Japan 5 Yen 1949 to Date
These are modern Japanese 5 yen coins. The rice stalk and gear are distinguishing patterns. Dating these coins can be a challenge for Westerners. Earlier coins come from the Showa (Hirohito) dynasty, which starts counting years in 1925, and later from the current Heisei (Akihito) dynasty, which starts counting in 1988. So, for instance, Heisei 1 is 1989.
You can see these characters on the non-rice side of the coin. After that comes the date, expressed as years of the particular dynasty.
The coin in our photo comes from the 33rd year of the Showa dynasty, or 1925 + 33 = 1958. The leftmost character means 'year.'
All in all, most dates of these coins are worth face value, 5 yen in Japan. Dates before Showa 34 (1959) are worth about $10 if in fully uncirculated condition. Coins dated Showa 32 (1957) are scarce and can be worth $30 in fully uncirculated.
Coin: 5708, Genre: The Sinosphere, Timeline: Modern
Created (yyyymm): 201009, Last review: 201508
Appearance: Round hole at center Metallic brown Letters: Chinese style
Years: sort: 1949, filter: 1949 to 2050
Image: japan_5_yen_showa54.jpg
Tags: grain slicing 5th spoke wheat wheats rice wheatie lining slash lined wheel lines japanise bar japanes japan slice japanize crossbar heisei spoked gear bars showa slanted grains line japenese japanese outlined outline slant spokes mail yen outlining