10 Kurush

This note belongs to the Kaime series, the Ottoman Empire's first sustained experiment with paper currency — introduced in 1840 as an interest-bearing instrument, then progressively debased into simple fiat notes as the treasury ran dry financing the Crimean War. By the mid-1850s, the Kaime had lost significant public trust, and the government was already negotiating the foreign loans that would eventually render the series obsolete.

The seal impression served as the primary authentication device at a time when Ottoman printing infrastructure was rudimentary. Forgery was a persistent problem throughout the Kaime's circulation life.