Seller ID'ed it as: Ayyubid Dynasty: Az-Zahir Ghazi(1186-1216A.D.) Silver 1 Dirham Coin 1198 A.D. I can't make out much detail at all really, other than the 6-pointed start. Can anyone confirm the seller's identification or provide an alternate one? Thanks! It was pretty cheap, btw. Rob
i think that is correct Teddy, i'm pretty sure it's a ayyubid "star dirham", but i don't know enough to tell you if which ruler or what year.
What is sure is that the Mamluk king Az - Zhaher Baybaras reigned from 658 A.H. till 676 A.H. I don't know if that has any relation with your coin. Hope it could help anyway. Charles
The hexagram design is similar to coins issued by the Ayyubids at Aleppo but this piece belongs to a vassal dynasty, the Artuqids of Mardin. The ruler is al-Mansur Artuq Arslan, 1201-1239. Your coin was struck at Dunaysir in AH 631 (AD 1234). The obverse (top) cites the Ayyubid overlord al-Kamil Muhammad and styles the ruler as "al-Mansur Artuq" with mint and date in the margin. The reverse (lower) cites the 'Abbasid caliph al-Mustansir. The Muslim kalima or profession of faith is in the margin segments. It is Album 1831.1.
Wow! Thanks for the info. You seem pretty well informed. Are you an Islamic coin specialist? Speak and read Arabic generally, or just coins? Welcome to the forum and thanks for finding my old thread! Rob
You are quite welcome. I can read the coins but I don't speak the language. My interest spans everything from ancient Greek to the 20th century. I enjoy attributing the Islamic pieces. It's a bit like working a crossword puzzle.
