The Shuanglin Temple in Pingyao, Shanxi province, houses one of the most significant collections of painted clay sculpture in China — over 2,000 figures dating primarily from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Pingyao itself was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, though the temple complex predates that recognition by at least fourteen centuries. Solomon Islands has issued this type under licensing arrangements that are entirely fiscal in nature; the coins are struck for the collector market and will not circulate in the Pacific.
The Shuanglin Temple in Pingyao, Shanxi province, houses one of the most significant collections of painted clay sculpture in China — over 2,000 figures dating primarily from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Pingyao itself was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, though the temple complex predates that recognition by at least fourteen centuries. Solomon Islands has issued this type under licensing arrangements that are entirely fiscal in nature; the coins are struck for the collector market and will not circulate in the Pacific.