703 Islamic Coin 84 AH Umayyad Gold Dinar Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan VF++
Description: A good very fine or better Umayyad Gold Dinar struck in 84 AH (703 AD) during the reign of the Caliph Abd al-Malik b. Marwan, the Umayyad Caliph responsible for the reform coinage in the Islamic world. Abd al-Malik ruled the Islamic world in the period 65-86 AH (685-705AD). A nice coin with a well centered strike and very readable calligraphy. Please carefully review the images presented as it is part and parcel of our description.
Date: Struck in the year 84 AH or 703 AD.
Mint: Not mentioned on the coin.
Size and Weight: This is a gold dinar weighs ~4.17 grams and is ~19 mm in diameter.
References: It is Album 125, Bernardi 43, and is listed in Lane Poole Catalogue of the Collection of Arabic Coins Preserved in the Khedivial Library in Cairo Egypt as number 8 and in Wilkes as #162.
Condition: I would grade the coin as good very fine or much better with a well centered strike and very legible calligraphy. The coin has light and even wear and has great eye appeal. The coin has light scratches and a few bag marks but nothing of true concern. It is problem free and in good very fine condition. This is a beautiful coin and is much better than the photos suggest. Please see photos to appreciate the quality and condition of this beautiful coin.
Historic Perspective: The Muslim Arabs used existing gold and silver coinage in lands they conquered. At that time the nascent Islamic nation did not have a monetary system and did not strike neither gold nor silver coins, instead the conquering Arabs used the Byzantine monetary system already existing in Egypt for most of the gold coins and the Sassanian monetary system already existing in Iran for most silver coins with minor modifications. In 77 AH (699 AD) Abd al-Malik Ibn Marwan the Umayyad caliph instituted a monetary system and began striking the first Islamic coins including the gold Dinar. The dinar weighed 4.25 grams, or one mithqal, of the highest purity gold possible. At the time the center of power and the main gold coin mint was located in Dimishq (current day Damascus in Syria).
