Imperial Japan Military Currency 1904 Russo-Japanese War M1-M6
1 YEN 1904 RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR ISSUE M4

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Note Details

Set Details
Note Description: Japan, Military Currency
1 Yen 1904 - Russo-Japanese War
Grade: VF 30
Country: JAP
Note Number: JAPM4a
Signatures/
Vignettes:		 - With Serial Number
Certification #: 1919289-016  
Owner: RedWolfWhiteEagle
Sets Competing: Imperial Japan Military Currency 1904 Russo-Japanese War M1-M6  Score: 856
Date Added: 2/25/2025
Research: See PMG's Census Report for this Note

Owner's Description

Obverse: Facing Onagadori cockerels at center top and two facing dragons at bottom center.
Obverse Color: Black on Ochre under-print.
Reverse: Ornate guilloche rosette with kanji in center “This bill on arrival immediately replaces/exchanged for face value Japanese currency. If any counterfeiting/forgeries or informed of any person exercising in such acts all will bear heavy punishment. Not lending”
Reverse Color: Yellow Brown (Ochre). With serial number at top
Signatures: Imperial Treasury red signature seal on reverse
Date of Issue: 1904 (Meiji year 37)
History: Russo-Japanese War military bonds were produced beforehand in 1903 (year 36 of Meiji) in anticipation of an upcoming war. During this time negotiations commenced between Japan and Russia regarding Russian troops in Manchuria. Seeing Russia as a rival, Japan offered to recognize Russian dominance in Manchuria in exchange for recognition of Korea being within the Japanese sphere of influence. Russia refused and demanded the establishment of a neutral buffer zone between Russia and Japan in Korea north of the 39th parallel. Japan officially issued a declaration of war on February 8, 1904 and attacked the Russian Far East Fleet at Port Arthur. Russo-Japanese War military bonds were issued upon declaration in denominations of 10 sen, 20 sen, 50 sen, 1 yen, 5 yen, and 10 yen. Their size ranges from 103mm x 62mm for sen to 130 mm x 92 mm for yen with a design similar to Meiji Tsuho notes that were issued for civilians in Japan from 1872 to 1899. These Russo-Japanese War military bonds could be converted into silver during the war. Places of redemption were set up across Manchuria as the alloy could not be feasibly carried by the troops making local payments.
The Treaty of Portsmouth formally ended the Russo-Japanese War on September 5, 1905. As Russo-Japanese War military bonds were not permitted to circulate in Japan, they "obtained wide currency" in Korea and Manchuria. When the war ended, the Yokohama Specie Bank was authorized to redeem the military notes in exchange for their own notes backed by the silver yen. Additional arrangements were also made to convert the notes into gold in order to target Japanese merchants in Manchuria. The exchange process began in 1910 which allowed Bank of Japan and eventually Bank of Chosen notes to circulate in the region. Gold certificates were exclusively issued by the latter of these two banks by 1917, but were not popular with the Chinese who preferred silver. Russo-Japanese War military bonds meanwhile continued to circulate until at least 1919 with 300,000 yen reported in circulation. The note exchangements eventually gave rise to Japanese yen silver currency in Manchuria which was used into the 1930s. While "many" of the war notes were collected and destroyed by the government, others chose to keep them as victory commemorates

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