747 Silver Islamic Coin Dirham Marwan II Last Umayyad Caliph Al-Wasit 130 AH VF
Description: A nicely toned very fine Umayyad silver dirham struck in 130 AH (747 AD) during the reign of the Caliph Marwan II son of Muhammad ibn Marwan. Marwan II ruled the Islamic world in the period 127-133 AH (744-750 AD). Marwan II was the last Umayyad caliph before the Abbasid revolt toppled the Umayyad dynasty. This beautiful coin is nicely toned and has honest and even wear throughout. It also has some minor scratches to the surface of both sides. It clearly shows the mint location as being al-Wasit and the year of minting as being 130 AH. The coin has a pleasing appearance and looks much better than the photos suggest. The coin comes in a plastic slab by NGC with the designation GENUINE. A beautiful coin with a nice toned appearance. Please carefully review the photos as they are part and parcel of our description.
Date: Struck 130 AH or 747 AD.
Mint: The coin clearly indicates the mint as al Wasit in current day Iraq.
Size and weight: This is a silver dirham and is ~24.5 mm in diameter.
References: It is Album 142, listed in Lane Poole Catalogue of the Collection of Arabic Coins Preserved in the Khedivial Library in Cairo Egypt as number 244, and is listed in Wilkes as #297.
Condition: The coin comes in a plastic slab by NGC with the designation GENUINE. A beautiful coin with a nice toned appearance. I would grade this coin as very fine with a well centered strike and beautiful Calligraphy. The coin is beautiful, nicely toned with has honest and even wear throughout. It also has some scratches to the surface of both sides. It is very readable and its calligraphy is well struck. It is much better than the photos suggest. Please see photos to appreciate the quality of this coin and for additional condition information.
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).
