106 / 166
TYRANT COLLECTION
104
239
Umayyad Caliphate
Gold Dinar, AH 130
temp. Marwan II, Umayyad Caliph, AH 127-132/AD 744-750
SICA-2, 314ff; A 141. Superb Extremely Fine.
No mint name (Damascus). Kalima at center, Qur’an 9:33 in margin; Reverse, Qur’an 112; date formula
in margin. Rare.
Marwan II (AH 127-132/ AD 744-750) was the last of the Umayyad Caliphs. The later Umayyads faced
growing dissent among pious Muslims who considered the Umayyads too worldly and among Persian
converts in Khurasan who resented the pro-Arab policies of the Umayyads. These sentiments erupted
into revolution and in AD 750, Abu’l-’Abbas al-Saffah was proclaimed caliph by the revolutionaries,
becoming the first caliph of the ‘Abbasid dynasty. Marwan II fled to Egypt but was hunted down and
killed, as were most members of the Umayyad family.
240
‘Abbasid Caliphate
Gold Dinar, AH 133
temp. al-Saffah, ‘Abbasid Caliph, AH 132-136/AD 749-754
SICA-3, 4ff; A 210. Extremely Fine.
Mintless early type. Kalima at center, Qur’an 9:33 in margin; Reverse, continuation of the Kalima,
Muhammad / rassul / Allah
(“Muhammad is the apostle of Allah”), date formula in margin. All ‘Abbasid
dinars were struck without a mint name until year 198 and many remained “mintless“ as late as 212.
‘Abbasid dinars can not be assigned to a mint or even a region until year 170, after which many can
be assigned to either a mint in Eqypt or one in Iraq, likely Madinat al-Salam (Baghdad). From AH 215
onward, virtually all ‘Abbasid dinars bear a mint name.
Al-Saffah (AH 132-136/ AD 749-754) was the first ‘Abbasid caliph. The ‘Abbasids came to power with
the help of Persian forces who resented the pro-Arab policies of the Umayyads. The center of power
shifted eastward under the ‘Abbasid Caliphate with the capital moving from Damascus to Baghdad.