Republic Sun Yat-sen "Birds Over Junk" Dollar Year 21 (1932) MS64 NGC, KM-Y344, L&M-108, Kann-622, Chang-CH204, WS-0144. Perhaps one of the most eponymous types produced under the Chinese Republic, the Birds over Junk Dollar struck only in 1932 stands as an issue whose popularity among collectors knows no bounds. Competitively sought in all conditions, there is something to be said about the designs when captured this pristinely, a combination of micro-fine flow lines and die polish emerging in the fields, which otherwise comes obscured by wear or contact on lesser-grade specimens. Differentiable from the later Junk Dollars by the presence of a rising sun on the horizon and three birds above the reverse scene, these motifs were determined at the time as betraying a pro-Japanese leaning--the rising sun a central motif of the Japanese Empire, which had just launched an air force around a decade earlier. Though mintage was ultimately ceased and the artistry refined, this has done nothing to hamper the demand of the type. Certainly in the upper bracket of certified examples, with none yet certified above an MS66.

HID09801242017

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