Rare Ottoman-era banknote discovered at collection house

Issued in 1849 upon the order of Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid, a never before seen 5th emission was discovered at an Ankara-based collection house. Necati Doğan, the author and researcher who owns the banknote, said in a statement that banknotes were first issued at the time of the Ottoman Empire in the 1840s. During the term of Sultan Abdülmecid, these were first hand-written and then circulated.



Doğan said that they were also used as debt notes or treasury bills. The first emission banknotes issued by Sultan Abdülmecid were handwritten, while the others that circulated after 1841 were printed. Doğan said that some Ottoman-era banknotes were not seen in public including this 500 kurush. He added it to his special collection a while ago. He stated that there are some banknote moulds for rare banknotes kept in the printing house, yet it was the first time that a banknote of 500 kurush from the 5th emission has been revealed. Details about the banknote were previously recorded at the General Directorate of Prime Ministerial State Archives. A tughra (calligraphic signature) of Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid is seen on it. The seal of the then Economy Minister Hüseyin Hüsnü was put on the backside. The banknote is thinner compared to present banknotes.