Hong Kong 1 Mil - 1866 - Museum Gallery

June 2025

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Mostly red 1 Mil with the value written as '1 Ch'ien'.
The inscriptions on the obverse of this coin are HONG - KONG ONE MIL 1866 V.R. and a crown. Four Chinese characters on the reverse means Hong Kong One Thousand.
[I think this actually is a mistake. Please be noted that the meaning of the four Chinese characters on the reverse of those minted in 1863, 1864 and 1865 is "Hong Kong One Cash". Some of the One Mil coins minted in 1865 are no hyphen between HONG KONG on obverse.]
You will find that the sizes of the two Arabic numerals "66" are not the same, the left one is larger than the right one on the obverse of this 1866 Mil. Since this small Mil had never proved popular it was discontinued after 1866.

Something interesting in "The Star' Newspaper of Malaysia in the Business column:
The author, Dr. Ong Hean Tatt, in the weekly "Sun Tzu's Management Leadership " column says that the Chinese Coin which is circular is a symbol of heaven while the square is a symbol of Earth. Chinese circular coins with its square hole is sometimes regarded as a charm against evil. Could that explain why this small Mil had never proved popular and was discontinued?