864 Madinat al-Salam or Baghdad Iraq 250 AH Abbasid Silver Dirham Al-Musta'in or al_Mutazz Billah Nice
Description: Silver Dirham from the time of al-Musta'in Billah or possibly his successor al-Mutazz Billah. Al-Mustain ruled the Muslim empire in the period 248-251 AH (862- 866 AD), while al-Mutazz ruled in the period 251-255 AH (866-869 AD). Al-Mustain is the twelfth caliph of the Abbasid dynasty, while al Mutazz was the thirteenth caliph. This is a dirham weighs ~2.7 grams and is ~25 mm in diameter. The coin shows the date of minting as 250 AH and mint name as Madinat al-Salam or current day Baghdad the capital of current day Iraq. The obverse of the coin has the words "Lilah/ Muhammad/ Rasul Allah/al-Mutazz Billah" in the center with the legend "Muhammad Rasul Allah, arsaluh bil huda wa din al haq liazharuh 'al al din kulh walaw harahuh al mushrikoun" along the edge. The reverse has the words "La Illaha ella Allah, Wahduh la Sharik Lah" in the center with the legend "Bi Issm Allah Duriba haza al-dinar bi Madinat al-Salam sanat khamsin wa maitain" in an inner circle and the words "Liallah al amr min qabl wa min daad wa yaum ezan yafrah al muminin bi nasr allah" in an outer circle along the edge. The coin is very fine with some even wear, light toning, and great eye appeal. A definite quality coin. Please carefully review the images presented as they part and parcel of our description.
Short Discussion About The Coin: Although we are able to read the mint as Madinat al-Salam and the date as 250 making this coin from the time of al Mustain, we read the name under the legend on the obverse as al Mutazz NOT al Mustain. This is not documented in any of the references we have. Album suggests that for the date 250 AH it should read al-Mustain on the obverse and only once we come to 251 we see al-Mutazz. So either al-Mutazz had taken the thrown by 250 AH (possibly towards the end) and had his name on the coins with that date, or used coin dies from the end of his predecessor’s reign and the minter/engraver did not bother to change the date but added the name of the new caliph. We feel that the latter is true, so although the coin is dated 250 it is struck during the times of al-Mutazz. Date: The coin is dated 250 AH or 864 AD.
Mint: Madinat al-Salam or current day Baghdad the capital of current day Iraq.
Size and weight: This is a dirham weighs ~2.7 grams and is ~25 mm in diameter.
References: For al-Mustain it would be Album #234 but if it is a dirham from al Mutazz times it would be Album #236.1. The coin is not listed in Al'Ush's Catalog of Islamic coins preserved in the national museum of Qatar.
Condition: I would grade this coin as choice very fine with well centered strike and very readable calligraphy. The coin is nice, has nice eye appeal and shows general and even wear throughout. The coin is clean with a matte appearance and having minimum surface marks such as scratches and bag marks. A fine-looking coin, which would make a great addition to your collection (although the coin appears to be dated 250 AH it has the name of al-Mutazz on it and not al-Mustain; please read our discussion regarding the dating of this coin within our description). Please note the coin itself is much better than the photos show with very well defined and legible calligraphy. A definite quality coin. Please see photos for additional condition information.
Historic Perspective: Abbasid is an Arabic ruling dynasty, originally based in Madinat al-Salam (current day Baghdad) that expanded the Muslim empire and lasted from 750 Ad to 1258 AD. It was named for al-Abbas (566?-652), paternal uncle of the prophet Muhammad. ). Al-Safah leaded the revolt against the Umayyad established and became the first Abbasid Caliph upon the overthrow of the Umayyad caliph in 132 AH / 749 AD. During the first century of the Abbasid rule the empire experienced a time of unprecedented cultural, artistic and economic development, particularly during the reigns of Harun al-Rashid (786-809) and his son al-Ma'mun (813-833).
