Extremely Rare Dimishq Islamic Gold Coin Mamluk Bunduqi 815 AH /1412 AD Abu'l Fadl al-Abbas al-Mustain
Description: A gold coin from the Mamluk sultan al-Musiain (Abu Al-Fadl al-Abbas), who ruled Egypt and Syria nominally for a few months in 815 AH (1412 AD). Al-Musatin was not a Mamluk, instead he was the shadow Abbasid caliph in Cairo. He did rule nominally for a few months under the shadow of Shaykh. Shaykh, then took over and rule in his own name. The coin clearly shows the name of al-Mustain and the mint as Dimishq. It does not have date of minting but if course it would be 815AH. An extremely rare coin that very seldom becomes available. It has been in my collection for the past 4 years and because my interests have changed, I am looking to sell it. Please carefully review the scan as it is part and parcel of our description.
Date: Date off flan but struck in 815 AH (1412 AD).
Mint: Dimishq.
Size and Weight: This is an Bunduqi, weighs ~3.4 grams and is ~16 mm in diameter. The bunduqi was a coin developed by Shaykh based on the Venetian Ducat with a standardized weight of 3.3 to 3.5 gram coin of high purity gold (over 22K).
References: It is Album #984.2, it is listed in Balog as #672, and is Wilkes 1030.
Provenance: Lot 4846 of the Horus Collection sold by Baldwin in London April 2013 Condition: I would grade this coin as very fine or much better. The coin itself is much better than the photos show with very well defined and legible calligraphy. The coin is a bit off round, which is also common for this type of coin. It has a few minor scratches, dings and wear commensurate with its circulated state. It also was struck a bit off the flan on the reverse and hence the observable area of flatness. A definite quality and very rare coin worthy of a spot in your collection. Please see images for additional condition information.
