I recently bought this coin from Warren Esty (@Valentinian): Zengids of Halab (Aleppo). Nur ad-Din Mahmud b. Zengi (ruled 541-569 AH/ 1146-1174 AD). AE fals. Obverse: Two Byzantine-style figures standing, between them a labarum on three steps, blundered pseudo-Greek inscription around edges, Arabic inscription in two lines in middle "al-Adil/ Nur ad-Din" (The Just/ Light of the Faith). Reverse: Figure of Christ standing, with halo, holding Gospel book in left hand, blundered pseudo-Greek inscription along edges, Arabic inscription in two lines along middle "Malik al-umara/ Mahmud" (King of the Commanders/ Mahmud), upside-down Greek letters IC XC (abbreviation for "Jesus Christ") to left and right of standing Christ. Album 1850, Spengler/Sayles type 73. This coin is part of the Turkoman figural bronze series, issued by the Artuqids, Zengids, and a few other Turkish dynasties that, unusually for Islamic coins, featured pictorial designs,often including human figures. Some of these were copied from contemporary Byzantine coins, while others copy much older Greek, Roman or Sasanian coins, and some feature entirely novel designs. This coin seems to copy a Byzantine coin of Constantine X (1059-1067 AD). There has been some de-Christianizing of the design- a cross inside Christ's halo was removed in the copying- but otherwise the figures are copied fairly accurately. The Greek legends are also completely degraded, probably deliberately to erase the names and titles of their Byzantine enemies. Nur ad-Din was an energetic ruler, defender of the Muslim faith and enemy of the Crusaders. He conquered most of the territory around Antioch and successfully repulsed an attempt by the Crusaders to retake Edessa. In 1149 he killed Raymond of Poitiers and sent his head to the caliph in Baghdad. However, Nur ad-Din was not averse to diplomacy with the Christians, and in 1159 made an agreement with the Byzantine emperor Manuel I Comnenus to fight against the Seljuks. Nur ad-Din was also able to unite all of Syria and northern Iraq under his control, and then conquered Egypt from the Fatimids. However, his governor in Egypt, An-Nasir Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, better known as Saladin, had no intention of remaining subordinate, and in 1171 and 1173 refused to send troops to help the invasion of Jerusalem. A showdown seemed inevitable, but Nur ad-Din died in 1174, leaving a weak successor and paving the way for the most famous opponent of the Crusaders. This is an interesting coin historically, and part of a fascinating series. Anyone interested in these coins really needs to buy the standard reference, "Turkoman Figural Bronze Coins and Their Iconography" by William F. Spengler and Wayne G. Sayles (2 volumes- Volume I: The Artuqids, Volume II: The Zengids). It is packed with historical detail, art historical analysis, and full transcriptions of all legends (which is a useful feature for those of us whose Arabic is somewhere between "poor" and "nonexistent"). Post your relevant coins here.
Great writeup and neat coin! I still don’t have the Spengler/Sayles books but they’re on my list. I have only one Zengid, a Watermelon Eater of Mosul. I have an auction attribution to “Mitchener 1129, Album 1870.2 - struck under Nasir al-Din Mahmud, dated AH 627”. I suspect it’s incorrect but haven’t been able to confirm yet.
These are fascinating! Here's mine, plus the imitated Constantine X type (from, surprisingly, many decades earlier... but perhaps the latest Byzantine type still circulating in the area):
That's a cool pick up, I love the style of these coins. The only thing relevant I have are are few of my fist coin purchases. A rough Constantine X and a rough Islamic coin, but I love this Helios guy! Sorry for pics.
kool coins, Op and all.. i've read where the new conquerors, the followers of Mohammed, adopted the style of the coins this way for the sake of the conquered and commerce, which would seem to be a very good idea. very good idea i think.
Very nice! I am always in the lookout for these types of Byzantine imitations. Some of them are quite expensive and others are within reach. The key to these coins is to try to get ones that has good legends on them and yours fits the bill. Here is mine: The Zangid Atabegs of Aleppo: Nur al-din Mahmud ibn Zangi (1146-1174 CE) Æ Dirham (Album-1850) Obv: Within circle of small beads, two Byzantine-style standing figures facing forwards supporting a labarum (standard) resting on three steps Downwards on left: downwards left of the standard: al-‘adil (العادل), downwards right of the standard: nur al-din (نردين) ; blundered imitations of Greek legends around Rev: Within a circle of small beads, figure of Christ standing, facing forward, holding book in left hand and with right hand on hip, with blundered imitations of Greek legends to left and right Downwards on right: mahmud (محمود) downwards on left: malik al-umara’ (مالك الأمراء); “Mahmud, King of the Princes” Salduquds: Izz al-Din Salduq (1129-1168 CE) AE Fals, NM, ND (Album-1890) Obv: Two standing figures with the one on the right holding a patriarchal cross on three steps in his right hand. This may be the Byzantine emperor John II Comnenus on the left and St. George on the right, but it could equally well be the Emperor Manuel I Comnenus and St. Theodore on the right. Rev: Arabic legend on four lines - السلطان المعظم مسعود بن محمد عز الدين صادق بن علي (The Mighty Sultan Mas‘ud ibn Muhammad ‘Izz al-Din Salduq ibn ‘Ali) Citing the Western Seljuq overlord Mas'ud, who ruled 1134-1152 Umayyad Caliphate, Arab-Byzantine: Anonymous (ca. 680 AD) Æ Fals, Dimashq (Album 3517.3) Obv: Emperor standing and facing, in right hand a long cross and in left hand a globus cruciger, crescent on 'T' , Greek letters ΛЄO to right downwards, all enclosed by beaded circle Rev: جائز/ ضرب / دمشق, Capital M with monogram above and "officina" symbol (a downturned crescent) below, Arabic inscription to left downwards, Arabic inscription to right downwards, Arabic inscription in exergue (mint name), all enclosed by beaded circle
