The Maltese obsidional coins of 1800

Abstract

At the auction, in Cairo, of the collections of ex-King Farouk, there was sold on 24 February 1954 a coin listed in the catalogue under lot 2403 and described as 'Malta-30 Tari 1800 struck by the French'. This seems to have been purchased by an Egyptian collector for the sum of £E 125. In this same catalogue the coin was illustrated as being octagonal in shape, blank on one side except for a small Phrygian cap stamped near the left-hand lower corner; on the obverse it was stamped 'T 30' above the letters R. F flanking a Maltese Cross in the centre, and the date ' 1800' underneath. When this piece was offered for sale, the writer was induced to make further inquiries, and the information that follows is the result.