Catalog
1/4 Tanka - 'Miri' - Timur Samarqand mint
| Issuer | Timurid Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1388 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1/4 Tanka |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Central field occupied by a multi-line Arabic inscription in bold Naskh script, arranged in horizontal registers across the flan. The legend, read within a plain field, displays the mint epithet and religious formulae characteristic of Timurid coinage. The die is struck on an irregular, hand-cut flan with natural edge irregularities typical of hammered silver production. A row of pellets is visible in the left field, serving as decorative or structural dividers between lines of text. The overall style is consistent with late 14th-century Transoxianan minting practice under Timur. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse displays a dense multi-line Arabic inscription in Naskh script filling the entire field of the irregular flan, with no border or decorative frame. The text, rendered in bold, deeply struck relief, carries the Timurid ruler's titles and the mint formula, consistent with the standard epigraphic type employed at the Samarqand mint during the reign of Timur. The flan exhibits characteristic hammer-strike undulation and surface porosity inherent to hand-struck silver coinage of this period. Partial legends are lost to the irregular flan edge, a common feature of this denomination. The script displays the angular yet fluid character typical of Central Asian chancery calligraphy of the late 14th century. |
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| Additional information |
Timur took Samarqand as his capital and primary mint city from the 1360s onward, and coins struck there in his name carry particular dynastic weight — this was the seat of his court, not a provincial outpost. The quarter tanka denomination, sometimes designated miri in contemporary sources to distinguish issues directly under royal authority, circulated in a monetary system where the full tanka was itself a fractional unit of account rather than a high-value piece. 1388 places this coin in the period immediately following Timur's campaigns into Persia and just before his devastating northern push against Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde.