Catalog
Qirsh - Mahmud II
| Issuer | Egypt |
|---|---|
| Year | 1827-1833 |
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| Shape | Round |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Arabic |
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| Reverse description | Central field contains three lines of Arabic script in raised relief, reading the mint formula with the regnal year above and the Hijri accession year below, all enclosed within an oval cartouche. The same elaborate interlaced strapwork border with pellet clusters seen on the obverse frames the reverse design, maintaining a consistent decorative register around the entire coin. The inscriptions record the place of striking (Misr/Egypt), the accession year 1223 AH, and the regnal year (varying by issue from year 21 to year 27). |
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| Additional information |
Mahmud II's Egyptian qirsh issues of this period were struck under the de facto rule of Muhammad Ali Pasha, who had consolidated control of Egypt following the 1811 massacre of the Mamluk leadership at Cairo Citadel. The coins nominally acknowledge Ottoman suzerainty while the actual monetary and administrative apparatus was entirely Ali's. That political ambiguity is baked into the coinage itself.
KM#181 is known with multiple regnal year varieties corresponding to Mahmud II's accession count, and attribution without a visible year can be genuinely difficult.