Hejaz Railway Donation Medal

Reverse

Tuğra of Sultan Abdülhamid II above a railway locomotive, below which is inscribed the date of the railway's inauguration. Surrounded by wreaths.

Lettering:
عبد الحميد خان بن عبد المجيد المظفر دائما الغازى

١٣١٨

Translation:
(Tuğra) Abdülhamid Khan son of Abdülmecid, the ever-victorious, the warrior

1318

Edge

Plain

Comment

This medal was awarded to those who provided donations to fund the Hejaz Railway. The railway was intended to facilitate the Hajj. The main branch ran from Damascus to Medina, with a branch line later added to the port of Haifa. An important public part of Abdülhamid II's pan-Islamist policies, the railway attracted donations from Muslims all over the world after the Ottoman government called for help with finance, and it was decided to reward donors with this medal as a visible symbol of their piety. It was produced in and dated to his silver jubilee year in 1900. The majority were made in nickel alloy, which was designed to reward donations up to 50 Ottoman lira. There were also silver medals minted to reward donations of up to 100 Ottoman lira, and very rare gold versions for donations over 100 lira. Some were made to be worn, with a red ribbon common for the nickel version, and green for the silver version. In practice, many different types of ribbon appear on surviving examples.