High quality gold plated REPLICA coin of a Japan 20 Yen- Meiji 1880 gold coin. The surface of this coin is of a highly polished gold finish. As stated, this is a replica (copy) of the original coin. The coin is designed as a collectable item and has no financial exchange rate value. It is suitable for gifts and collectors since it's very close to the original one. The coin is gold plated. Not solid gold. As seen on the photos the quality is very good and it is like the original one.
The 20 yen coin is a coin that was minted numerous times by the Empire of Japan. The first issue was introduced in 1870, the third year of the reign of Emperor Meiji (Mutsuhito), and was issued sporadically for circulation until 1880. Pieces of the type were later minted in 1892 but were never put into circulation. A second 20 yen coin was first issued in 1897, the thirtieth year of the Meiji period, and continued to be produced until the emperor's death in 1912. The same coin was then issued by the newly coronated Emperor Taishō (Yoshihito) later that year and was issued every year until 1920. A 20 yen coin of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito) was made in 1930, but production only lasted until 1932.
The 20 yen piece was the most valuable coin of the yen until the 50 yen piece was introduced in 1955.
The first coin denominated at 20 yen was issued in 1870, the third year of Emperor Meiji's reign, and was minted sporadically until 1892. Such a coin is composed of .900 fine gold, and has a mass of 33.3333 grams and a diameter of approximately 35.06 millimeters. A dragon, a legendary creature in Japanese mythology and folklore, is featured in the center of the coin's obverse, surrounded by a circular beaded border. Outside the border, along the left rim of the coin, is the state title of the Empire of Japan, written from right to left as "本日大" (romanized: Dai Nippon), which translates to English as "Great Japan". The date of minting is printed right to left along the right periphery of the coin as "年" (nen), followed by the number of years the emperor had been in reign at the time of production, and ending with "治明" (Meiji). Essentially, the date "年三治明" (Meiji san-nen), with the "三" character representing the number "3", indicates production during the third year of Meiji's reign. The coin's value is inscribed at the bottom of the coin in Japanese as "圓十二" (Ni-jū en), and like the other text, it is written from right to left. The three legends on the obverse are separated from each other by small bullet points. Displayed in the center of the reverse is a sunburst surrounded by a wreath and superimposed over the Yata no Kagami, a sacred mirror that is part of the Imperial Regalia of Japan. The entire illustration hides portions of two crossing poles, which each hold up a Japanese war banner extending to the left and right sides of the reverse. Displayed at the top center of the coin is the Imperial Seal of Japan — which consists solely of an image of a stylized chrysanthemum flower — and featured at the bottom of the reverse is the Government Seal of Japan — consisting of a stylized paulownia flower.
Over just five years of production, a total of 47,225 examples of the coin were produced, including an unknown number of proof pieces made in 1873. Of the dates collectible, 1873 has the highest mintage, with 46,139 pieces, while neither of the other years has a mintage that exceeds one thousand.