Silver ID Guide

Larger: Which description is closest?

Short, angled strokes on top of 常 character, no file marks on the sides

Top three strokes on 常 character are long, a few file marks on the sides

It doesn't match either of these

There are many intermediate pieces that don't clearly fit into either category. These are "Intermediate Ko Nanryo," and it's uncertain when they were struck. Most places - including PCGS - group all forms of Ko Nanryo together, so it doesn't have much impact.

One Incuse Stamp: Which sakura (border flowers) are inverted

You have a Tenpo, Ansei, or Meiji ichibu. Which one is determined by inverted sakura around the border. There are thorough descriptions on how to ID these three types in most guides, so I'm not going into much detail for now. If you're having trouble attributing one, feel free to reach out, or see page 128 in Early Japanese Coins by David Hartill. I have simplified it as much as possible below to help show the patterns and enable you to make an educated guess without always referring to a table.

T = Tenpo Ichibu

A = Ansei Ichibu

M = Meiji Ichibu

Silver ID Guide

Silver: Are the corners rounded or sharp?

Sharp Corners: Does your coin have a fundo?

Fundo: How many characters on the side without the fundo?

10 Characters: How large is it?

Larger: Which description is closest?

No Fundo: What does the border look like?

Dot Border: What does the 常 character look like?

Flower Border: How many large incuse stamps are there?

One Incuse Stamp: Which sakura (border flowers) are inverted