Uniface

This note is not in my collection. Scan courtesy of Mike Irwin.

The above 20 Taels note was issued during the first year reign of Emperor Kung Tsung (1275-1276), the 7th emperor of Southern Sung dynasty, 1127-1280.

The Sung dynasty consisted of the Northern Sung dynasty (960-1127) and the Southern Sung dynasty (1127-1280). The first Northern Sung emperor was Sung T'ai Tsu, a general of the declining Tang dynasty who managed to reunify China and became emperor.

Sung dynasty was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money for general circulation.

The Southern Sung refers to the period after the Northern Sung was defeated by Jin invaders across the northern border. The Sung court retreated south and established a government in the southern part of the country.