Picture Coin Ume Matsu Tenjin ☆ Old Cast / Beautiful Condition / Sugawara no Michizane / Nanbu Picture Coin / Good Luck Charm Coin / Lucky Coin / Toy Coin / Amulet Coin / e1225-1 ◎ Name: Picture Coin Ume Matsu Tenjin ◎ Issuing Country: Japan ◎ Issuing Year: Edo Period - ◎ Size: Diameter 27mm, Thickness 1.4mm ◎ Weight: 5.36g ◎ Purity: Copper ◎ Number Issued: Unknown ◎ Condition: Beautiful Condition / Some aging and wear due to age (see photos) (Reference Materials) Picture coins of Ume Matsu Tenjin are auspicious picture coins that combine the faith in Tenjin = Sugawara no Michizane with "pine," which symbolizes longevity, immortality, and good fortune, and "plum," which symbolizes academic achievement and the arrival of spring. Many are known as Nanbu picture coins from the Edo period onwards. Ume Matsu Tenjin is a picture coin with a design that places a Tenjin statue (Sugawara no Michizane) in formal court attire between or in the foreground of plum and pine trees, and is considered one of the representative designs of "Nanbu picture coins" cast in the Nanbu region. The purpose of picture coins was not for circulation as currency, but rather as good luck charms, amulets, and decorative coins (for good luck, disaster prevention, financial fortune, etc.). ☆ Meaning of the Imagery (Plum, Pine, Tenjin) Tenjin = Sugawara no Michizane is worshipped as the god of learning, and it is thought that the picture coins were expected to bring about spiritual efficacy related to examinations and academic success. Plum blossoms are flowers associated with Michizane, and the imagery of plum blossoms arranged around the Tenjin statue is also widely used in Tenjin faith art (Tenjin Engi Emaki and Tenjin statues), and the plum blossoms on the picture coins can be interpreted as following this tradition. Pine trees are symbols of evergreen, longevity, and immortality, and the combination of "ume (plum) and matsu (pine)" is considered to represent auspiciousness, longevity, and the prosperity of the family, as part of the auspicious imagery of the "Three Friends of Winter." ☆ Shape and Type According to existing records, many are copper coins with a diameter of approximately 24-27mm, and there are variations in the name notation, such as "Ume Matsu Tenjin" and "Kitano Tenjin." There are also types that are "mushiro" (no pattern on the back) and those with a design or inscription on the back that suggests Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, such as "Sei Kitano." ☆ Historical Background Records indicate that they were often made from the mid-Edo period to the Meiji era, and they are positioned as amulet picture coins from a time when folk beliefs and Tenjin faith had permeated the common people. There is an example registered as "Picture Coin (Pine Plum Tenjin)" in the ancient coin collection of the University of Tokyo, and it is also academically classified and preserved as a type of Nanbu picture coin. Main Material: Copper