Dirham - Sidi Mohammed IV 1st Standard, Fes mint

Sidi Mohammed IV came to the Alaoui throne in 1859, immediately inheriting the diplomatic and financial wreckage of the Treaty of Tetouan — forced on Morocco by Spain following the brief war of that year, it imposed an indemnity of 20 million duros, a sum that effectively bankrupted the Makhzen and triggered a coinage reform to stabilize what remained of the monetary system. This dirham, struck at Fes in the opening years of his reign, belongs to that first reordering effort before subsequent weight and fineness adjustments complicated the series.

The Fes mint had operated near-continuously since the Marinid period, making it the senior striking facility in the country by centuries.