The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps — known domestically as Bingtuan — was established in 1954 under orders from Mao Zedong, primarily to settle demobilized PLA soldiers along China's northwestern frontier and reinforce Han presence in a strategically sensitive region bordering the Soviet Union. By 2014, the Corps had grown into a semi-autonomous administrative entity of roughly 2.7 million people, operating its own courts, police, and legislative apparatus entirely outside the Xinjiang regional government's authority. This coin marks the 60th anniversary of that founding.
At 155.52 grams, this is a 5-troy-ounce issue — a format the People's Bank used selectively for commemoratives it intended as prestige collectibles rather than circulation pieces.
The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps — known domestically as Bingtuan — was established in 1954 under orders from Mao Zedong, primarily to settle demobilized PLA soldiers along China's northwestern frontier and reinforce Han presence in a strategically sensitive region bordering the Soviet Union. By 2014, the Corps had grown into a semi-autonomous administrative entity of roughly 2.7 million people, operating its own courts, police, and legislative apparatus entirely outside the Xinjiang regional government's authority. This coin marks the 60th anniversary of that founding.
At 155.52 grams, this is a 5-troy-ounce issue — a format the People's Bank used selectively for commemoratives it intended as prestige collectibles rather than circulation pieces.