history and connections, etc. Neighbors The kingdom bordered Aksu and Kashgar to the west and Karasahr and Turpan to the east. Across the Taklamakan Desert to the south was Khotan. Kucha and the Kizil Caves The Kizil Caves lie about northwest of Kucha and were included within the rich fourth-century kingdom of Kucha. The caves claim origins from the royal family of ancient Kucha, specifically a local legend involving Princess Zaoerhan, the daughter of the King of Kucha. While out hunting, the princess met and fell in love with a local mason. When the mason approached the king to ask for permission to marry the princess, the king was appalled and vehemently against the union. He told the young man he would not grant permission unless the mason carved 1000 caves into the local hills. Determined, the mason went to the hills and began carving in order to prove himself to the king. After three years and carving 999 caves, he died from the exhaustion of the work. The distraught princess found his body, and grieved herself to death, and now, her tears are said to be current waterfalls that cascade down some of the cave's rock faces. Coinage From around the third or fourth century Kucha began the manufacture of Wu Zhu (五銖) cash coins inspired by the diminutive and devalued Wu Zhu's of the post-Han dynasty era in Chinese history. It is very likely that the cash coins produced in Kucha predate the Kaiyuan Tongbao (開元通寳) and that the native production of coins stopped sometime after the year 621 when the Wu Zhu cash coins were discontinued in China proper. The coinage of Kucha includes the "Han Qiu bilingual Wu Zhu coin" (漢龜二體五銖錢, hàn qiū èr tǐ wǔ zhū qián) which has a yet undeciphered text belonging to a language spoken in Kucha. Timeline 630: Xuanzang visited the kingdom. Rulers (Names are in modern Mandarin pronunciations based on ancient Chinese records) Hong (弘) 16 Cheng De (丞德) 36 Ze Luo (則羅) 46 Shen Du (身毒) 50 Jiang Bin (絳賓) 72 Jian (建) 73 You Liduo (尤利多) 76 Bai Ba (白霸) 91 Bai Ying (白英) 110-127 Bai Shan (白山) 280 Long Hui (龍會) 326 Bai Chun (白純) 349 Bai Zhen (白震) 382 Niruimo Zhunashen (尼瑞摩珠那勝) 521 Bai Sunidie (白蘇尼咥) 562 Anandavarman ? Tottika (circa 550-600) Suvarnapushpa (白蘇伐勃駃 Bái Sūfábókuài) 600-625 Suvarnadeva (白蘇伐疊 Bai Sufadie) 625-645 Haripuspa (白訶黎布失畢, Bai Helibushibi)