5000 Lira Turgut Reis

Turgut Reis — the Ottoman admiral known in the West as Dragut — was one of the most effective naval commanders of the sixteenth century, instrumental in securing Ottoman dominance across the central Mediterranean and North Africa. His sack of Mahdia and the capture of Tripoli in 1551 reshaped the region's political geography for decades. This 1985 issue is part of Turkey's broader commemorative silver program of the mid-1980s, during which the Darphane produced numerous collector pieces honoring Ottoman historical figures largely for export and numismatic markets rather than domestic circulation.