10 yen 1945

Common. eBay market data shows VF examples selling for $28-$60 (catalog value VF: $60), with even circulated grades moving at modest prices ($19.99 for F grade in 2018). The regular issue designation, substantial print run typical of occupation-period currency, and consistent availability in the secondary market all indicate this is a commonly encountered note among Taiwan banknote collectors. Wartime Japanese occupation currency from Taiwan is collected but not scarce.

Issued during the final year of Japanese colonial rule in Taiwan (1895-1945), this note reflects the cultural and administrative synthesis of the period, with the Jiantan (Taiwan Jinja/Great Shrine) serving as a symbol of Japanese imperial presence in the colony. The lighthouse and eagle imagery on the reverse evoke Taiwan's strategic maritime importance and Japan's imperial ambitions in the Pacific theater. These notes circulated during the chaotic final months of WWII and represent a critical transitional currency between Japanese occupation and the subsequent Republic of China administration.

The obverse features the Lanterns on Road to Jiantan (Taiwan Jinja, the Great Shrine), a significant Shinto shrine located in Taipei that was constructed during Japanese rule to commemorate Japanese soldiers. The engraved illustration shows traditional East Asian shrine architecture with a pagoda-style tower and ornamental lanterns flanked by elaborate decorative scrollwork borders and floral motifs. The reverse depicts a coastal landscape with a lighthouse point or fortification on elevated terrain, a seascape with shoreline vegetation, and a soaring eagle rendered within a shell-shaped decorative cartouche—symbols of Taiwan's maritime character and Japanese military might. Corner denominations of '10' appear in opposite corners following period banknote convention.

Front: '臺灣銀行券' (Taiwan Bank Note); '拾圓' (10 Yen); '此券憑提換比價' (This note can be exchanged at the specified rate); vertical text references Taiwan Bank and Kaohsiung Bank operations. Back: '臺灣銀行券' (Taiwan Bank Note); '圓' (Yen/Yuan). The visual analysis also notes references to '林式會社臺灣銀行' (Taiwan Bank Limited Company) and denominational markings in Arabic numerals (10) and Chinese characters.

Intaglio engraving (steel/copper plate engraving) with traditional hand-colored or multi-stone lithographic underprints, typical of Japanese occupation-era Taiwan currency. The intricate line work, fine detail rendering of landscape elements, ornamental scrollwork, and security patterns visible throughout indicate professional engraved plates, likely produced by Japanese security printers contracted by the Bank of Taiwan during the war period. The crude paper stock and red block numbering are characteristic of late-war Japanese currency production when materials and processes were increasingly constrained.

This is the green flower variety without lilac underprint (Pick P-1931), specifically differentiated from the related P-1930 which features a lilac flower on front and lilac underprint on back. The visual analysis confirms the green flowering motif on the obverse and absence of lilac tinting on the reverse. Serial number marking in red block only (no other colored serial varieties noted in available records). The S/M catalog designation T70-45 indicates this is a standard 1945 regular wartime issue with no known major varieties, overprints, or signature variations documented for this Pick number.