Turkey 10, 20, 100 Para, 1, 5 Kurush 1808

Hi Paul -- These old coins from Turkey are usually pretty well beat up. If you can find one in decent condition, like the one in our picture, you start to accrue collector value. Their precious metal content (silver) is minimal, with compositions of only about 20 percent silver, 80 percent non-precious metal. Some coins have a small rosette underneath the ribbon at the bottom of the crescent shape, others do not have this rosette. The presence or absence of the rosette does not make a very big difference in value. The coin in our picture has the rosette.

Denominations with this pattern are 10, 20, and 100 para, and 1 and 5 kurush. A 100 para coin is 2 1/2 kurush, so there are 40 para in a kurush.

The date numerals are Eastern Arabic, as shown in this table. The date of this coin is 1223, which is a Hejira date based on the lunar calendar and starting at the time Mohammed was alive (around 600 AD). 1223AH is the same as 1808AD.

Here are some typical catalog values for these coins. Remember to apply our Important Terminology page when interpreting these values.

10 PARA (17 mm diameter)
worn: $2 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $5
well preserved (like our picture): $12

20 PARA (22 mm diameter)
worn: $2 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $4
well preserved (like our picture): $10

100 PARA (32 mm diameter)
worn: $3 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $8
well preserved (like our picture): $15

1 KURUSH (27 mm diameter)
worn: $3 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $8
well preserved (like our picture): $16

5 KURUSH (34 mm diameter)
worn: $4 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $12
well preserved (like our picture): $25
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