Timeline

• around 1763
• (TB:13-17) Start of issuance of Tibetan silver coins in Nepalese style, referred to as "Tangka", of nominally ½ Indian tola (5.7 grams) weight
• around 1792
• (TB:13-46) Start of issuance of silver coins of 1½, 1, ¾, ½ Sho in the Chinese standard of 9 Sho to 1 Chinese tael silver
• around 1850
• (TB:14-44) Resumption of the issuance of Tangka silver coins, now aligned to the Chinese standard at 6⅔ Tangka per Chinese tael silver
• around 1893
• Start of inflow of Indian coinage into Tibet, following the Anglo-Chinese Convention (of 17.03.1890) and the December 1893 protocol, entitled "Regulations Regarding Trade, Communications, and Pasturage to Be Appended to the Sikkim-Tibet Convention of 1890"
• around 1896
• The Chinese government launched the "Sichuan-Tibet silver Rupees" (imitating the Indian Rupees) in counteraction:
  - Minting started around 1906 in the Sichuan provincial mints of Chengdu and Kangding
  - Initially, they corresponded to the original coins, but their fineness decreased over time from about 0.900 to less than 0.100.
  - Small change was created by chopping up the Rupee coins, the attempt to issue ½, ¼ Rupees was short-lived as they they did not catch on.
  - In 1934, the Tibetan government banned the usage of Sichuan Rupees, but was unable to impose this.

Timeline

• around 1909
• Coinage reform by the Tibetan government based on the Srang as unit of account, nominally equal to the Chinese Tael. The real coin weights were much lower:
  - 1909-1919: 1 Srang coin of about 18 grams silver 0.980 fine
  - 1933-1946: 3 Srang coin of about 11.3 grams silver (originally in the standard of the Indian Rupee, 0.917 fine, but after 1935 gradually debased)
  - 1948-1952: 10 Srang coin of about 16.5 grams of low-fineness silver (billon).
• around 1911
• (TB: 45-15) Government resolution on the issuance of government paper money:
  - 1912-1941: Paper money denominated in Tangka = 0.15 Srang
  - 1939-1959: Paper money denominated in Srang
• around 1918
• Start of issuance of gold coins denominated 20 Srang, of nominally 1 Indian tola (11.3 grams) of unrefined gold (probably alloyed with copper); production ceased around 1921 due to rising gold prices
• 10.07.1959
• Government resolution of the currency exchange; effective immediately:
  - 11.07.1957: Start of issuance of paper money and coins of the Chinese Yuan (1955) and conversion of prices and salaries
  - 10.08.1959: Demonetization of the Tibetan currency and exchange within 20 days (until 31.08.1959)
  - Paper money and silver coins of 10 Srang were exchanged at a rate of 1 Chinese Yuan (1955) = 50 Tibetan Srang
  - Copper and billon coins were not exchanged but gradually collected and redeemed as bullion.

Valuation Regimes

• 1909-1959
• Fixed rate against silver (nominally) with circulating silver coins, de facto variable rate. Around 1933 the silver coins were aligned to the Indian Rupee at a ratio of 1 : 3.