologically arranged.Ĭash coins were introduced to Japan in the century inspired by the Chinese Kaigen Tsūhō (開元通寳) cash coins from the Tang dynasty.

Ancient japanese coins