Catalog
1 Kuruş
| Issuer | Banque Impériale Ottomane |
|---|---|
| Year | 1876-1878 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is dominated by an intricate overall guilloche lattice border framing a central oval vignette containing the Ottoman tughra cipher surmounted by a crescent, flanked by symmetrical foliate laurel branches. Ottoman script inscriptions appear in cartouches at the top and bottom of the note, and the entire composition is rendered in a single grey-green intaglio impression on plain paper. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse bears a circular medallion at the top centre containing an Arabic/Ottoman inscription, below which a decorative scrollwork cartouche carries the text 'BANQUE I.O.' flanked by crescent and star ornaments. The serial number is printed in large numerals within an ornate panel, and a date appears in a small oval medallion at the base of the serial number cartouche. |
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| Comments |
The Banque Impériale Ottomane issued this 1 Kuruş note during the Russo-Turkish War period, when silver coin shortages drove the Ottoman government to authorize low-denomination paper as a substitute for fractional currency. A 1 Kuruş note is an unusual instrument for a central bank — the denomination sits closer to small change than to any conventional banking instrument, and its very existence reflects how badly metallic circulation had broken down by the mid-1870s.
The series is notoriously difficult to date precisely within the 1876–1878 window, as surviving specimens rarely carry unambiguous issue dates.