Japanese military currency (1894–1918)

Sino-Japanese Warbonds (日清戦争軍票) were the first currency issued by the Japanese armed forces. The notes were used during the First Sino-Japanese War for only two months as the war ended before they could be used for a longer term. Sino-Japanese Warbonds were printed and released sometime in February 1895 in denominations of 10 tael, 5 tael, 1 tael, 5 sen, 2 sen, and 1 fen.[2] Their design is similar to civilian issued Meiji Tsūhō notes which were in circulation at the time. As the war ended with a peace treaty on April 17, 1895 a majority of the series went unused. Most of these notes were collected by officials who exchanged them at a 1.40 yen per 1 tael rate before disposing of them.[3][4] The issued series as a whole was thought to have gone extinct until four notes re-surfaced in 1977. These were found hidden in the inner pockets of military uniforms worn by high-ranking officers who served in the Sino-Japanese War.[3] Five other unissued specimen notes remain at the Bank of Japan currency museum for public viewing.[3]

20 sen note (obverse) from 1904 (year 37 of Meiji)

Russo-Japanese War military bonds (日露戦争軍票) were produced beforehand in 1903 (year 36 of Meiji) in anticipation of an upcoming war. During this time negotiations commenced between Japan and Russia regarding Russian troops in Manchuria. Seeing Russia as a rival, Japan offered to recognize Russian dominance in Manchuria in exchange for recognition of Korea being within the Japanese sphere of influence. Russia refused and demanded the establishment of a neutral buffer zone between Russia and Japan in Korea north of the 39th parallel. Japan officially issued a declaration of war on February 8, 1904 and attacked the Russian Far East Fleet at Port Arthur.[5] Russo-Japanese War military bonds were issued upon declaration in denominations of 10 sen, 20 sen, 50 sen, 1 yen, 5 yen, and 10 yen.[6] Their size ranges from 103mm x 62mm for sen to 130 mm x 92 mm for yen with a design similar to Meiji Tsūhō notes that were issued for civilians in Japan from 1872 to 1899.[6] These Russo-Japanese War military bonds could be converted into silver during the war. Places of redemption were set up across Manchuria as the alloy could not be feasibly carried by the troops making local payments.[7] This series was used abundantly in contrast with Sino-Japanese Warbonds as over 140 million yen in notes were issued during the war.[8] The Japanese military also issued some of these notes in the Korean Empire as "special occupation currency".[9]

The Treaty of Portsmouth formally ended the Russo-Japanese War on September 5, 1905.[10] As Russo-Japanese War military bonds were not permitted to circulate in Japan, they "obtained wide currency" in Korea and Manchuria.[11] When the war ended, the Yokohama Specie Bank was authorized to redeem the military notes in exchange for their own notes backed by the silver yen.[12][13] Additional arrangements were also made to convert the notes into gold in order to target Japanese merchants in Manchuria.[11] The exchange process began in 1910 which allowed Bank of Japan and eventually Bank of Chosen notes to circulate in the region.[11][12] Gold certificates were exclusively issued by the latter of these two banks by 1917, but were not popular with the Chinese who preferred silver.[12] Russo-Japanese War military bonds meanwhile continued to circulate until at least 1919 with 300,000 yen reported in circulation.[11] The note exchangements eventually gave rise to Japanese yen silver currency in Manchuria which was used into the 1930s.[12][13] While "many" of the war notes were collected and destroyed by the government, others chose to keep them as victory commemorates.[8]

The value of any given banknote is determined by survivability rate and condition as collectors in general prefer original notes with bright rich coloring. In contrast to this are notes with ink stains, missing pieces, and evidence of repairs which can all impact their value. Exceptions to this include extremely rare banknotes where there are few surviving examples (ex: National Gold Bank Note). The oldest military currency issued during the post-Imperial restoration era include Sino-Japanese Warbonds which had a very short lifespan. These notes are not collectible as there are no records of actual sales outside of institutions such as the Bank of Japan Currency Museum.[2][3] One the four known "1 tael" notes held by the museum was assessed on April 18, 2020 for 4,000,000 yen (~$35,000+ USD).[3] The second series issued during the Russo-Japanese War is very common as over 140 million yen in notes were issued for the duration.[8] Russo-Japanese War military bonds continued to circulate long after being collected until at least 1919 with people keeping them as victory commemorates.[8][11] These notes were produced with and without serial numbers which creates two varieties to those looking for a set. On average they are valued in the tens of thousands of yen (~$100+ USD) depending on the denomination.[6] The highest denomination notes of 5 and 10 yen are rare, and are valued much higher in the hundreds of thousands of yen (~$1,000+ USD).[6]

During World War I Japan issued two different series of military currency for events in China and Siberia. The first of these issues are known as Qingdao military bonds which are now scarce due to their survival rate. As with the First Sino-Japanese War, the incident involving the Siege of Tsingtao only lasted for a brief period of time. Most of the issue was either redeemed afterwards or lost over the past century.[22] Notes in the lower denominations are most common with values ranging from the tens to hundreds of thousands of yen. The highest denomination notes of 5 and 10 yen are possibly non-existent now as there have been no recorded sales of them.[14][15] Siberian Intervention Warbonds were the second and last of these currencies issued before the Shōwa era. Grading services also refer to these notes as part of the Occupation of Siberia series for an encapsulation title.[23] This series follows the pattern of the lowest denominations being the easiest to obtain as they are valued in the tens to hundreds of thousands of yen.[20][21] These also become very rare in the highest denominations of 5 and 10 yen with values in the hundreds of thousands to millions of yen. An example of a 10 yen note sold for $28,680 USD at an auction held in 2017.[19]

• Banknotes of the Japanese yen
• Scrip of Edo period Japan