Dzungarian Khanate. Xinjiang, China. Tsewang Rabtan (1697-1726). AE pul. Yarkand mint. Obv: Tsewang in Mongolian script. Rev: Yarkand in Persian script. Scarce A tear drop shaped copper pul, these were issued under the Tsewang Rabtan, a Dzungarian Mongol Prince whose territories cover what is now northern half of Xinjiang, China during the Qing Dynasty. Characteristic of coins from the region, they are almost pure or very high in copper content giving them their deep red color. The Dzungars were Buddhist Mongol ethnic group but they were subjected to a genocide perpetrated by the Qing Emperor Qianlong during the 18th century when one of their rulers Amursana rebelled against the Qing soon after engaging their help to secure his power in Dzungaria. The genocide was a successful affair resulting to close to a million Dzungars killed or about 80% of the population. It was described as a genocide par excellence and led to an increased Muslim influence in Xinjiang and a vacuum for migration to Dzungaria since the Qing Dynasty. Today, remnants of the Dzungars have renamed themselves the Oolods settled in Xinjiang and parts of central Asia including Russia. Perhaps an inauspicious coincidence with the issuance of the coin design, a tear is fitting for the Dzungarians.
Thank you @zumbly , @jamesicus . If the genocide had not happened, the landscape of Modern Xinjiang today could have been very different demographically and religiously.
Very very interesting ! Thanks for the coin and write up. Neat, but simplistic design. Curious how the Qing exterminated 1MM people... that is a pragmatic execution!
