Two Official Notes -
Ho Bu Guang Piao & Da Ching Bao Chao

Stephen Tai
Mar.04, 1998

	Ho Bu Guang Piao ('Official Note by the Board of Revenue') Denomination: 1 Tael of Pure Silver in Er-Liang Scale Issuance Date: the 7^th day of the 7^th month of the 5^th year of Hsieng Feng (1855, 1851-1861)
	Da Ching Bao Chao ('The Imperial Treasury Note') Denomination: 2,000 cash Issuance Date: the 8^th year of Hsieng Feng (1858)

2 shown paper money were issued by the Manchurian government since the 3^rd year of Hsieng Feng (1853) during the time when Taiping Rebellion took place in many regions south to Yang-tze River, cut off critical financial resources where the Empire may get from. With a view to solve such financial difficulty, the government issued the two paper money, and had them circulated in some northern provinces.
Ho Bu Guang Piao, i.e. Official Note, was a sycee paper, with 5 denominations in 1, 3, 5, 10, 50 taels. Da Ching Bao Chao, i.e. Treasury Note, was a cash paper, with 8 denominations in 500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, 50,000, 100,000 cashes.
The official policy of issuing of two paper notes was just issuing without cashing them. The central government would accepted them only in the case of collection taxes and when they were tied up with cash coins or silver in half and half. Even though, much local government did not follow such order. Besides, the issuance amounts were unlimited.
Naturally, two paper notes were not welcomed and resisted by civilians. Their values depreciated very quickly. 8 years later in some places a 1-tael Official Note could only worth for 26-27 cashes, almost 1% to its par value, which might also declare the paper money have been a great failure.
This short-life, unsuccessful issuance had made Chinese people for a long time distrusted any official issued paper money, and the conventional currency system, although out-dated and inconvenient, was still firmly trusted.

Chinese Coinage Web Site

Two Official Notes - Ho Bu Guang Piao & Da Ching Bao Chao

Two Official Notes -
Ho Bu Guang Piao & Da Ching Bao Chao