Selim I's rapid conquest of Mamluk Egypt in 1517 immediately expanded the Ottoman minting network to include Cairo and other former Mamluk centers, but the medini — a small-denomination silver struck in the years bracketing that conquest — continued production with minimal administrative disruption, reflecting how thoroughly Selim absorbed existing fiscal infrastructure. The type is often found with uneven flans and off-center strikes, not by accident but because the hammered blanks were cut from wire of inconsistent gauge.
Selim I's rapid conquest of Mamluk Egypt in 1517 immediately expanded the Ottoman minting network to include Cairo and other former Mamluk centers, but the medini — a small-denomination silver struck in the years bracketing that conquest — continued production with minimal administrative disruption, reflecting how thoroughly Selim absorbed existing fiscal infrastructure. The type is often found with uneven flans and off-center strikes, not by accident but because the hammered blanks were cut from wire of inconsistent gauge.