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Tanka - Timur with Mahmud Khan Astrabad mint
| Issuer | Timurid Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1391-1397 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Tanka (1370-1507) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse displays a four-line Arabic inscription in a bold, angular naskh style within a central panel, giving the names and titles of the joint issuers and the mint: 'Timur Güregen / Mahmud Khan / struck at Astrabad / [AH date]'. A row of raised pellets forms a partial dotted border along the upper arc of the flan, framing the legend field. The inscription is arranged in a formal, stacked layout characteristic of Timurid administrative coinage, asserting Timur's authority alongside the nominal Chaghatayid Khan Mahmud. The flan is irregular and slightly oval, with the strike slightly off-center, consistent with hand-hammered production at the Astrabad mint. |
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| Mint | Astrabad |
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| Additional information |
These tankas were struck during the years Timur held Mahmud Khan — the last Chaghatayid khan of Moghulistan — as a legitimizing figurehead, placing his name on coinage while retaining all real authority himself. The arrangement was nakedly political: Timur lacked Chinggisid blood, which remained an indispensable qualification for sovereignty across the eastern Islamic world, so a puppet khan provided the dynastic cover his rule required. Astrabad, on the Caspian's southeastern edge, served as a staging point for Timur's campaigns into Persia and the Caucasus throughout this period.