Fu Sheng Yuen Bank, Remittance Bank’s Fine Silver
Checked by Public Assayer Juo, Chen Additional chop: Kuei Weight: 185g
To replace silver ingots by silver coins had been a stationary policy
formed since the 34th year of Kuang Hsu (1908, 1875-1908) by
Yunnan
government. In the meantime, the government having been a major customer of
local banks in Yunnan for 20-30 years, were establishing its modern banking
system which severely threatened the local banks’ survival. Owing to the
local banks had employed the biggest pie of saddle sycee in their business,
saddle sycee were then forced to fade out along with the declining of the
local banks.
The last saddle sycee we may find for the time being was made in
1914, the 3rd year of the ROC, and the year of Jia Yin in
TienGanDiZe (the
10 heavenly stems and 12 earthly branches). There is a round chop with a
character Jia'¾ stamped on such saddle sycee. Jia'¾ is the abbreviation of
year of Jia Yin, i.e. 1914, which enables us to know when the saddle sycee
was cast.
The shown saddle sycee is one of the latest lot being cast, it also
bears a round chop, and a character Kuei'¾, the abbreviation of year of Kuei
Chou, i.e. the 2nd year of the ROC, or 1913.
