It is said in the copy of a rule for the owner of Siroz mintage place during Fatih period, “out of 100 dirhem pure silver 400 akches should be minted, if it is 400,5 it is appropriated, if it is 401 it should be melted again and so perfect akches should be found.”

   What is the pure scale silver mentioned in the text? Dr. Mustafa Akdag points out that minted akches

knowing according to what scaling criteria akches were minted, the discussion of which kind of weighing

unit the akches were minted continued until the present time. In order to clarify these ongoing theses,

the scales of various akche samples minted in different periods of the Ottomans have been determined

by us.

   We find it very useful to give brief information about how silver and gold metals were purified during

the Ottoman period before we give the outcomes of them.

    Purifying silver: First ores minted from silver mine were washed; then they were ground and washed again. On an open area, first level of wood, and a level of oaken coal was placed over it. Then, washed and dried silver ore was lined up as a belt over the accumulation. The outer part of the accumulation was covered with mud. An air hole was left under the accumulation and a chimney was left on top of it. This process was called “Rosht”. The inflamed artificial oven was burned for a long time until metal was melt and became liquid. After this first firing process, melted ore was processed by inflaming two more times. The ovens, where the second and third times of inflammation were in the process, constitute of a centralheating room in the size between 140 and 150 cm, and an external room leading to this one where the melted ore would be collected. This oven was inflamed continuously by the help of a pair of bellows. These bellows were worked by the help of carhs which were turned around by human beings, water or animal power. So, silver solution started to flow below. This acquired metal solution was not pure but it was mixed with gold.The purifying process of silver was being done in special ovens called “kalhane” (Smelter).

    The purification of gold: The golden ore is not found in nature except some exceptions. It is usually

found as a mixture of silver and copper. Moreover, gold and copper can be found within silver mine.

Thus, gold can be usually found within the copper mine. Under such conditions, this mine composition

should be separated from each other.

   1. After the ore extracted out of nature, it is washed; next it is ground and washed again. This ore

is turned in a lump as we have explained three step melting process in the first step of silver mine. These lumps are sent to smelter to be purified.

   2. The lump brought to smelter is processed to be purified again. The smelter master puts some soft

lead depending on the possible amount of copper within the lump to become “smelted”, and placed into

crucible. Melting crucible is a kind of crucible which is like a handmade pot made of ash and horasan plaster, and like a sponge it is flat and shallow. This crucible like a handmade pot is placed on a wide and shallow melting oven. Pitch-pine, wood and coal are placed over lump and lead, and it is fired. Oxygen is given with a strong wind coming from strong bellows over melted metal. Lead turns into murdesenk (Litharge-protoxide of lead) by burning. Lead flows through the hole which is in front of the melting oven to this litharge or pot like crucible which is like a sponge absorbing some of litharge. However, the master of smelter skins and collects the litharge with a long and flattened iron stick which is accumulated like a creamy layer over the crucible. Litharge flows towards outer part of the oven. The solution in which lead expires freezes. A round and flat disc remains in smelting oven. This purified round disk shaped metal contains silver and gold. Moreover, litharge which flows out and remains in the crucible can be recycledand used again in the other processes.

   3. Metal in the shape of a round disk is heated again, and is put into water as it is warm, and it turns

into small globules (called “guherse” or “guverse.”) These little pieces in 1-2mm diameter are placed in

smeltingmoulds and they are boiled in 66 C for a few minutes with sheet iron oil, and then the all of silver slowly becomes liquid with acid. Gold sinks to the bottom of the container as salt, and the solution contains silver and copper is sieved after the dirty water settles down and next it is transferred to another container. After golden salt sunk to the bottom container is properly washed and dried, it is melted a few times and brought into a lumb. It is sieved as a liquid from a container and poured into a container which is covered with lead and contains diluted acid. Right after this stage, the solution is stirred strongly with a pure copper leaf. In this process, because silver is detained by copper, silver sinks to the bottom of the container as salt. After the solution in the container is sieved, the rest of the silver salt is washed and the copperpieces within it are taken away. The silver salt can be melted a few times as it is in gold, and later it is transformed into a lumb. The sieved liquid transferred from a copper container to another container, sulphate is made after it is evaporated and when it is transferred