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Message:: [QUOTE="Pellinore, post: 6882711, member: 74834"]Naturally, I should have illustrated this with a mihrab type coin from my collection, it's another Abu Sa'id double dirham, issued in 721 AH (= 1321 AD) if I'm not erring. [ATTACH=full]1272719[/ATTACH] On the left side you see the mosque niche design. I wonder if it's built up from Arabic lettering. ------Maybe I should expand the description a bit for better understanding this type of coin. In the first place, the diameter is 23.5 mm and the weight 3.60 gr. Technically, it's Type C (Ab- 488) in the Ilkhan catalog of Ömer Diler. It has the color of excellent silver.On the obverse, the left picture, you will find the islamic creed in its sunnite form. That is the Kalima: lā 'ilāha 'illā -llāhu/ muḥammadun rasūlu -llāhi. Under this, you find the names of the first four caliphs, starting with Abu Bakr. The mihrab is formed by a very long-winding word, the start of a Quran surah. At the other side - here the right picture - you find the name of the ruler, Abu Sa'id, the mint and the year. Abu Sa'id's name ابو سعید is in the left half of the middle line. In the four lobes of the lobed square are holy words. But outside the square you may find the most important numismatic details: year and mint. Now these words are all very small and I can't read the mint (upper left, all you see is a letter like Latin 'V'), but I think the year is 721.[/QUOTE]