17 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Hidden Treasure from WWII: 500,000 Phantom Ceramic Coins Found

About 500,000 Maboroshi (phantom) ceramic coins manufactured due to metal shortages during World War II were discovered in a warehouse at the site of a former manufacturer in the city of Kyoto.

These long-lost relics were circulated briefly and were thought to have been destroyed after the war. The coins were discovered, stashed in 15 wooden boxes at Shofu Inc.’s Kyoto site, the former Shofu Industry Corporation, which had crafted them during the war.

The coins are in denominations of a single “sen” and have a diameter of 15 millimeters, with one side decorated with Mount Fuji and the other cherry blossoms. One sen is said to be worth 1/100 of a yen (1 yen is around 0.7 cents).

An official from Shofu Industry Corporation expressed shock at the find, remarking, “There are unexpected things in unexpected places.” Shofu Industries Corp. were specialist ceramicists and manufactured high-quality porcelain teeth at the time. They were one of three companies designated as offices of the Mint to produce ceramic coinage.

According to the Japan Mint, in Osaka’s Kita Ward, there was a shortage of metal used to make coins during WWII, because the material was used to create munitions. As a replacement, a total of about 15 million ceramic coins were produced in the city of Kyoto, the city of Seto in Aichi Prefecture, and the town of Arita in Saga Prefecture, where the pottery industry was flourishing. However, with the end of the war, the coins were crushed and discarded without ever being circulated, and called “phantom coins.”

WWII Ceramic coins found in Kyoto. Photo: Japan Mint
WWII Ceramic coins found in Kyoto. Photo: Japan Mint

Officials say the discovery of such a large amount of ceramic coins is extremely rare. Packed in a total of 15 wooden boxes, the coins were found along with ceramic tea sets and plates made for export.

The Mint owned the coins, which were passed back to them recently. The mint accepted the coins and plans to exhibit them at the Mint Museum on its premises, as well as at its Saitama and Hiroshima branches.

The head of the Japan Mint, Goto Kenji, handed a letter of appreciation to Takami Tetsuo, the president of the firm that discovered the coins.

These coins offer a rare glimpse into an unusual chapter of wartime coinage.  “This discovery holds great historical value,” a Mint official said. “It sheds light on a little-known period of Japan’s coin-making history.”

Japan Mint

Cover Image Credit: Japan Mint

Related Articles

Only Those on the Righteous Path May Enter Here”: New Mosaics Unearthed in Antalya’s Olympos

19 June 2025

19 June 2025

A newly discovered mosaic inscription at the entrance of a church and elaborately decorated floor mosaics have come to light...

Uncovering a Rare Enamelled Roman Brooch in Scotland

6 March 2025

6 March 2025

Recent research by GUARD Archaeology highlights a rare enamelled Roman brooch, suggesting its potential use in a “foundation offerings ritual”...

Meaning of Agora Gate Found in Turkey’s Ancient City of Aizanoi

8 June 2021

8 June 2021

The good news continues to come from the ancient city of Aizanoi, located in Çavdarhisar district, 50 km from Kütahya....

An Interesting Ottoman Tradition Resembling Christmas tree: “NAHIL” OR WISHING TREE

28 December 2022

28 December 2022

Nahıl, a word of Arabic origin, means date palm. This word was later used by the people to mean the...

Mendik Tepe: A Neolithic Discovery That Could Rewrite History Before Göbekli Tepe

29 August 2025

29 August 2025

Archaeologists working at Mendik Tepe, a prehistoric mound in southeastern Türkiye, are unearthing evidence that may date earlier than the...

The Splendor of the Seven Descending Gods of Tulum Resurfaced

11 February 2024

11 February 2024

The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) says the splendor of the seven Descending Gods of Tulum has resurfaced....

Lost Children’s Circle: Seven Infant Remains Unearthed in Mysterious Hittite Ritual Structure at Uşaklı Höyük

8 August 2025

8 August 2025

At the heart of Uşaklı Höyük (Uşaklı Mound), archaeologists have uncovered the “Lost Children’s Circle” — a mysterious Hittite-era ritual...

483 Celtic gold coins worth several million euros stolen from German museum

23 November 2022

23 November 2022

A huge horde of ancient gold coins dating back to 100 BC was stolen from the Celtic and Roman Museum...

A fossilized Neanderthal skeleton unearthed in France may have belonged to a previously undescribed lineage that split from other Neanderthals

12 September 2024

12 September 2024

The fossilized Neanderthal skeleton, discovered in a cave system in the Rhône Valley of France, represents a previously unidentified lineage...

Surprising Discovery: In Guatemala, archaeologists uncover hidden neighborhood in the ancient Maya city

28 September 2021

28 September 2021

A recent lidar analysis revealed, the region surrounding Central Tikal’s Lost World Complex, which was long thought to be a...

In the ancient city of Syedra: a unique mosaic with the 12 labors of Heracles depicted on a single panel found

25 July 2022

25 July 2022

During the excavations in the ancient city of Syedra in the Alanya district of Antalya, approximately 164 square meters of...

The earliest Buddha statues in China found in northwestern Shaanxi

10 December 2021

10 December 2021

The two copper-tin-lead alloy Buddha statues discovered in northwestern Shaanxi Province became the earliest Buddha statues of this kind unearthed...

Where We Saw Sin, There Was Care: A Baby Buried in a Medieval Belgian Brothel

23 May 2025

23 May 2025

A medieval brothel in Belgium yields a discovery that forces historians to confront forgotten tenderness in places long seen only...

19 funerary tombs from Roman times were discovered in Tartus, Syria

27 May 2022

27 May 2022

During search and excavation operations in the archaeological area of Amrit in Tartus, Syria, a joint excavation team from the...