How the Residents of Turfan used Textiles as Money, 273–796ce
Textiles, grain, coins; people living in the Silk Road oasis of Turfan, 160 km south-east of Urumqi in today's Xinjiang, used all three items as money between 273 and 769. The city of Gaochang (some 40 km east of today's Turfan) was one of the most important cities on the northern route around the Taklamakan Desert, and many of its inhabitants were buried in the adjacent Astana and Karakhoja graveyards. The region's dry climate has preserved an extensive group of paper documents dating to before, and after, the Tang conquest of the city in 640. The residents of Turfan buried their dead with shoes, belts, hats and clothing made from recycled paper with writing on it. These records offer an unparalleled glimpse of how people living along the Silk Road used textiles as currency.