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1822, Turkey, Sultan Mahmud II. Gold 1/4 Surre Altin Coin. Mecca Pilgrims Issue!

Condition: About XF! Mint Year: 1822 (AH1223 + 15) Mint Place: Constantinople (Qustantiniyah) Reference: KM-619. (scarce 2-year type!) Denomination: 1/4 Surre Altin - The surre altin seris (a 2-year type) was a special issue, struck for pilgrims, which undertook the pilgrimage to Mecca! Diameter: 13mm Weight: 0.39gm Material: Gold!

Obverse: Tughra (state seal of the sultan) beneath honorific title in right field. Floral decoaration in fields.

Reverse: Regnal year (15) above mint name (Qustantiniyah) and accession date (1223). Floral decoaration in fields.

The pilgrimage to Mecca attracts millions of Muslims from all over the world. There are two pilgrimages: the Hajj and the Umrah. The Hajj, the 'greater' pilgrimage is performed annually in Mecca and nearby sites. During the Hajj, several million people of varying nationalities worship in unison. Every adult, healthy Muslim who has the financial and physical capacity to travel to Mecca and can make arrangements for the care of his/her dependents during the trip, must perform the Hajj at least once in a lifetime.

Mahmud II (Ottoman Turkish: Mahmud-i sani) (20 July 1785 – 1 July 1839) was the 30th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1808 until his death in 1839. He was born at Topkapi Palace, Istanbul, the son of Sultan Abdul Hamid I. His reign is notable mostly for the extensive legal and military reforms he instituted. His mother was Valide Sultan (1808) Naksh-i-Dil Haseki Sultan or Nakshidil Haseki Sultan, tr:Naksidil Sultan . He is the ancestor of all succeeding Sultans.

His most notable achievement was the abolition of the Janissary corps in 1826 and the establishment of a modern Ottoman Army, named the Nizam-i Cedid (meaning New Order in Ottoman Turkish).

Following the loss of the Ottoman Vilayet of Greece after the Battle of Navarino against the combined British-French-Russian fleets in 1827, Mahmud II gave top priority to rebuilding a strong Ottoman naval force. The first steam ships of the Ottoman Navy were acquired in 1828. In 1829 the 62x17x7 m ship-of-the-line Mahmudiye, the world's largest warship for many years, which was armed with 128 cannons on 3 decks, was built by the Imperial Naval Arsenal on the Golden Horn in Istanbul.