Mozaffar ad-Din Shah came to the throne in 1896 following the assassination of his father Naser al-Din Shah, who had ruled for nearly half a century. The transition was financially precarious — Mozaffar ad-Din's reign would later become notorious for the two massive Russian loans he accepted in 1900 and 1902, which effectively mortgaged Iranian customs revenues and deepened foreign financial penetration of the country.
A silver 10 Toman is a high-denomination piece by any measure of the Qajar monetary scale, almost certainly struck for presentation or ceremonial purposes rather than commerce. The Tehran mint at this period was inconsistent in its output, and early Mozaffar ad-Din issues struck in his accession year are among the more difficult to attribute with precision due to transitional die use carried over from his father's coinage.
Mozaffar ad-Din Shah came to the throne in 1896 following the assassination of his father Naser al-Din Shah, who had ruled for nearly half a century. The transition was financially precarious — Mozaffar ad-Din's reign would later become notorious for the two massive Russian loans he accepted in 1900 and 1902, which effectively mortgaged Iranian customs revenues and deepened foreign financial penetration of the country.
A silver 10 Toman is a high-denomination piece by any measure of the Qajar monetary scale, almost certainly struck for presentation or ceremonial purposes rather than commerce. The Tehran mint at this period was inconsistent in its output, and early Mozaffar ad-Din issues struck in his accession year are among the more difficult to attribute with precision due to transitional die use carried over from his father's coinage.