North Korea has drawn attention by recreating a silver coin commemorating the Chinese Soviet Republic, a short-lived state that existed for only six years in Chinese history. The coin, believed to have been minted on Monday, is reportedly intended for overseas circulation to generate foreign currency.
A Chinese collector of North Korean currency recently acquired this newly discovered silver coin and submitted it for analysis to TQG (Top Quality Guaranty), a Malaysia-based coin grading organization. The study confirmed that the coin was issued by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) and received the highest grade (PF 70) from NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation), a renowned U.S. coin grading agency.
The collector revealed on social media that the Bank of North Korea officially issued this silver coin on September 25. He noted that the coin’s edge not only features a toothed pattern but also bears the inscription “DPRK 1WON,” indicating the issuing country and face value – a design element unprecedented in North Korean coinage.
The coin’s obverse features a Chinese inscription that translates to “The global proletariat alliance begins,” with a hammer and sickle symbol representing workers and farmers engraved at its center. It is believed to be a reproduction of a silver coin issued in 1934 in the Tianshan region, a historical revolutionary base in China that once encompassed parts of Sichuan and Shanxi provinces.
The Chinese Soviet Republic was a Soviet-style state established by the Chinese Communist Party within the Nationalist government of the Republic of China from 1931 to 1937. Some historians view it as a precursor to the People’s Republic of China, with Mao Zedong serving as its chairman. Notably, it was the only Soviet state in East Asia that received support from the Soviet Union.
The collector also mentioned that a silver coin from Taiwan’s Qing Dynasty Daoguang era has been reproduced alongside this one. These two coins form the inaugural set of the “North Korea-China Historical Commemorative Rare Coin” series, with a limited mintage of 150 for the Chinese Soviet Republic silver coins and 300 for the Taiwanese silver coins.
According to the collector, the Bank of North Korea first proposed the idea of issuing commemorative coins featuring historical currency to China six years ago. However, two applications in 2019 were rejected. The project gained momentum following Kim Jong Un’s visit to China in September this year for the Chinese Victory Day celebrations, ultimately leading to the approval of the commemorative coin series.
Reports from Chinese online communities indicate that this silver coin is currently trading for around 650 CNY (approximately 92 USD). Given that rare coins are valued based on factors such as historical significance, year of issue, design, scarcity, mintage, and condition, these coins could potentially become a source of foreign currency for North Korea in the future.
