L&M 6a; K 233; WS 0010; Wenchao 73 (rarity four stars); Silver 26.40 g.; A VERY RARE Peking (Beijing) mint series restrike from original dies. The Peking series of coinage is easily one of, if not the rarest of all Imperial era machine struck coin series, and although the restrikes exist they too are quite rare. Initiated in 1900 as a central mint series and was intended to circulate alongside the provincial dragon coinage. The dragon coinage had been the normal currency throughout most of China for roughly the preceding twelve years. The dies were prepared in England and sent to the Peking mint where a small number of five denomination sets were struck with plain edges and incised serial numbers on the edge. After this initial striking, references on the fate of the Peking series start to diverge slightly, but all of them seem to agree on the following series of events. During the chaos of the Boxer Rebellion (1900-01) the Peking mint was destroyed after only about two years of operation, and a set of dies (accounts differ, some say it was a full set of five dies some say it was only four dies) was "saved" by a worker there. From here the dies were sold, traded and passed through a few sets of hands before landing in the hands of a coin dealer in Shanghai. This dealer began striking small quantities of restrike sets by most accounts up through about the middle of the Republic era. The restrikes are identified by their reeded edges and pitting that is evident on the surface from rusty areas on the dies, as we can see in various spots on this piece. A handsome and dynamic design which is quite different from other dragon coinage of the time and is similar in form to the later "dragon in clouds" design of 1911; AUNC
