The white or, according to the Turkish translation, the aktses, from the adjective ak, white, due to the whiteness of its metal, is the longest-lived Ottoman silver coin and the almost exclusive means of exchange in the Ottoman-controlled part of the Balkans and Asia Minor from the mid-14th to the late 17th century. It was first minted in Bursa during the reign of Sultan Orhan, 1324-1362, with an initial weight of 1.20 g., and after repeated small devaluations during the reign of Mehmed II the Conqueror, it was stabilized in 1481 at 0.72 g. During the 16th century. It will be issued in addition to Constantinople in about 50 other provincial mints, including the Greek ones: Serres, Sidirokausia, Chios, Thessaloniki and Larissa. In 1585 it will be devalued again by 50% and after 1640 its production will be essentially limited to Constantinople and Cairo. After the mid-18th century, a time when transactions in the Ottoman Empire are mainly carried out with larger coins, such as parades, grosia and zolotes, its minting will now have an almost symbolic character, as it is always used as a means of calculating the value of various goods. Its publication was interrupted on the eve of the declaration of the Greek Revolution of 1821.
Mehmed II the Conqueror (1444-1446 and 1451-1481)
Mehmed II reigned twice, 1444-1446 and 1451-1481, and took the title of the Conqueror (Fatih) after the capture of Constantinople in 1453. He is considered the most astute and open-minded of the Ottoman sultans. At the end of his reign, the borders of the Ottoman Empire in Europe reached as far as the Danube and Bosnia, while in M. Asia was roughly identified with the imaginary line from Adana to Kerasounta. Realizing that about half of his subjects were Christians, he showed himself to be at least tolerant towards them and considering himself the successor of the Byzantine emperors, he used the Greek language in his correspondence with Europeans. His silver coins, white, were minted in seven mints and he was the first to mint in Constantinople, in 1478, gold coins, the sultani, which imitated the Venetian zecchini in weight and diameter.