Pair the two Yuan Shikai faces before studying a detail
Place the dated portrait image directly beside the grain-wreath reverse under one identifier. A loose close-up of hair or leaves cannot show which physical coin supplied it.
Identification begins with the visible year characters, portrait, epaulette and surrounding lettering on the obverse.
Read the Reverse Alongside the Portrait
Keep surface notes, old labels and proposed variety names in separate fields until the complete faces agree.
If an image is cropped at the rim, take a new orientation photograph rather than reconstructing the missing design from another Yuan Shikai dollar.
Build correspondence across both faces
Use the same camera direction and coin number when turning the piece. A small orientation marker on the enclosure can help preserve the obverse-to-reverse relationship without touching the metal.
Add close-ups of portrait hair, ear, epaulette, year wording, wreath, knot and denomination only after the full pair is saved.
Keep Each Face Pair Together
When several dollars are present, turn and photograph one coin at a time; a batch layout cannot establish which reverse belongs to which portrait.
Terms such as signed type, O variety, triangular-yuan variety or a regional issue require their diagnostic feature to be locatable on the complete coin.
Let Visible Features Control the Name
Transcribe holder wording as documentation, then verify the enclosed year, portrait and wreath through the available complete views.
Photograph the full circumference in overlapping sections and preserve the order. Rim joins, knocks, solder, holes and traces of former mounting must remain unaltered.
Use the Rim as a Third Surface
If the two readings or the holder description conflict with the visible faces, retain every version with its date and arrange a focused recheck.
Record weight and diameter with instrument, native unit and contact point, using the figures only after the basic coin type is plausible.
What Neutral and Raking Light Show on the Paired Faces
Raking light may reveal hairlines and flattened high points, while neutral light preserves the overall relationship between portrait, legends and border.
A face-pair check should separate patina, circulation wear, weak strike, contact marks and wiping hairlines while keeping the metal untouched.
Start at the year characters and follow the portrait outline to the epaulette and rim. On the reverse, move from denomination to wreath, grain heads, knot and border in a stated direction.
Confirm that every located detail carries the same identifier as the two whole-face photographs, edge sequence and measurements. Flag anything that cannot be traced back.
Before handover, preserve the sleeve or holder order and list all concealed features. A proposed name should remain provisional wherever plastic or glare blocks the evidence.
