Where is this coin from?
October 2, 2011 1:02 PM   Subscribe

Where is this coin from?

I bought this necklace at a vintage store, but have no idea where the coin itself is from. Can anyone ID it? Thanks!
posted by karminai to Society & Culture (4 answers total)
 
It looks a lot like a Sudanese 5 Millim coin, I even thought I had one somewhere around here, but I can't seem to find it. Still looking...
posted by pla at 1:19 PM on October 2, 2011


Best answer: Fairly certain it's from Afghanistan. The big number on the back is an Arabic five. Looks like this one and this one I think.
posted by jessamyn at 1:21 PM on October 2, 2011 [2 favorites]


Response by poster: Yes! That's it, thanks Jessamyn.
posted by karminai at 1:30 PM on October 2, 2011


I believe that may be this "forbidden" coin.

This 5 Afghani coin is a genuine coin of Afghanistan and a genuine historical rarity. It was ordered to be minted by the King of Afghanistan, Muhammed Zahir Shah, whose portrait appears on this coin. It is one of the few specimens that has survived in its original uncirculated condition - among the few hoarded before it could be destroyed or damaged by angry Islamic zealots. In the moslem faith coins with portraits are thought to be an act of blasphamy, specifically forbidden by Islamic law. Any world coins collection would be enhanced by the addition of this significant historical and numismatic oddity.
posted by RandlePatrickMcMurphy at 1:27 PM on October 3, 2011


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