I won these two coins as part of a group lot in a recent Stephen Album auction: Coin 1: Ilkhans, Amul mint. AR dirham. Type A (Arabic inscriptions in square/Arabic inscriptions in pentafoil). Uljaytu (1304-1316 CE/703-716 AH), dated 704 AH. Album 2180. This coin: Stephen Album Auction 45, lot 3057 (part), 2023. Coin 2: Ilkhans, Jurjan mint. AR 6 dirhams. Type H (bilingual- name of ruler in Uighur script). Abu Sa'id (1316-1335 CE/716-736 AH). Album 2217. This coin: Stephen Album Auction 45, lot 3057 (part), 2023. The Ilkhans were a Mongol dynasty based mainly in Persia and extending into its immediate neighbors. The dynasty was founded by Hulagu, a grandson of Genghis Khan and brother of both Kublai Khan and Mongke Khan. Hulagu was ordered to conquer the Abbasid caliphate, which he did in 1258, then declared himself as Ilkhan (subordinate khan). His descendants would rule for another 80 years. Uljaytu was initially raised Buddhist (like most Mongols to this point), but was baptized as a Christian at the age of 9 (perhaps at the instigation of his mother, who was a Christian); he later converted to Islam, initially Sunni but later favoring the Shia variety, and would promote Islam above other religions in his territory. He defeated an uprising in the Kurdish regions led by a false Mahdi in 1307, and a Christian uprising in Irbil in 1310. He sent out several embassies and letters to rulers of France and England and the Pope, proclaiming his friendship and proposing an alliance against the Mamluks who held the Holy Land, though no solid military alliance materialized. The Byzantine emperor Andronicus II sent one of his daughters to marry Uljaytu, and in return received troops to fight the growing power of the Ottomans. Uljaytu died in 1316 and was succeeded by his son, Abu Sa'id. Early in his reign, he defeated an invasion by the Golden Horde in Azerbaijan and several simultaneous rebellions at different parts of the empire. In the 1330s, the Black Death ranged widely, and in 1335 both Abu Sa'id and his son were killed by the plague. He was succeeded by various short-lived claimants, and the Ilkhanate broke up into multiple rival states. Ilkhan coinage is quite complicated, with multiple types per ruler and over 250 different mints known. (They actually make the Sasanians look conservative in their assignment of mints.) From about 1297, there are various details of the designs (such as the geometric shapes surrounding the legends) that indicate denomination, even to illiterate users. On Coin 2 above, the reverse features the Kalima written in a spiral Kufic Arabic script, which creates an interesting design. These two coins were highlights of the group lot, and my main reason for bidding on it. Please post your Ilkhan coinage, or whatever else is related.
Great coins! I love these Ilkhanid & other Islamic bilingual coins (and trilingual, depending how you count), especially that they have Uighur script -- very cool! The calligraphy can be very beautiful, and these ones in particular stand out as very recognizable. I once owned an Ilkhanid Dinar from the Tabriz mint (AH 694-6? / c. 1295 CE), and often wish I still had it! Hopefully the current owner more fully appreciates it. Sadly, I've never really learned anything of the languages or scripts from Central Asian and Islamic coins, so I don't even remember if I have the obverse and reverse correct:
