Wednesday, August 25, 2004
Money from Democratic Kampuchea
These are the full set of notes printed in 1975. They are shown here as the same size, but actually they range from 10cm X 5cm to 16cm X 8cm. They were printed under the Pol Pot regime but not issued until its overthrow in 1979. I assume they were printed in China as they are similar to Chinese designs of the same period. A couple of things I think are noteworthy about the notes is one, their militarism, and two, the prominence given to Angkor Wat.
Along with the various combat scenes, it's interesting to see the Kymer Rouge working closely with the peasants. They are never shown helping the factory workers. As for Angkor Wat, I think its prominence here belies the idea of the Kymer Rouge taking Cambodia back to the year zero. Pol Pot obviously wanted to set up Cambodian society along Maoist lines, but he was also drawn to revive the glories of the Angkor empire. Notice that Angkor Wat as depicted here is not a jungly ruin but vital and imposing.
I should also link to Yale University's photographic database of the Tuol Sleng victims. This is a chilling site.
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