Sulla80 Posted July 15, 2023 · Supporter Share Posted July 15, 2023 (edited) These coins have me stumped - my guess so far: Islamic, Umayyad Mamluks, 8th century, Syria... hoping an expert on this forum can point me in the right direction Edited July 16, 2023 by Sulla80 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DLTcoins Posted July 16, 2023 · Member Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) All three appear to be Umayyad, c. 700 to 750. The Mamluks were a much later dynasty of Egypt and Syria, mid-13th to early 16th century. The coin at lower left seems to be a mule of two obverses, no mint or date, with the 1st half of the Kalima ("There is no god but Allah alone") in the margin on both sides. The side with the star is similar to a common type of Dimashq (Damascus). Likely irregular, possibly early 'Abbasid era. The one at top is very interesting, a rare Egyptian fals of 18 qirat, Misr mint, no date. The inscription on the side without the star reads "fals full weight of Misr eighteen qirat". Around the star on the other side is "There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the prophet of Allah". Album 148A (R). The coin at lower right is unfortunately mis-struck. Edited July 16, 2023 by DLTcoins 3 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulla80 Posted July 16, 2023 · Supporter Author Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) Thank you so much @DLTcoins - the 6-7 century redirect and all of the more detailed information is very much appreciated. I am slowly getting better at seeing the "no god, but Allah, alone" and "Mohammad, rasul, Allah" and have a growing appreciation for these early islamic coins... This one I believe to be of the earliest reform type in copper, dated circa AH 78-85 / CE 698-705 3.3g 20.5mm- with no mint and no date and a wide range of variants. This variant one with a star on both sides I do not find in zeno. I think the type is Album 153. Described by Album as "It was a failed attempt to introduce a uniform copper coinage that would match the successful uniform silver and gold." Finding readability a challenge in general - I like this coin for its very clear script: Obv: "There is no god but Allah; alone" Rev: "Muhammad is the prophet of Allah" Edited July 16, 2023 by Sulla80 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulla80 Posted July 16, 2023 · Supporter Author Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) Here's an interesting juxtaposition with a coin in Harry Bone's unpublished Princeton dissertation (my coin 2.4g, 16.7mm) Edited July 16, 2023 by Sulla80 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DLTcoins Posted July 16, 2023 · Member Share Posted July 16, 2023 The difference is that your coin repeats the obverse legend on the reverse while Bone 7b has the mint formula. The 'Abbasid revolution resulted in major disruption of the bureaucracy, including apparently the mints. There are many oddball official/ unofficial/ "emergency" (?) varieties that are assigned to this transitional period. Bone, by the way, is the essential reference for Umayyad coppers of Greater Syria, both pre- and post-reform. His thesis used coins to determine the administrative structure of the Umayyads. In doing so, he catalogued all known varieties. Nice to see it's now online. 20 years ago, I had to pay a thesis service $35 for an unbound (425 pages!) photocopy by mail. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulla80 Posted July 16, 2023 · Supporter Author Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) 16 minutes ago, DLTcoins said: The difference is that your coin repeats the obverse legend on the reverse while Bone 7b has the mint formula. The 'Abbasid revolution resulted in major disruption of the bureaucracy, including apparently the mints. There are many oddball official/ unofficial/ "emergency" (?) varieties that are assigned to this transitional period. Bone, by the way, is the essential reference for Umayyad coppers of Greater Syria, both pre- and post-reform. His thesis used coins to determine the administrative structure of the Umayyads. In doing so, he catalogued all known varieties. Nice to see it's now online. 20 years ago, I had to pay a thesis service $35 for an unbound (425 pages!) photocopy by mail. I still had to pay a thesis service (ProQuest)- but it was instantly available as pdf.😃 Would the date of ~120 AH be reasonable for my coin? Edited July 16, 2023 by Sulla80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DLTcoins Posted July 16, 2023 · Member Share Posted July 16, 2023 Yes. Or after, into the first years of 'Abbasid rule. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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