Bahar Azadi Coin price today

The price of the old-design Bahar Azadi coin matters to people who hold old family coins, gifts from past years or a mahr (dowry) in these coins and want to know what they are worth today. On this page you can see the live price of the full old-design Bahar Azadi coin in Toman, along with a chart. Below, we explain how this coin differs from the Emami coin, why their prices are not equal despite the same weight and fineness, how its premium (bubble) is calculated, and what to watch out for when buying or selling old coins.

What is the old-design Bahar Azadi coin?

After the revolution, the Bahar Azadi coin replaced the earlier gold coins, and its first design, now called the "old design" in the market, was for years the country's only official gold coin. Later, the Central Bank minted a new design bearing the image of Imam Khomeini, which became known as the Emami coin . Minting of the old design stopped years ago, and the coins that exist today are the ones that have remained in people's hands and in the market.

In the market this coin is sometimes simply called the "Bahar coin" or "full Bahar". Since the phrase "Bahar Azadi" appears in the name of both designs, always specify whether you mean the old or the new design when buying and selling, so there is no misunderstanding on the invoice or the price.

Old design vs. new design

In terms of gold content, the two designs are the same; the differences lie in the design, whether they are still minted, and how the market treats them:

Why does the old design trade at a different price from the Emami coin?

You might expect two coins with the same gold content to have the same price, but in practice the old-design coin usually trades slightly cheaper than the Emami coin. The main reasons:

• Lower liquidity: Most bulk trades, auctions and exchange-traded instruments are based on the Emami coin, so there are fewer buyers for the old-design coin.
• Age of the coins: Old-design coins have changed hands for years and are more likely to be worn, scratched or out of their packaging.
• Market convention: The market uses the more common coin as the pricing benchmark and values the others at a spread relative to it.

The size of this gap is not fixed; it may narrow in periods of high demand and widen in quiet markets. Compare the price on this page with the Emami coin page to see the live gap for yourself.

Intrinsic value and premium of the old-design coin

Since both coins contain the same amount of pure gold, their intrinsic value is also the same:

Intrinsic value ≈ 8.133 × 0.9 × price per gram of 24-karat gold

The price per gram of pure gold is itself derived from the global gold ounce and the open-market dollar rate. The difference between the market price and the intrinsic value is the coin's premium (bubble). Interestingly, because of its lower price, the premium on the old-design coin is often smaller than that of the Emami coin, and its price sometimes comes very close to the value of the gold it contains. This means a larger share of its price is made up of gold value, but in return you may find fewer buyers when selling.

The price of old coins is also tied to the dollar and the ounce

Being old does not cut a coin off from the global market. Since the bulk of the old-design coin's price is the value of its gold, any change in the global ounce or the dollar rate passes directly into its price; usually even more directly than with the Emami coin, because there is less premium standing between the price and the gold value.

• Global side: The gold ounce is sensitive to interest rates and US monetary policy. When yields on dollar assets rise, gold, which pays no return, becomes less attractive. See interest rates on the central bank interest rates page and the release times of key data in the economic calendar .
• Domestic side: The open-market dollar rate, inflation and inflation expectations, and economic and political news move the Toman price of gold.
• Coin market side: When buying fever for the Emami coin rises, part of the demand spills over into the old-design coin as well, and vice versa.

For someone holding a few old-design coins from the past, following these three factors is enough to understand where changes in the value of their holdings come from.

Tips for checking old coins

Old-design coins have usually been kept in homes for years. Before buying or selling, pay attention to the following:

• Exact weight: Weigh it on a jeweler's precision scale. A coin that is heavily worn, or has been drilled and soldered (for example, to hang on a necklace), may only be bought at its gold value or less.
• Do not clean the coin: Rubbing it or using cleaning agents causes scratches and lowers the coin's cosmetic value.
• Bends and dents: A bent or dented coin is considered "defective" by the market and fetches a lower price.
• Authenticity: Old coins without packaging are more exposed to counterfeiting than others. If in doubt, a reputable gold assay lab is the best authority; home tests such as a magnet or the sound of the coin are not reliable.

Selling, mahr and storing old-design coins

If you are taking old-design coins to sell, compare the offers of several dealers and check them against the live price on this page. Dealers usually quote a buying price lower than their selling price, and this gap may be larger for coins with less demand.

Mahr contracts usually state "full Bahar Azadi coin". Which design applies in a particular case depends on the wording of the document and the practice of the deciding authority, and you should ask a legal advisor; the information on this page only shows the market price.

For storage, keep the coin in a soft pouch or box away from metal objects so it does not get scratched, and for larger quantities consider a bank safe deposit box.

The Bahar coin alongside other gold options

If your goal is comparison, put the old-design price next to the half coin, quarter coin and 18-karat gold as well. A list of all coins and gold types is available in the gold and coin prices section .

The information on this page is for informational purposes only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell. Prices are taken from the stated sources and may differ slightly from the rates at your local gold shop or exchange office.