Iran AH 1305 5000 dinars
This specimen was lot 3316 in Stephen Album sale 39 (Santa Rosa, CA, January 2021), where it sold for $228. The catalog description[1] noted, "IRAN: Nasir al-Din Shah, 1848-1896, AV 5000 dinars, Tehran, AH1305, EF, ex Dabestani Collection." The Qajar Dynasty began when Mohammad Khan Qajar seized Mashhad (then under Durrani suzerainty – see Afghanistan) and put an end to the Afsharid Dynasty. The Qajars were forced to fight several defensive wars against Russia, losing territory each time. Foreign powers became more involved in Persia as the strategic nature of the region became clear. The empire was nearly bankrupt by the end of the 1800’s, and the dynasty finally fell when Reza Khan, a commander of the Persian Cossack Brigade, led a coup d’etat and launched the Pahlavi Dynasty in 1925 AD. This tiny gold coin is listed for AH 1297-1313; this denomination was also struck in silver. The date, which should be written "۱۳۰۵", is shown as "۱۳۵".
Recorded Mintage: unknown but a better date.
Specification: 1.44 g, 0.900 fine gold, this specimen 1.43 g.
Catalog reference: KM-927.
- 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]Album, Stephen, Joseph Lang, Paul Montz, Michael Barry and Norman Douglas Nicol, Auction 39, featuring the John Sylvester, Jr., Collection of Annamese Medals and Orders, Santa Rosa, CA: Stephen Album Rare Coins, Inc., 2020.
Link to: