1/2 Fuang - Phetracha Ayutthaya

Phetracha seized the Siamese throne in 1688 by exploiting the chaos surrounding the expulsion of French forces and the death of King Narai, executing Narai's French-educated heir in the process. His reign was defined by isolationism and a sharp reversal of the cosmopolitan policies that had brought European influence deep into Ayutthaya. Pod duang coinage of this period circulated in a kingdom that had deliberately closed itself to foreign traders, meaning these pieces moved almost entirely within domestic markets.