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10 Srang

Issuer Government of Tibet
Year 1941-1948
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Size 180 × 112 mm
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Obverse lettering དངུལ་ཀྲམ་བཅུ།
Reverse description The entire reverse is dominated by a large blue woodblock-printed vignette filling the note, with two dragons at left and right flanking a central cartouche enclosing lions and floral scrollwork, all set against a dense foliate background with cloud motifs. The composition is executed in blue with green tonal accents, enclosed within a continuous border of stylised floral guilloche. No text inscriptions appear on the reverse.
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Comments

Tibet's government printed these entirely by hand using woodblocks — the same technique used for religious texts in the monasteries — making each note subtly unique in ink weight and impression depth. The Lhasa printing operation was rudimentary by any contemporary standard, and the resulting paper money reflected it: variation between individual notes of the same denomination can be striking.

The 10 Srang was the highest denomination in regular circulation for much of this series' life, used primarily for large transactions in the Lhasa market and for government payments. Cotton rag stock was sourced locally, and the paper itself tends to be thicker and softer than equivalent Asian government issues of the period.

Tibet had no central bank — issuance was handled directly by the Tibetan Finance Office, the Tsikhang.

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