The faces of a coin are called “tura” (for heads) and “yazı” (for tails) in Turkish. Tura is derived from the tughra, Sultan’s seal/monogram found on Ottoman period coins and is used (mainly) for the side with the portrait of the ruler on modern coins. Tughra first used on coins struck in the name of Emir Suleyman, and appeared on coins until the end of the Ottoman Empire. “Yazı” means writing / inscription as to refer to the side with the value and other inscriptions.
Heads (or obverse) and tails (or reverse) sides of a coin can be positioned to align with each other either when rotated by the vertical or by the horizontal axis.
- When the coin is hold upright on one side, and then rotated by the vertical axis; if the other side is still upright; this orientation is called medal alignment. as it resembles a pendant /medal. Medal alignment is represented by two upwards arrows (↑↑).
- When one side is upright and the coin is rotated around its horizontal axis so to have the other side upright, it is in coin alignment. If rotated around the vertical axis, one of the faces of coins struck in coin alignment become upside down; hence, the symbol for coin orientation is two arros one upwards one downward (↑↓) ile belirtilir.
Turkish Republican circulation coins were initially struck in medal orientation. In 1947, they were switched to coin alignment.
Commemoratives were mainly struck in medal orientation.
In 2001 State Mint started minting circulation coinsagain in medal orientation.
Euro coins and many European coins are struck in medal orientation while the US coins have coin alignment.
