1902 China Qing Kiangnan Mint Dragon 20 Cents Silver Coin L&M-249 NGC AU Details

  
His Story Treasures Presents - 1902 Kiangnan Province 20 Cents Silver Coin (L&M-249). The Dragon Beneath the Empire's Clouds. In the year 1902, under the faltering light of the Guangxu Emperor, China's ancient empire faced a storm unlike any before. The Western powers pressed from without, reformers and conservatives clashed within - and in this turmoil, the nation sought salvation not through swords, but through silver. The imperial court turned to its provinces, granting them permission to strike modern coinage. Among them, Kiangnan Province - the fertile land of rivers, scholars, and merchants - rose to prominence. From its mints in Nanking, the old capital of dynasties, emerged a silver dragon that would outlast the empire that birthed it. This is that dragon - coiled in vigilance, its scales glinting with the last brilliance of the Qing.

The Kiangnan 20 Cents coin was part of China's early attempt to harmonize Eastern tradition with Western technology. Where the front (obverse) declares in Chinese. "Treasure of the Guangxu Era" - the reverse reveals the English inscription.

KIANG NAN PROVINCE - 1 MACE AND 4.4 CANDAREENS. This dual-language design marked a quiet revolution: a recognition that China's future would speak in both the calligraphy of its sages and the script of the new world.

The dragon on the reverse - imperial, defiant, eternal - coils amid clouds of change. Its eyes blaze with the spirit of a civilization unwilling to bow; its claws grasp the sacred pearl, symbol of wisdom and divine energy. To hold this coin is to hold the last roar of the imperial dragon, before the dawn of the Republic silenced its ancient voice. Certified by NGC as AU Details - Cleaned, this specimen remains among the finest survivors of its kind.

The "About Uncirculated" designation confirms that nearly all design detail is intact - from the intricate scales of the dragon to the delicate beadwork along the rim. The "Cleaned" note simply acknowledges that at some point in its 120-year journey, a collector or merchant sought to restore its brilliance - a common and understandable act for silver coins of the early 20th century, long before professional grading standards existed. Today, it shines softly with silvery-gold patina, a testament to careful preservation rather than wear. Every curve and legend stands proud - an enduring link to the craftsmen of Nanking's mint, whose hands struck the dragon into legend. Grading Authority: NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Company).

Grade: AU Details - Cleaned. Composition: Silver (0.800 fine). The Kiangnan dragon series is one of the most storied and symbolically rich provincial issues in all of Chinese numismatics.

It embodies the twilight of an empire and the dawn of modernization - when China's artisans, engineers, and visionaries struggled to reshape an ancient world into a modern one. Each coin from this series is not merely a relic - it is a witness. It watched as the Qing court trembled, as new republics rose, and as generations of collectors preserved its silent testimony. To possess this coin is to hold in your hand the silver breath of a dragon that once guarded the Yangtze - a relic of courage, adaptation, and rebirth. We believe that every coin is more than a relic - it is a chronicle of faith, resilience, and beauty.

This 1902 Kiangnan 20 Cents piece, certified and protected by NGC, stands as a silver testament to China's transformation at the dawn of a new century. It is a coin that carries the roar of the past, yet whispers a message of endurance - that even as empires fade, the artistry of the human spirit endures forever. His Story Treasures - Fides. Because every coin tells His Story.