17th-century Chinese coin found in Yukon on display at Kwanlin Dun centre
Coin found during 2011 archeological dig evidence of far-reaching trade network
A 17th-century Chinese coin found during an archeological dig in Yukon is on display in Whitehorse.
In 2011, archeologists found the coin on Kwanlin Dun First Nation land.
Sean Smith, a Kwanlin Dun councillor, says the find is evidence of the First Nation's contact with the Chinese market via Russian and coastal Tlingit traders.
"The significance is also ... the history of my people being in this area, to hunt to live, to fish, to trade with other people and to develop relationships with other people that were coming in and out of this land."
Archeologists also found microblades, bone tools, and other artifacts dating back 8,000 years at the same site where the coin was found.
All of that material will be on exhibit at Kwanlin Dun Cultural Centre in Whitehorse until Sept. 15.