Bukhara AH 1257 tilla
Wikipedia comments, "The Emirate of Bukhara (Persian: امارت بخارا; Uzbek: Buxoro amirligi) was a Central Asian polity that existed from 1785 to 1920 in what is now modern-day Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. It occupied the land between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, known formerly as Transoxiana. Its core territory was the land along the lower Zarafshan River, and its urban centres were the ancient cities of Samarkand and the emirate's capital, Bukhara. It was contemporaneous with the Khanate of Khiva to the west, in Khwarezm, and the Khanate of Kokand to the east, in Fergana." This specimen was lot 966 in Sincona sale 92 (Zürich, October 2024), where it sold for 375 CHF (about US$520 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ISLAMISCHE MÜNZEN Manghits of Bukhara, Nasrullâh, 1242-1277 AH (1827-1860). Tilla 1257 AH (1841/1842), Bukhârâ Mint. Sehr schön. Leichte Prägeschwäche, Very Fine, Slightly weakly struck."
This type was struck AH 1243-1248, 1253-1257, 1264-1265, 1272-1273, 1278-1285, 1289-1309, 1315-1328. Many mules with mismatched dates are reported. The tilla was a gold denomination also used in Afghanistan, with which Bukhara shared a rather moveable border.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 4.55 g, gold, this specimen 4.59 g.
Catalog reference: KM 65, Album 3035, Nastich/Schuster B34e.
- Album, Stephen, Checklist of Islamic Coins, 3rd Ed. Santa Rosa, Stephen Album Rare Coins, 2011.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Richter, Jürg, SINCONA Auction 92: The Kian Collection - Part 3 (Islamic and Persian Coins and Medals, Orders of the Chivalry) and The Tuhfa Collection of Arabic Gold Coins, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2024.
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