Forbidden Coins

lkrarecoins · November 20, 2006 12:05PM

Good Evening...Does anyone know anything about these forbidden coins from 1961 minted in Afghanistan?

Any history, opinions, and estimated value would be appreciated....Thx y'all

sliderider · November 20, 2006 12:23PM

I saw the ebay Australia listing you got the image from, but I also found one for sale here:

http://www.iversonsoftware.com/country_store/afghanistan.htm

I don't know yet as to rarity, but since I was able to find another for sale within minutes after reading your post, they can't be all that hard to find, and I would imagine the dealer I linked to probably has several.

Edit:

I also found this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230039805578&category=534

BIN of $2.99 so it can't be too uncommon.

Here's another from Europe:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150035049308&fromMakeTrack=true

BIN of .99 Euros and seller says he has 9 of them.

And another

http://cgi.ebay.ca/1961-Afghanistan-5-Afghanis-Obsolete-RARE-NICE_W0QQitemZ150060150515QQihZ005QQcategoryZ534QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

This dealer has 13 to sell at $1.75

I hope you didn't overpay because this doesn't look as forbidden as some would have you believe.

Doogy · November 20, 2006 12:26PM

I would like to tell you, but is is strictly forbidden!

cladking · November 20, 2006 12:45PM

This is a fairly desirable modern but nothing at all special. With a little demand the
price would be much higher but there is little chance of it getting much demand in the
foreseeable future. It is not scarce and there are at least thousands of uncs around
and possibly a lot more. It can be hard to know with low demand coins since few bot-
her to offer them for sale.

Sapyx · November 20, 2006 5:21PM

I'd have to concur. The sales pitch from the seller of the OP's coin sounds like classic eBay hype:

to quote:

<< <i>Minted in nickel clad steel this coin is a genuine historical rarity. Ordered to be minted by the King of Afghanistan, Muhammed Zahir Shah, its his portrait that appears on the coin. In Islamic faith it is believed that coins with portraits are an act of blasphemy. So, as one of the few hoarded before it could be destroyed by angry Islamic zealots, it is one of only a few that have survived in original uncirculated condition. >>

First off, the north-eastern regions of the Islamic world have generally been pretty lax about the whole "show no idolatrous pictures on coins" thing; witness the very long series of Persian pictorial coppers, and the enigmatic medieval coins of the Artuqids and Zengids. Even the ordinary coins of the Shah of Iran showed the lion-and-sun badge, also strictly against the "show no idols" tenet.

Secondly, the last Shah of Afghanistan wasn't overthrown by Islamic fundamentalists; he was overthrown by his cousin, followed by the Soviets. Fundamentalists weren't in power until the Soviets left and the Taliban took over, decades after the coin was issued; plenty of time for examples of this coin to find their way to collectors.

Finally, no notes or comments regarding rarity or other interesting historical factoids are given in Krause for this coin (KM#955, CV $3 un Unc); Other contemporary coins like KM#954.2 (2 afghanis 1961, medal orientation) and KM#949 (2 afghanis 1958) have much more interesting stories.

Two more things: the seller has the picture of the reverse upside down, and Krause (33rd ed.) has a wrongly translated date for this coin; they've got it as 1921. Ooh! I'll go add that to LordM's list of Krause errors right now!

lkrarecoins · November 20, 2006 11:53PM

Thx to all for the helpful and educational responses. Fortunately, I bought this coin along with a bulk purchase, and didnt pay much for it.
The only thing going for this coin is that it came in a nice presentation binder. So, if I understand, the translation of Forbidden coins = J-U-N-K

Thx again
Len

ColinCMR · November 22, 2006 11:47AM

I believe the scan on the right side is upside down

Forbidden Coins

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