Baghdad Eyalet operated with considerable autonomy from Constantinople during this period, and its coinage reflects that distance. The Mamluk-descended governors who effectively controlled the province issued money under Ottoman sultanic authority but on their own terms and schedule. Mahmud II had just seized the throne in 1808 following the deposition and murder of Mustafa IV — Baghdad's mint was striking in his name almost before the political dust had settled in the capital.
Billon issues from provincial Ottoman mints of this era are notoriously inconsistent in alloy, and Baghdad examples frequently test lower in silver content than the nominal standard implies.
Baghdad Eyalet operated with considerable autonomy from Constantinople during this period, and its coinage reflects that distance. The Mamluk-descended governors who effectively controlled the province issued money under Ottoman sultanic authority but on their own terms and schedule. Mahmud II had just seized the throne in 1808 following the deposition and murder of Mustafa IV — Baghdad's mint was striking in his name almost before the political dust had settled in the capital.
Billon issues from provincial Ottoman mints of this era are notoriously inconsistent in alloy, and Baghdad examples frequently test lower in silver content than the nominal standard implies.