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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;ewomack, post: 2642539, member: 15588&quot;]Japan has created some beautiful coins, but none quite so gorgeous as the 1 Yen Meiji-era Dragon. The complex yet harmonious elements of the design complemented by the Kanji and English characters make me want to stare at these coins for hours. They have physical heft as well, being roughly the size and weight of a Morgan dollar. This is the first example I ever purchased, complete with a round &quot;銀&quot; counter-stamp on the reverse. The date reads &quot;明治二十八年&quot; or &quot;Meiji 28&quot; or 1895.</p><p><br /></p><p><img src="http://getmilked.com/pics/MeijiDragon.png" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>Apart from its aesthetics, the coin also symbolizes Japan&#039;s Meiji Restoration and the further opening up and modernization of the then Empire of Japan (&quot;大日本&quot;)　to the world. The modern coin design, fashioned after European and American coinage, as opposed to Japan&#039;s previous cast coins, and English on the obverse reflect this astounding transformation of a nation and its culture. The implications of this awakening ended up being, as we all know, rather ominous and disastrous, but since WWII the US and Japan have forged a fascinating, if not always amorous, relationship (though relations between Japan, Korea and China remain less than ideal). The coin reflects all of this to me, as well as modern globalization, economics, trade, the beauty of silver, Empires fallen, nationalism gone awry, war, peace and the overall predictable instability of encounters between cultures and peoples. Plus, dragons are <i>just cool</i>. Yes, I like this coin.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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