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Tyrants of the Tigris & euphrates
313
Qara Qoyunlu
Silver Tanka (5.09g), No Date
Jahanshah, Qara Qoyunlu Bey in Azerbaijan, Iraq and central Iran, AH 841-872/AD 1438-
1467
A 2493. Extremely Fine.
Lahijan mint, citing Jahanshah as al-sultan al-a’zam, mint name in central cartouche; Reverse, Sunni
Kalima in central square, the Rashidun in petals around. Lahijan is a city located in Iran, south of the
Caspian Sea.
314
Aq Qoyunlu
Silver ¼ Tanka (1.21g), No Date
Uzun Hasan, Aq Qoyunlu Sultan, AH 857-882/AD 1453-1478
AA2515. Very Fine.
Shiraz mint. cited as
al-sultan al-’adil Abu’l-Nasr Hasan bahadur;
Reverse, Kalima within square, the
Rashidun around.
Hasan of the Aq Qoyunlu dynasty (AH 857-882/ AD 1453-1478) is known as Uzun Hasan meaning “Tall
Hasan” in Turkish. The first year of his reign coincided with the fall of Constantinople and end of the
1000-year-old Byzantine Empire at the hands of the Ottoman Turks. This event shook all of Europe to
the core. Various European courts began seeking alliances with a man who called himself “Shahanshah”
in the manner of Sasanian Emperors, meaning “King of Kings”. Uzun Hasan was a gifted military leader
who defeated the last of the Timurid rulers as well as the Ottomans, establishing himself as power to
be reckoned with. He married Despiona Khatun, the daughter of Christian King of Trebizond. The Tre-
bizond kingdom controlled the coastal area south of Black Sea as well as portions of the northern coast,
including Crimea. Despiona Khatun became the mother of Princess Martha, who in turn was the mother
of Shah Isma’il of the Safavid dynasty of Iran.