Ryō Kō

The was a gold currency unit in the shakkanhō system in pre- Meiji Japan. It was eventually replaced with a system based on the '' yen''.

Origins

The ''ryō'' was originally a unit of weight from China, the '' tael.'' It came into use in Japan during the Kamakura period. By the Azuchi–Momoyama period it had become nearly uniform throughout Japan, about 4.4 ''monme'' as a unit of weight (about the same as 16.5 grams).

During the Sengoku period, various local '' daimyō'' began to mint their own money. One of the best known and most prestigious of these private coins was the ''koshukin'' issued by the warlord Takeda Shingen, who had substantial gold deposits within his territories. The value of the koshukin was based on its weight, with one ''koshukin'' equal to one ryō of gold, and thus stamped with its weight (about 15 grams). During the Tenshō period (1573–1592), one ryō was equal to four ''koku'' of rice, or 1000 brass coins.

Tokugawa period

The Tokugawa shogunate attempted to create a central currency, based on gold, silver and copper units all exchangeable at fixed rates. Oblong gold coins, called ''koban'', were minted with one ''koban'' containing about one ''ryō'' of gold, so that ''koban'' carried a face value of one ''ryō''. The official rate was set in 1609 at one ''ryō'' equal to 50 ''monme'' (approx 187 grams) of silver, or 4000 brass coins. However, in reality the relative values between gold, silver and brass currencies fluctuated on an almost daily basis throughout the Edo period.

In 1695 the government decided to increase the amount of metal money in circulation by debasement. As a result, the ''ryō'' as a unit of weight of gold and the ''ryō'' as the face value of the ''koban'' were no longer synonymous. The Keichō ''koban'' issued after the monetary reform of May 1601 offered approximately 17.9 grams gold with fineness of 84–87%. The Genroku ''koban'' issued in 1695 still weighed around 17.9 grams; however its gold content was reduced to 57%. The Hōei ''koban'' of 1706 returned to the original fineness; however, the size was much reduced and it had little more than half the metal value of the Keichō ''koban''. In 1700 the official exchange rate was adjusted to 1 ryō equal to 60 ''monme'' silver (225 grams) or 4000 brass coins. Tokugawa Yoshimune further conducted a reform to stimulate the economy and raise prices in 1736, again lowering the gold content of the ''koban''.

One ''ryō'' was also considered equivalent to 1 ''koku'' of rice, or the amount of rice needed to feed one person for one year, although this was a less exact standard, which fluctuated depending on the abundance of the rice crop in any particular year.

On June 27, 1871, with the introduction of currency reforms after the Meiji Restoration, the ''ryō'' was abolished, and replaced one-for-one with the Yen.

Modern conversion

These fluctuations in the gold content of the koban over time, as well as differences in the cost of living between various points in the Edo period and in modern times make any attempt to relate the value of one ryō in terms of modern currency very difficult. Japanese middle school textbooks often state that one ryō was approximately equivalent to 100,000 Yen at the start of the Edo period, and around 3000–4000 yen at the end of the Edo period. On the other hand, the Currency Museum of the Bank of Japan states that one ryō had a nominal value equivalent 300,000–400,000 yen, but was worth only 120,000–130,000 yen in practice, or 40,000 yen in terms of rice.

See also

* Koban (coin)
* Tael (两, liǎng) in Chinese
* Japanese mon (currency)
* Wadōkaichin

References

* Lucassen, Jan. Wages and Currency: Global Comparisons from Antiquity to the Twentieth Century. Peter Lang (2007),
* Ohnuki, Mari, "The Genroku, Hoei, Shotoku, Kyoho, and Gembun Koban", Short Essays on Monetary History Contained in Monetary and Economic Studies, Research Division 3, Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies, Bank of Japan (ed.), Monetary and Economic Studies, 15.2 (1997).
* Honjo, Eijiro, "The Economic thought in Tokugawa days", Kyoto University Economic Review, vol. xiii, no. 1 (Kyoto, Oct. 1938), p. 1–22. verview of the period 1600 to 1867

{{DEFAULTSORT:Japanese Ryo
Economy of feudal Japan
Modern obsolete currencies