Changes

At the same time, precious metals, especially silver, flowed out of the country in great volume, especially through [[Nagasaki]]. In the 16th century Japanese silver mines had become much more productive just as Chinese ones began to wane, spurring this considerable outflow. Copper mines similarly saw a considerable increase in their output in the 17th century, but by the end of that century, Japan's silver mines were already beginning to run dry. This led to dramatic devaluations in the coinage, and rampant inflation, at various times over the course of the Edo period, as the shogunate attempted to implement financial/monetary policies to address the declining supply of precious metal. The Keichô ''koban'' weighed four ''momme'', eight ''fun'', and was 862 parts gold to 132 parts silver. After [[1695]], it was debased to 564 parts gold to 432 parts silver, with the total weight of the coin remaining the same.<ref>Arai Hakuseki, Joyce Ackroyd (trans.), ''Told Round a Brushwood Fire'', University of Tokyo Press (1979), 296n239.</ref> One of the most significant instances of this came in [[1718]], when the value of the gold ''ryô'' dropped by about 20 percent. One gold ''ryô'' had been equal to roughly 60 ''momme'' of silver, and was now worth roughly 50 ''momme'';<ref name=obtaining/> one ''chôgin'' (43 ''momme''), therefore, had been equivalent to roughly 71% of a gold ''ryô'', but was now worth closer to 83% of a ''ryô''.<ref>Timon Screech (''Obtaining Images'', p79) cites the figures as 65% and 95%; however, calculating directly, using the figures 43, 50, and 60, results in the percentages 71 and 83.</ref> Meanwhile, the ''[[Genroku]]-gin'' pieces of silver (issued 1695-1706), made of 646 parts silver to 352.6 parts copper and 1.4 parts gold, were replaced by the ''Hôeigin'' in 1706-1710, made up of 507 parts silver 490.6 parts copper and 1.2 parts gold.<ref>Hakuseki, 296n240.</ref>

At the same time, precious metals, especially silver, flowed out of the country in great volume, especially through [[Nagasaki]]. In the 16th century Japanese silver mines had become much more productive just as Chinese ones began to wane, spurring this considerable outflow. Copper mines similarly saw a considerable increase in their output in the 17th century, but by the end of that century, Japan's silver mines were already beginning to run dry. This led to dramatic devaluations in the coinage, and rampant inflation, at various times over the course of the Edo period, as the shogunate attempted to implement financial/monetary policies to address the declining supply of precious metal. The Keichô ''koban'' weighed four ''momme'', eight ''fun'', and was 862 parts gold to 132 parts silver. After [[1695]], it was debased to 564 parts gold to 432 parts silver, with the total weight of the coin remaining the same.<ref>Arai Hakuseki, Joyce Ackroyd (trans.), ''Told Round a Brushwood Fire'', University of Tokyo Press (1979), 296n239.</ref> One of the most significant instances of this came in [[1718]], when the value of the gold ''ryô'' dropped by about 20 percent. One gold ''ryô'' had been equal to roughly 60 ''momme'' of silver, and was now worth roughly 50 ''momme'';<ref name=obtaining/> one ''chôgin'' (43 ''momme''), therefore, had been equivalent to roughly 71% of a gold ''ryô'', but was now worth closer to 83% of a ''ryô''.<ref>Timon Screech (''Obtaining Images'', p79) cites the figures as 65% and 95%; however, calculating directly, using the figures 43, 50, and 60, results in the percentages 71 and 83.</ref> Meanwhile, the ''[[Genroku]]-gin'' pieces of silver (issued 1695-1706), made of 646 parts silver to 352.6 parts copper and 1.4 parts gold, were replaced by the ''Hôeigin'' in 1706-1710, made up of 507 parts silver 490.6 parts copper and 1.2 parts gold.<ref>Hakuseki, 296n240.</ref>

===Prices===

===Prices===