The Study On Coin Circulation In The Tang Dynasty

After the establishment of the Tang dynasty(In the Tang dynasty), the social economy developed rapidly in a stable environment, and the agriculture, industry, and commerce of that time obtained an all-round development. Economic recovery and development make frequent exchange of merchandise with currency for the media. The currency play a more and more important role in the social economy ,which circulated with silks and money. This kind of currency system satisfied the development of economy and the needs of the market appropriately during a certain period of time. However, with the development of commodity economy, the currency system couldn't adapt to the commodity exchange any more,and finally began to restrict the economic development of the commodity currencies.The currency system of TongBao formed and developed in the Tang dynasty, which is regarded as the model and standard for later dynasties. But due to the relatively low level of the rulers and the commodity economy ,the currency system and circulation had a strong financial characteristics, that is to say, rulers at the use of currency to adjust the economy, instead of the consideration of the need of economic development, they made more account of their own financial needs. And this had determined the variability of the currency system in that era,and the complexity of the currency changes. And therefore the government, in the face of a series of problems, Lacked the effective measures to counter. Shortcomings inherent in this system is the root of the problem.The thesis plan to discuss the process of the currency circulation in the Tang dynasty and the changes in the currency purchasing power over that era,and to analyze the thought and institutional reasons which effect the currency circulation,with the methods of conventional historical theory, and modern economics, monetary banking theory. The thesis focuses on revealing the relationship between the government, currency circulation,and the economic development, to show the policy factors and the objective laws behind the Economic operation.Papers will address the following five aspects:The first part elaborates the currency system in the Tang Dynasty and the production and management system of the mintage. The currency system of China had a long process of development and achieved the evolution in the Tang Dynasty at last. It formed the currency system of TongBao, which established the legal tender status of KaiYuanTongBao. The casting and circulating of the coins was under the government guidance. The second part elaborates the channels of the currency circulation. We can see the track of the currency circulation from putting into and withdrawalling from circulation between the government and the market. The third part elaborates the direction of the currency .The currency circulation was generated by commodity circulation. The currency circulation was decided by commodity circulation. The commodity circulation was the base and premise of the currency circulation. The currency circulation had the counteraction to the commodity circulation. We can see the direction of the currency circulation from the commodity circulation. We can devide the commodity into three parts: agricultural products, hand industrial products and government monopoly products. The fourth part elaborates the purchasing power of the coin. The purchasing power is the core problem. The impact of the currency circulation on commodity circulation was reflected on the purchasing power,which was performanced by the price of the commodity. So the study on the commodity price can help us to have a deep understanding of the purchasing power of the coin. The fifth part elaborates the development of credit relations. The credit was a new economic relations forming in the currency circulation in the Tang dynasty. It was a result at that time by accident and would become an end-result at last.In the conclusion we analyze the past experiences and successes in the currency circulation in the Tang dynasty, which is usful in the future.