50 Tenge Taraz

Taraz is among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central Asia, with documented settlement stretching back over two millennia — it served as a significant node on the Silk Road under various names, including Talas, the site of the 751 AD battle between Tang dynasty forces and the Abbasid Caliphate. That engagement effectively ended Chinese westward expansion and accelerated the spread of Islam into Central Asia. Kazakhstan's regional cities series, of which this coin is a part, was issued to reinforce national historical identity following independence.