Thread: Japan - 416 One Yen 900 Coin

Stumbled upon an old one yen coin, while cleaning out my cabinets. Just wondering if this coin is legit and what the markings mean. My knowledge in coin collecting is very minimal.

this site explains the writing & the date - i can read some japanese & chinese but dont know enough about the coins to tell you if this is legit.
http://www.lioncoins.com/nippon.htm

if I did my math right that is 1904, year 37 of the meiji era. the reverse should be rotated 90 degrees clockwise - the crysanthemum (sp?) flower should go at the top and the characters below are 1 and then yen. I am sure those who know more about the actual coin will let you know more

If it's real, it would be indeed a 1904.

On edit: I'm 95% sure your coin is fake. The Chinese/Kanji characters don't look right (not sharp and defined enough), and neither do the Western numerals. The Roman alphabet lettering also seems to be too thick.

Here's a real silver One Yen coin for comparison (1895)
To me, the Roman alphabet lettering in your coin looks wrong (letters seem to be too thick and dull), and details appear to be mushy. Also, is the golden tone of your coin the real color, or is it the effect of the lighting?

Originally Posted by Collector1966

Here's a real silver One Yen coin for comparison (1895)
To me, the Roman alphabet lettering in your coin looks wrong (letters seem to be too thick and dull), and details appear to be mushy. Also, is the golden tone of your coin the real color, or is it the effect of the lighting?

the gold effect is because of the lighting. took the picture with my cell phone camera so quality is not that great. how would i go about finding out if this is real or not?

Originally Posted by jpstyle

the gold effect is because of the lighting. took the picture with my cell phone camera so quality is not that great. how would i go about finding out if this is real or not?

The first thing to do would be to weigh the coin. The standard weight of a one yen silver coin from that era is 26.96 grams.

Also, it would help if you could provide pictures of the coin in its actual color, and aligned up-and-down like my coin is.

another thing to do is a magnet test. if it sticks to a magnet, it's fake.

Here's another silver One Yen coin for comparison (1912)

Originally Posted by swish513

another thing to do is a magnet test. if it sticks to a magnet, it's fake.

tried it. its a fake. haha.

Hi collector1966 I have the same coin and my father got it from Japan as long as I could remember and I believe it's a 1880 coin just wondering what it's worth

sorry I'm new at this I couldn't find what I had posted to you so I'll try again...I have the same coin my father had it as long as I could remember I believe it's a 1880 coin. I would like to know what it's worth.

Welcome to the forum.

It is better to start a new thread for a question than to resurrect an old one, but since you're here, let's talk about your coin.

It is indeed dated Meiji 13, which does translate to 1880.

The coin appears to be Y#A25.2 in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, which as stated on the coin itself is .900 silver. Mintage in 1880 was 5,247,432.

The Japanese Numismatic Dealers Association catalog is the most accurate source I know of for valuation, and in the 2012 Edition it is listed at 15,000-160,000 yen (~$186-1,985). In U.S. grading terms, it probably has a touch too much rub for AU, so I would call it an XF. US values are slightly lower than Japanese values, so I would value your coin at $900+/-, if it is genuine.

The details look pretty good, but I am a little concerned about the grainy appearance of the field, especially around the chrysanthemum at the top of the reverse. That could indicate a casting, which would mean it originated in a counterfeiter's lair, not the Japan Mint in Osaka where it should have. Considering that the volume of Chinese fakes of your coin greatly exceeds the volume of genuine examples, it would be a good idea to precisely weigh and measure it, and give it the magnet test. It should weigh 26.96g, have a diameter of exactly 38.6mm, and be non-magnetic.

For Meiji era yen, measurement of the diameter is critical, since there were three slightly different diameters through the 40+ year life of the basic design, and the counterfeiters are not too picky about such details.

thank you for repliying...It did pass the magnet test unfortunetly if I messured it right the diameter was 38.1mm and I'm not certain of my scale but it weighed 23.0g....so if the coin is a fake would there still be any value at all being that it is old? I'm bummed out

Originally Posted by Tommygunz808

thank you for repliying...It did pass the magnet test unfortunetly if I messured it right the diameter was 38.1mm and I'm not certain of my scale but it weighed 23.0g....so if the coin is a fake would there still be any value at all being that it is old? I'm bummed out

The reason fakes usually have no value is associated with your question. There's no way to be certain of point or time of origin, since a counterfeiter can make more today, tomorrow, 20 years from now, etc. Counterfeits have no real value, and are illegal to sell.

Thank you...