Good day fellow collectors!

Thank you for posting links to the major auctions, I have not followed them before but they are most interesting.

The resent Aalborg auction for instance sold this coin.
http://www.thauctions.com/default.aspx?doc...;s=&c1=1001

Coincidentally, I have recently acquired 2 similar coins of eBay. I am now somewhat puzzled by them. Bitkin lists them as R3, but I have seen quite a few of these in the recent year. Also Bitkin's image is somewhat different from the coins I got, as well as the one on the Aalborg auction. His coin does not look hammered, and maybe the inscription is slightly different (I can't read arabic so my comparison is not all that accurate). Aalborg seems to also have some doubts, they marked them as "Bitkin 61 ?"

The year on the coins is 1191 which is 1777 the beginning of Giray's rule of Crimea. This date (I believe) appears on all of his coins. I don't quite understand how to link the date to his year of reign, but Bitkin lists polushkas only for his 5th year.

I would appreciate if anyone could offer some insight into Crimean coinage. Are these coins Bitkin's #61 polushkas? Is R3 an accurate rating of rarity?

Many Thanks,
Alex

the flip side of my coins

I wish I could help you, but I absolutely know nothing about these fascinating pieces until you posted them. But I do find them fascinating, from a period when the Tartar people still held sway in Krim. They were deported during war of 1941-1945, and only since breakup of USSR have returned to Krim in numbers so that now Krim is autonomous republic of Ukraine.

Tragically, many minorities were displaced by Stalin after the war. Sadly, many of them were not welcomed to their homelands when they tried to return.

Going back to a more distant history Sahin Giray the ruler who participated in the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Empire, is a most interesting and adventurous historical figure. There is a little stub about him on wikipedia, it does not tell the full story but still...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9Eahin_Giray

I would like to collect those sometime, but I keep my UA area coins limited pretty much to ancients.

Here is a 1 Kopek coin from the Khanate of Krim.


Click to view attachment
Krim 1 Kopek 1191 AH/ 1777 AD Yr. 5

The top of the obverse side shows the seal of the Crimean Tartars (looks like the letter M). The middle shows the city Baghchih Serai where coin was minted. I not sure if line between the seal and the mint name is supposed to be the denomination or not. The bottom shows the date 1191 AH (Anno Hejira) which is the Mohammedan calendar.

Click to view attachment
Krim Reverse

The reverse side gives the leaders title 'Khan" at the top. The second line shows the leaders name 'Sahin Giray'. The third line shows 'Giray' again but I'm sure what the text is to the right is. The bottom shows the word 'Sultan'. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be reference to the khan's relations to the sultan, or if it's just out of respect for the sultan, since the Crimea/Krim was a subject of the Ottoman Empire.

Here's my kopeek

reverse

Also, I figured out that coins at the begging of the post (mine and the Aalborg example) are not the R3 polushka Bitkin #61.

These are Sahin Giray Para coins. Lower denomination without the Russian equivalent.

well in the reverse its written in arabic saying "(top line) khan, ( second line) sahin giray, (thrid line) bin (bin = son of) ahmed giray, (last line) sultan."

Thank You! You wouldn't know how they determine the year of Sahin's reign? The date is always 1191.

nope sorry the front is to messy for me to make out where one word ends and another starts. but the only numbers on it are 1191 AH which means 1777 AD

Diakov (Russian Coins of Catherine II) shows exactly on each coin where to read the regnal year.

Steve

oo and the top image on the observe is actually the khans coat of arms:-

So, on your Kopek you have

Click to view attachment

The position however may vary by coin/year. Diakov covers most of them. He does have a couple of unillustrated coins though.

I have, I think, 2 different Kopecks, and the Denga ex-Brekke from Aalborg III. Might have something else. Need to check my boxes. I'll try to photograph them later in the week.

Steve