Decoding Dates on Japanese Yen Coins: A Beginner’s Guide with Meiji 1 Yen

My Koyns
Oct 28, 2024
3 min read

Updated: Jul 28

I recently revisited the book U.S.P.I., and one section immediately reignited my interest—photos of world crown-size coins. It inspired me to start collecting crown-size coins from countries near the Philippines, such as China and Japan.

I was especially thrilled when I came across a Japanese 1 Yen silver crown-size coin that fit perfectly within my budget. But before finalizing the purchase, I realized I had a challenge: How do you determine the year on a Japanese Yen coin?

Luckily, after some quick research and stumbling upon two helpful websites, I learned how Japan dates its coins—and it’s quite different from what we’re used to.

Understanding the Japanese Coin Dating System

Unlike many countries that use the Gregorian calendar, Japan dates its coins based on the current emperor's reign, known as an Era. The coin’s inscription tells you which Era it belongs to, and how many years the emperor had reigned when the coin was minted.

This system began in 1871, when Japan introduced its modern currency.

To decode dates on Japanese Yen coins, you need to:

Identify the Era.
Understand Japanese numerals.
Do a bit of simple math.

Step 1: Recognize the Japanese Era

The Era name appears as two kanji characters at the start of the date inscription. Depending on the Era, the characters may be read right to left or left to right.

Here are the major Eras and their corresponding date ranges:

Era	Years Covered	Kanji Characters
Meiji	1868 – July 1912	明治 (read right to left)
Taishō	July 1912 – December 1926	大正 (right to left)
Shōwa	December 1926 – January 1989	昭和 (left to right)
Heisei	January 1989 – April 2019	平成 (left to right)

Note: Only the Meiji and Taishō Eras have crown-size silver coins for general circulation.

Step 2: Learn Japanese Numerals

Japanese numerals on coins use the following characters:

Number	Symbol
1	一
2	二
3	三
4	四
5	五
6	六
7	七
8	八
9	九
10	十

You’ll also often see these:

元 – “First” or “Origin” (used for the first year of a reign)
年 – “Year” (always comes at the end of the date inscription)

Year Character

Step 3: Read the Inscription and Do the Math

Let’s take my new coin as an example: Coin: 1893 Japanese 1 Yen Silver Coin – Meiji Era – Meiji Era (Small Type)

Here’s how I decoded it:

The Era characters 明治 (Meiji) are read right to left.
Following that, I saw the numbers 二 (2) and 十 (10). When 十 follows a number, it acts as a multiplier. So 二十 becomes 2 × 10 = 20.
The next number 六 (6) is added to 20 → 26.
The last character is 年, meaning “year.”

So, the inscription reads: Meiji year 26.

To convert it to a Western year:

Meiji year 0 = 1867 (The year Emperor Meiji ascended the throne)

1867 + 26 = 1893

And there it is—the coin was minted in 1893.

That's how to decode dates on Japanese Yen coins.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to read Japanese coin dates has added a whole new layer of excitement to my collecting journey. Not only did I get a beautifully designed crown-size silver coin from the Meiji era, but I also gained a bit of language and historical knowledge in the process.

I’m excited to keep exploring coins from neighboring Asian countries and expanding this side collection. If you’re new to collecting Japanese coins, I hope this breakdown helps you decode your own finds!

Sources & Further Reading:

Editors Note: This post was originally published October 28, 2024 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.