Turkey AH 1293(30) 5 kurush
This specimen was lot 76873 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, September 2025), where it sold for $480. The catalog description[1] noted, "TURKEY. Ottoman Empire. 5 Kurush, AH 1293 Year 30 (1904/5). Istanbul (Islambol) Mint. Abdul Hamid II. NGC MS-61." This specimen is from a series struck in Istanbul during the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid (r. 1876-1909). This denomination was introduced during the rule of Sultan Abdul Mejid (r. 1839-61). Ottoman coins were dated using regnal years; the reverse bears the date AH 1293 (= 1876 A.D.) while the obverse bears the regnal year 32 (1906). The Hejira calendar uses a lunar year instead of a solar year, so its starting date moves from year to year. This type was issued AH 1300-1326 (1882-1908). The silver five kuruş, which weighed slightly more than a French silver franc, was last issued to this standard in 1918.
Recorded mintage: 38,000, a low mintage date.
Specification: 6.01 g, 0.830 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM-737.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Uslu, Kaan, Beyazit, M. Fatih, and Kara, Tuncay, Ottoman Empire Coins, Istanbul: Mas Matbaacilik A.S., 2007.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, September 2025 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, including Selections from the Richard Margolis Collection and Selections from the L.E. Bruun Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2025.
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