Tibet (1953) tangka
This specimen was lot 53512 in Stack's Bowers Hong Kong auction (Hong Kong, April 2021), where it sold for $720. The catalog description[1] noted, "CHINA. Tibet. Tangka, ND (1953). NGC MS-63. This nicely preserved high grade example offers a good strike, though slightly uneven, displaying satiny surfaces with somewhat muted luster and light gray tone." Tibet, now a (reluctant) part of China, had secured a de facto independence from China as the Manchu Empire decayed in the late nineteenth century. Tibetan currency was a mixture of Chinese, Nepalese and Indian units complicated by frequent debasements. This example realized sixteen times the catalog value.
Recorded mintage: 331,792.
Specification: 3.1-5.3 g, 0.900 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM-Y31.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The April 2021 Hong Kong Auction, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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