Elista is the capital of the Republic of Kalmykia, the only Buddhist-majority federal subject in Russia and in Europe. The 3 Rouble regional series has issued hundreds of pieces since the 1990s, documenting every administrative unit of the federation with mechanical regularity. Elista's inclusion is unremarkable in that respect — but Kalmykia itself is an anomaly, its population descended from Oirat Mongols who migrated westward in the 17th century and were subsequently deported en masse to Siberia by Stalin in 1943, not returning until 1957.
Elista is the capital of the Republic of Kalmykia, the only Buddhist-majority federal subject in Russia and in Europe. The 3 Rouble regional series has issued hundreds of pieces since the 1990s, documenting every administrative unit of the federation with mechanical regularity. Elista's inclusion is unremarkable in that respect — but Kalmykia itself is an anomaly, its population descended from Oirat Mongols who migrated westward in the 17th century and were subsequently deported en masse to Siberia by Stalin in 1943, not returning until 1957.