Catalog
20 Qirsh - Abdullah
| Issuer | Mahdist Sudan |
|---|---|
| Year | 1894-1898 |
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| Currency | Piastre (1885-1898) |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Three lines of Arabic inscription in the central field, reading the mint name and Hijri date, enclosed within symmetrical foliate sprays tied at the base with a decorative ribbon bow. A scattered arrangement of six-pointed stars occupies the upper field above the inscription. The entire design is enclosed within a plain inner ring surrounded by a crudely reeded outer rim. |
| Reverse script | Arabic |
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| Additional information |
The Mahdist state minted its own coinage as a deliberate assertion of independence from Ottoman-Egyptian authority, with the currency program initiated under the Khalifa Abdallahi — Abdullah — who ruled after the death of Muhammad Ahmad al-Mahdi in 1885. These coins were struck in Omdurman, the Mahdist capital across the Nile from Khartoum, using improvised facilities with inconsistent metal supply, which explains the notably variable silver content within this billon series.
The Mahdist coinage program ended abruptly with Kitchener's reconquest at the Battle of Omdurman in September 1898, making the entire run a compressed four-year production window under a state that ceased to exist almost immediately after.