Egypt AH 1255(17) 1 qirsh
The coin shown is a silver one qirsh from the reign of Sultan Abdul Mejid. It was struck at the Cairo Mint. The obverse bears the toughra, or signature, of the sultan, with the denomination written below (abbreviated as the letter 'sh' for qirsh) with the number 1 above. A crude floral design sits right of the toughra. The reverse carries the ascension date and the text minted in Misr (Misr is Arabic for Egypt). The date is written as AH 1255 year 17, which translates to about 1854 AD. Uslu[1] lists this issue as very rare.
The example shown was sold as part of lot 158 on Dec 13, 2011 at the Kunker Auction #199 in Osnabrück, Germany, for 320 euros. The catalog description reads:
"OSMANISCHE MÜNZEN Münzen nach der Münzreform von 1845 Silberprägungen der Münzstätte Misr (Kairo) Kirsh 1255 H., 15, 16, 17, 18, 22 und 23, Misr (Kairo). 1,36; 1,32; 1,39; 1,30; 1,39 und 1,37 g. 6 Stück. Seltene Jahrgänge. Das erste gelocht, sehr schön und vorzüglich (Ottoman coins of the reform of 1845, Cairo mint. Silver qirsh, accession date 1255, regnal years 15, 16, 17, 18, 22 and 23. Scarce dates, very fine to extremely fine.)"
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 1.42 g, 0.833 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM 228; Ölcer 31.466, 469¬471, 474; Pere 897.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Valentine, W.H., Modern Copper Coins of the Muhammadan States, London: Spink and Sons, 1911.
- [1]Uslu, Kaan, Beyazit, M. Fatih, and Kara, Tuncay. Ottoman Empire Coins, Istanbul: Mas Matbaacilik A.S., 2007.
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