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Zeri Mahbub - Mustafa III Islambol mint
| Issuer | Ottoman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1767-1773 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| 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 bears a multi-line Arabic inscription in flowing calligraphic script filling the field, presenting the sultan's full honorific titles. The legend reads 'Sultan ül berreyn ve hakan ül bahreyn es Sultan ibn es Sultan' (Sultan of the two lands and Khan of the two seas, Sultan son of Sultan), with the regnal year suffix — the last two digits of the AH year — appearing at the conclusion of the inscription. The design is enclosed within a beaded border matching that of the obverse. |
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| Reverse lettering | Sultan ül berreyn ve hakan ül bahreyn es Sultan ibn es Sultan 81 |
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| Additional information |
The Zeri Mahbub — literally "beloved gold" — was introduced in the early eighteenth century as the Ottoman Empire's workhorse gold denomination, circulating widely across the Levant and Egypt where it often traded at a premium over its face value in local exchange. Mustafa III's reign coincided with catastrophic military reversals against Russia, culminating in the 1768–1774 war that would end with the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca and force the empire's first major territorial concessions to a Christian power.
The Islambol mint — the official Ottoman rendering of Istanbul — struck these consistently throughout the period, though output fluctuated sharply as war expenses strained the imperial treasury.