Tunisia AH 1242 piastre
This specimen was lot 75596 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, September 2024), where it sold for $145. The catalog description[1] noted, "TUNISIA. Ottoman Empire. Piastre, AH 1242 (1827). Tunis Mint. Mahmud II. NGC AU-58. On the cusp of Mint State status, this specimen retains some charming brilliance in the fields." Tunisia, nominally subject to the Ottoman empire since the sixteenth century, survived on piracy. This eventually became unacceptable to the seafaring powers, who quashed the pirates in the 1820's. The ruling beys, deprived of revenue, attempted to reform the state but only succeeded in incurring a large foreign debt. Bankruptcy was declared in 1869 and was used in 1881 as the pretext for French occupation. This type was struck AH 1240-1255 in the name of Mahmud II in Constantinople. Sixteen kharub made a riyal or piastre.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 11.0-11.5 g, silver.
Catalog reference: KM-90.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, September 2024 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2024.
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