You finally made me do it!

The number on the market recently both of these and the last hemidrachms that still had portraits suggests a recent find of some quantity. I am not a fan of Islamic coins but have a few. Mine was $29 and I have seen better ones cheaper. Few seem to show wear but many have some flat strike problems. Sasanians are hard to pigeonhole into ancient or medieval. Categories mean nothing. All these guys thought they were modern in their day.


If my coin was made about the time of Charlemagne, does that make it medieval? If a Byzantine coin was made 200 years before or after does that make it more or less medieval? If I owned only this coin I would still be planning to buy y 'first' ancient. If you like it, collect it whatever it is.

 

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I think this is close, but when I was looking on line earlier, most in that price range were not as detailed as the OP coin. I might say $90-125. But what do I know?

 

A very nice and attractive coin and probably considered more medieval than ancient for all the reasons already stated---but it's old LOL

Generally they fall into the $50.00-$80.00 range in high-grade condition....but often go much cheaper at auction.

I have a couple of modest types, differing a bit and older like like the one posted below:

Silver drachm of Shapur III, 383-388 AD
3.60 grams; Bust of King and Fire Altar/attendants reverse.

I believe this type is a bit scarcer and went for about $85.00 at bid.

 

You coin is technically an issue of the 'Abbasid Caliphate struck under the authority of the governor of Tabaristan, Sulayman ibn Musa (fl. c. AD 787-789). The 'Abbasid caliph at that time was Harun al-Rashid (786-809), the caliph of the famous '1001 Nights'. The coins of this series are dated in the post-Yazdegird era (PYE), Yazdegird III having been the last Sasanian king. The date, written out in words in Persian Pahlavi script is to the left of the fire altar, usually 136 or 137. Inside the diamond on the obverse is the Arabic word bakh meaning "good".

 

Here another Suleiman, without the window in front of him, to show some more details.

 

I saw it and liked it. I saw it was silver and then I wanted it. Price wouldn't have matter to much at that point but I did have a limit. As it was professionally graded and I don't know what I'm buying (odd but true in this case) I felt more at ease with the purchase, especially being a genuine coin. Not sure what the MS was but I wasn't going to ask as it would show my ignorance in this matter. Not a good thing for a buyer to display. Yes, I will keep it in the holder. I like yours too.

 

Hey, thanks for the reply!

Can't wait to see your next!Don't be afraid of raw!

 

I'm surprised that no one has commented on the most interesting aspect of this coin. Tabaristan was an outlying province of the Umayyad Empire that was allowed to strike this local coinage of hemidrachms based on the old Sassanian style, which the Umayyads themselves copied for their eastern silver coinage until the reform under al-Malik. The individuals named on this series are the local governors. Sulayman was apparently a more dedicated Muslim than the others, and he took the "graven images" thing very seriously, transforming the pagan king on the obverse into a neat geometric type.

 

I wish I knew more about these...mine was a opportune purchase. Something came available for the right price that I liked. Thanks for the additional info on this coin Ardatirion!

 

Nice!! => wow, congrats on snaggin' your first Ancient coin!! (betcha can't buy just one!!?)



Yup, these babies are stupid addictive!!

Oh, I happen to have a couple of cool coins from basically this era ... give, or take a couple o' hundred years!

Sassanian Kingdom, Peroz I AR Drachm
459-484 AD
Peroz I & Fire Altar Attendants



Khusro II, Sassanian occupation of Egypt
618-628 AD
Khusro II & Cross/IB (Byzantine)

 

There is still time for you my friend. Your coin is technically medieval in the strictest sense. On the other hand you play with fire. You have absolutely no idea how addictive these coins can be. The example you chose is very nice, my example of Al-Hani is not nearly as nice as it has voids in the bust. I would like to show you the host of the calendar, Yazdegard III.

Sassanian Persia
(Sijistan)Sistan, Iran
Yazdegard III (r. 632-651 AD)
AR Drachm dated ry. 3 (635 AD) mint SK.
31 mm x 3.86 g
Obverse: Bust of Juvenile Yazdegard III Pahlavi Legend- Yazdegard, Splendor, Prosperity
Reverse: Zoroastrian Fire Altar flanked by two attendents.
Ref: Gobl 234
Note: Chipped, rusty dies, scarce

 

Your Khusro II looks like he just blew his lid. LOL!!!

 

I am surprised you expected any of us would know that! Ha, ha!

 

Medoraman mentioned it but we have to allow for his not being a geometry maven and calling the rhomboid head a triangle. My 8th grade grandson is taking Geometry at the moment but they are not studying shapes either. So far what I have seen has been what we called Symbolic Logic when I took it in college. P-->Q, Q-->R therefore P-->R. Schools do this to make grandfathers feel ancient.

 

=> you're right, it is a bit of a weird coin, eh? (apparently, it's also quite a rare lil' gem ... yah, I always smile when I see this lil' sweetie)

Byzantine Empire, Sassanian occupation of Egypt Æ 12 Nummi / Khusro II
Date: Circa 618-628 AD
Measure: 19.66 mm
Weight: 8.26 grams
Obverse: Cuirassed bust of Khusro facing, wearing crown with simple cross, star to left, C to right
Reverse: Cross on globe between I-B, AΛEΣ in exergue
Attribution: DOC 191; SB 855
Notes: A very nice example of this scarcer type

 

Smile again...mine is his tight lipped big brother.

 

Awesome coin! But the coin is more medieval than ancient. A coin made after 476 is usually not classified as ancient.

 

Reading all of the comments so far, I can say that an argument can be made for a distinction in the timeline and time periods for ancients, medieval, etc. As I've stated, I don't have a clue but given the lack of my knowledge in this area, the current year and the year this coin was minted, it's not old, it's ancient.

 

Yah, I always get a bit confused between the timelines of the:

a) Byzantine Empire (491 AD through 1453 AD)
b) Medieval Period (5th to 15th century AD)
c) The Middle Ages (5th to 15th century AD)

=> all three seem to be the same time-frame, no?

All I know is I have lots of coins for every century AD up until the 5th century AD and then they start gettin' pretty sparce!!

Hey, I never claimed to be a "historian" ... math, science and good-times have always been my strong-suits!!

Maybe somebody with a bit/lot more history-sense could clear this up for me and the few that seem to be in the dark (ages)??

... thanks, in advance