60 Para - Mahmud II type A

The Regency of Tripoli operated as an Ottoman vassal under the Karamanli dynasty until 1835, issuing its own coinage despite nominal subordination to Istanbul. This 60 Para billon piece dates to the final unstable decade of Karamanli rule, a period marked by civil war between rival family claimants that ultimately handed the Ottomans their pretext for direct annexation. The Mahmud II attribution reflects the Ottoman sultan's titular sovereignty — the Porte's name on Tripolitan coinage was diplomatic cover as much as anything else.

Billon issues from this mint are frequently found debased beyond nominal specification, a consequence of the Regency's chronic fiscal pressures during the 1820s.