Tunisia AH 1289 50 piastres
The coin shown is a gold hundred piastres from the reign of Sultan Abdul Mejid, minted in Tunis. After AH 1272, all coins mentioned the local ruler (or Bey) of Tunis, along with the Ottoman sultan. Tunisia was under the control of the Ottomans for centuries until lack of financial resources forced it into dependence on France, which made it a protectorate in 1881.
This specimen was lot 127 in Sincona sale 31 (Zürich, October 2016), where it sold for 2,600 CHF (about US$3,086 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted, "OTTOMAN TUNIS | Abdul Aziz (1277-1293ah/1861-1876ce) 50 riyals 1289ah (1872ce) AU RRR, unpublished date -Fdc." This type of AH 1280-1293 is from the third series of milled gold coinage in Tunisia. It was larger than the contemporary Turkish fifty kurush, being worth about 134 kurush in gold. Other dates are well attested but this seems to be a previously unknown date.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specifications: 9.84 g, 0.900 fine gold, 0.5695 oz AGW, this specimen 9.70 g.
Catalog reference: cf.KM 152 (unlisted date).
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Jürg Richter and Ralph W. Miller, Tunisian Coins and Medals: The Miller Collection, Auction 31, Zürich: Sincona AG, 2016.
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