Ōban

{{distinguish|Koban (coin)}}

{{Short description|Former currency of the Tokugawa system}}

{{about|the Japanese coinage|other uses|Ōban (disambiguation)}}

{{expand Japanese|大判|date=October 2024}}

File:Keicho Oban 1601.jpgs. Here, a Keichō Ōban, minted from 1601.]]

File:Maneki-neko-ja.jpg, with Ōban attached to collar]]

An Ōban (大判) was a monetary ovoid gold plate, and the largest denomination of Tokugawa coinage. Tokugawa coinage worked according to a triple monetary standard, using gold, silver and bronze coins, each with their own denominations.Metzler p.15

File:Keicho gold coinage Oban Koban Ichibuban 1601 1695.jpg gold coinage: Ōban, Koban, Ichibuban, 1601–1695.]]

The first Oban – Tenshō Ōban (天正大判) – were minted by the Gotō family under the orders of Hideyoshi in 1588.The Cambridge History of Japan: Early modern Japan by John Whitney Hall p.61 [https://books.google.com/books?id=k_BrQL4Pn0QC&pg=PA61]

The Tenshō Ōban was equivalent to ten Ryōs, or ten Koban (小判) plates, with a weight of 165 g.