Details

This coin is the first issue to give witness to the presence of the French in Tunisia. The French government set the official exchange rate as noted on the coin itself. A few years later, the franc along with its corresponding decimal system would completely replace the riyal. Cf. Fenina, pages 267-269.
Beginning with the year 1298ah (1881ce), during the regency of Muhammed al-Sadiq Bey, the name of the Ottoman Sultan no longer appears on Tunisian coins. Henceforth, only the name of the reigning Bey is to be read on the obverse. The French Protectorate was founded that same year although decimal coinage was not introduced until 1308ah (1891ce).