The Ottoman Empire struck gold coins known as the sultani which was based on the Venetian ducat. The sultani was also known as the ashrafi, xerafin, funduk, şerifi and in the West as the sequin. The sultani was discontinued in late 17th century and in the early part of the 18th century the Empire began minting gold coins known as the tugrali, zincirli, findik, and zeri mahbub ("beloved gold"). These coins had Arabic inscriptions and are probably the "strange Oriental pieces stamped with what looked like wisps of string or bits of spider's web" mentioned in Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. The Ottoman Empire struck gold coins in Istanbul (Constantinople) and Cairo (Misr). The coins shown here were all minted in Egypt. They have only the Sultan's accession year and no regnal year by design. The regnal year is the number of years the sultan was in office starting from one. Officially Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire but was semi-autonomous under the Mamelukes, the Egyptian military caste which had ruled the country for centuries. Egypt was wealthy as the beneficiary of the gold coming from sub-Saharan Africa. Ottoman coins struck in Egypt are sometimes listed or attributed to Egypt alone.

Gold, 20 mm, 3.50 gm
Ottoman Sultan Suleiman bin Selim AD 1520-1566
Mint: Cairo (Egypt)
This coin has no regnal year
Obverse:
Arabic inscription
Sultan Suleiman Shah son of Sultan Selim Shah, May his Victory be Glorious
Struck in Egypt in the year 926
Reverse:
Arabic inscription
Striker of the Glittering, Master of Might, Victory, and of Land and the Sea

Gold, 20 mm, 2.61 gm
Ottoman Sultan Mahmud bin Mustafa AD 1730-1754
Mint: Cairo (Egypt)
This coin has no regnal year
Obverse:
Arabic inscription
Toughra (ornate signature)
Sultan Mahmud, Son of Khan Mustafa, the Always Victorious
Struck in Egypt in 1143
Reverse:
Arabic inscription
Sultan of the two continents (Europe and Asia)
Ruler of the two seas (Black and Mediterranean)
The Sultan, Son of the Sultan

Gold, 20 mm, 2.33 gm
Ottoman Sultan Mustafa III bin Ahmed AD 1757-1774
Mint: Cairo (Egypt)
This coin has no regnal year
Obverse:
Arabic inscription
Toughra (ornate signature)
Sultan Mustafa, Son of Khan Ahmed, the Always Victorious
Struck in Egypt in 1171
Reverse:
Arabic inscription
Sultan of the two continents (Europe and Asia)
Ruler of the two seas (Black and Mediterranean)
The Sultan, Son of the Sultan