Mohammad Ali Shah's reign lasted barely two years before he was deposed by constitutionalist forces in July 1909, making his coinage among the shortest-lived of any Qajar monarch. He had suspended the constitution in June 1908 — the same year this issue began — ordering the Russian-officered Cossack Brigade to bombard the parliament building in Tehran. The subsequent civil war rendered much of his coinage politically toxic, and surviving examples in circulation were often defaced.
The Tabriz mint was besieged during these years, intermittently shutting production entirely.
Mohammad Ali Shah's reign lasted barely two years before he was deposed by constitutionalist forces in July 1909, making his coinage among the shortest-lived of any Qajar monarch. He had suspended the constitution in June 1908 — the same year this issue began — ordering the Russian-officered Cossack Brigade to bombard the parliament building in Tehran. The subsequent civil war rendered much of his coinage politically toxic, and surviving examples in circulation were often defaced.
The Tabriz mint was besieged during these years, intermittently shutting production entirely.