Japan, 1871 (48 mon)
Two coiled dragons around four vertical characters in a square frame.
Illustration of a historical stamp for learning, shown at screen size. Not valid for postage.
How to read it
Two dragons around a value in kanji, counted in mon: Japan’s very first stamp.
- 1錢四十八文: forty-eight mon
- 2A dragon
- Inscription
- 錢四十八文
- Meaning
- 錢 means money and 四十八文 is “forty-eight mon”, the old copper coin. No country name at all.
- Issued by
- Japan
- Today
- Japan Flag of Japan
- Year
- 1871. Issued in April 1871 (Meiji 4), Japan’s first stamps.
- Made by
- Matsuda Atsutomo (松田敦朝), also known as Gengendō Rokuzan (engraver, died 1903); Matsuda Gengendō workshop, commissioned by the Japanese government (design/printing organisation)
One fact
Japan’s first stamps of 1871 were valued in mon and are called the Dragon stamps after the two dragons around the value.
Source and public-domain rule
Japan, published under the name of an organisation more than 70 years ago. Published in 1871 under the name of Japan’s government postal service; a work published under an organisation’s name is protected for 70 years from publication. A work published under the name of a legal person or organisation, such as Japan’s Ministry of Communications, is protected until 70 years after publication (50 years before the 2018 amendment). Legal sources: Copyright Law of Japan (CRIC translation), Arts. 52–53.
Scan: Ryu Stamp 48mon.JPG on Wikimedia Commons (revision 1192124539), licence templates {{PD-Japan-organization}}, {{PD-1923}}. Downloaded 2026-10-21, sha256 e963a1cf5591…; cropped and cleaned for this site. Facts checked 2026-10-22 against source 1 and source 2. Open review note: The only Commons scan is 388×381 px (taken from a catalogue cover); shown without upscaling.. Research record, not legal advice; a second check of these rights by a person is planned, and a stamp that turns out not to be free to use will be removed. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
