Catalog
50 Kurush Second 'Kaime' issue
| Issuer | Ottoman Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1876-1877 |
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| Value | 50 Kurush (0.50) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Printed in brown on cream paper, the note is framed by an elaborate scrollwork border with acanthus-leaf and arabesque guilloche ornaments; the denomination '50' appears in each corner. The imperial tughra of Sultan Abdülhamid II occupies a cloud-shaped vignette at the top centre, while the central field carries the principal Ottoman-script text in large calligraphic letterpress. A cartouche at the lower centre contains a further Ottoman inscription in a rounded medallion. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | Enregistré par la BANQUE IMPÉRIALE OTTOMANE CONSTANTINOPLE 1877 |
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| Comments |
The kaime had a troubled history long before this issue. Earlier Ottoman paper money had been so massively over-issued and so poorly redeemed through the mid-nineteenth century that public trust in it had essentially collapsed. This 1876–77 emission came during the reign of Abdülhamid II, at a moment of acute fiscal strain — the Ottoman state had defaulted on its external debt in October 1875, and the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 was either imminent or already underway depending on when a specific note was signed.
The embossed paper and registration stamp were the primary barriers against forgery on a note produced domestically with limited technical resources. Neither feature was sophisticated by European standards of the period.