Just got home, found to my surprise that I won this thing from Steve Albums London "Horizion Auction" I put in a lowball bid and got it! Its an Abbasid Caliphate (third period) AV Dinar struck for Caliph al-Qahir who ruled from 932-34AD.
I wanna cry with jealousy. Another winner @panzerman You sure know how to pick them. All I have to show for the Abbasid is this humble silver dirham. Abbasid Caliphate. al-Rashid. 170-193/786-809. AR dirham (23.4 mm, 2.61 g, 2 h). Madinat al-Salam, A.H 187. Album 219.2. EF. Ex Elwood Rafn collection. I googled the name of the previous owner. Apparently he passed away in 2012 at the age of 88. I hope I get somewhat close to that before I go.
Thanks. Hate to admit this, but that was not my first choice, I had my "eye" on another lot....but it went fives times over estimate But, now I am happy with this coin since its mint state and a sharp strike.
Mint State? Are you buying slabbed again? Your coin is exceptional, without a doubt. It is above average for what I've seen of that type of Abbasid coinage in the market place. However, if I were to grade it, Mint State would not be the term I would use. A more accurate description would be: gXF, well centered and sharp strike (minor flattening at 10h), original surfaces with faint scratches from old cleaning in fields. Minor friction wear on high points on the reverse. Still, a superb coin. I would definitely be happy to own it. If you don't want it you can mail it to me any time!
Curious? ... => what do the barb-wire-fence squiggles represent? (are they words, or are they merely designs?) Yah sorry ... these coins are definitely not in my target-zone
No, its raw. But it was graded by Steve album/Wilkes....who are known to be very conservative in their grading. I won a Abbasid raw coin from Heritage which to my surprise was not slabbed. But, when I got it in the mail....this coin was in its original "Steve Album" flip with description, and graded EF. So, how in the world Heritage called it Ch-UNC is beyond belief!
Steve....its all Arabic. Ruler/mint/date/slogans, I cannot read this either. But, I have a friend at our local "Coin Club", who can read the script like it were in plain English.
Well, I may be biased, but I would never call any handmade coin Mint State because all handmade coins are unique and different from one another, even from subsequent coins made out of the same die. Therefore, I think it is literally impossible to assign a Mint State grade to them as you can't just compare them in the same way you can compare modern dimes or quarters coming straight out of the mint. Not to mention the chemical interactions with the soil, cleaning after discovery, etc., that all ancient/medieval coins have undergone at some point or another. Your coin, despite how nice it is, definitely has minor flattening that I can see in the picture, as well as some micro scratches from someone cleaning it in the past. That is not to take anything away from it, because it is truly fantastic and clearly above average when it comes to that type.
Yes, it's script, though your "barbed wire" metaphor is apt. I certainly couldn't read it, and I'm in awe of people who can. Terrific piece of historic gold, there! I do know enough about them to know that some ended up in Viking hoards. I always found it fascinating that those two cultures collided and traded with one another. In Constantinople/Byzantium/Istanbul there is a statue of a lion from the Byzantine period with runic Norse graffiti on it.
Just out of interest, I have a book on Kindle "Arabic coins and how to read them" by Richard Plant. Never had an arabic coin to test it out on.
Yes, it would seem almost impossible for a hammered coin that is that old, to survive centuries of turmoil/wars/climatic changes etc. But, so many do. I have a FDC (graded by CNG) Aureus of Diocletian 284AD Rome Mint from Triton V....this coin is almost prooflike in appearance.
The obverse is definitely AU (you could use a time machine and bring me a fresh one from the Roman mint and the most I'll call it is AU...I'm stubborn that way). Reverse is stunning, though fields do have some minor haziness (and that's just me nitpicking). It is a fantastic coin @panzerman I don't have anything approaching that high grade of quality. I guess this would be as close as it gets for me.
@panzerman - you're killing me with this stuff! Is that another one you traded some dead bugs for? ROFL
Oh, and as to auction descriptions and MS grades on ancients, my one piece of ancient gold was "gVF" at CNG, with slight edge crease noted. That translated to "MS", with "wrinkled" notation at NGC. I can't complain, though I find "wrinkled" a rather bizarre descriptor for a coin. I'm more accustomed to seeing "wavy flan" used on thin hammered pieces. "Wrinkled" sounds more extreme to me. But this coin's flan is not what I would call particularly wavy or wrinkled.
I wish! No, back in 2002 I was still collecting coins and butterflies/moths. I would wait all year for the CNG (Triton Auction) and save up accordingly. I first saw that coin in NFA auction (forget which one) but it realized $30KUS. When it was featured in Triton V it was for starting bid of $9KUS. I sent in my bid via letter post (had no internet/sixbid) back then. Three weeks later, I got notice I had won it for 10K! A similar coin of lesser grade recently realized 60KSwFrcs. So, it was a good deal. Weird as it sounds, my Aureus of Elagalabus which is ranked as "scarce" in Calico, some examples sold for more, even though the Diocletian is R-1. The most common Aureus is the Severus Alexander/Romulus on reverse, seem many in auction, still perfect ones go for 16-24K.
I have that book, and another by the same author titled "Greek, Semitic, and Asiatic Coins and How to Read Them" and can vouch for their excellence. Anyone who is considering collecting "Eastern" ancient/medieval coins should read those books.
