Hagia Sophia 1 Million Lira

This 1 million lira coin was issued amid Turkey's hyperinflation crisis, where banknotes with more zeros became as common as stray cats in Istanbul.

Struck in 1997 to commemorate the Hagia Sophia, it features a design that echoes the building's iconic domes and arches on the obverse, with the standard Turkish emblem on the reverse. The coin itself is made from copper-nickel, a practical choice for a denomination that lost value faster than a street vendor's haggling.

Mintage numbers? Those records might have vanished in bureaucratic reshuffles; I wouldn't bet on it. What we do know is that these coins circulated briefly before the currency was redenominated.

Collectors sometimes overlook it, fixated on shinier pieces, but that's their loss.