Numismatic History of Rayy

Author
Miles, George Carpenter, 1904-1975
Series
Numismatic Studies
Publisher
American Numismatic Society
Place
New York
Date
Source
Donum
Source
Worldcat
Source
Worldcat Works
Source
HathiTrust

License

CC BY-NC

Acknowledgement

Open access edition funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities/Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program.

Export

Table of Contents

FRONT

BODY

I. THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE SASANIAN RAYY MINT MONOGRAM

The history of the identification of image as the Sasanian Rayy1, mint monogram may be briefly summarized as follows: Edward Thomas, The Pehlvi Coins of the early Mohammedan Arabs (JRAS, 1850), recorded but did not attempt to read image (no. 14, pg. 327). The same author (Notes Introductory to Sassanian Mint Monograms and Gems etc., JRAS, 1852), read image = لد = LD, and on a coin of Bahrām V, image = لدي = LDI no identification (no. 24, pp. 395–6); image (with variations) = ريو or ليو = RIU or LIU, no identification (no. 25, pg. 396). A. D. Mordtmann, Erklärung der Münzen mit Pehlvi-Legenden (ZDMG, 1854): image = ? ? (LD, RD), but tentatively Ledan in Khūzistān (no. 14, pg. 14); image = ZD = Zadracarta? (no. 20, pp. 17–18); image etc. = image? = رى, Rayy (no. 24, no. 38, pp. 19, 22). The same author, Erklärung der Münzen mit Pehlevi-Legenden, Zweiter Nachtrag (ZDMG, 1865): image = ? ? (LD, RD), still not solved, but suggested, among other possible identifications, Rūdbār (no. 9, pg. 399); image = ZD = Zadracarta, but not Arrian's, because that city disappeared (no. 23, pg. 400); image = Rayy (no. 21, pg. 400); image (10th year of Khosraw II) = image = ZD (probably) (no. 49, pg. 404). The same author, Hekatompylos. Ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden Geographie Persiens (Sitzb. der k. bayer. Ak. der Wiss., München, 1869, Bd. I): image = 100 gates = Hekatompylos; argument partly on the sound basis of Bisṭām's coins, years 2, 4, 5, 6. This wrong identification has been generally adopted until the present. Th. Nöldeke, Zur Erklärung der Sasanidenmünzen (ZDMG, 1877, pp. 149–150): Mordtmann's image = Rayy is wrong, because no known form of this city's name has a W; on the other hand, the monogram fits well Rêw Ardaśîr = ريواردشهر = Arabic ريشهر or راشهر (the correct identification of image in E. Herzfeld's opinion); image = perhaps Rayy, the final letter being possibly a doubled Jod, argument supported by the coins of Bisṭām who had his headquarters in that part of Media bordering on Ṭabaristān, i. e. Rayy (the first correct identification, but apparently unnoticed by later numismatic writers). A. D. Mordtmann, Zur Pehlevi-Münzkunde (ZDMG, 1879): image = RD = Hekatompylos = Shāhrūd, argument recapitulated (pp. 113, 117); image = ZD = Zadrakarta = Hauptstadt von Hyrkanien (pg. 120); image and image = RIU or RGU = Rayy, with attack on Nöldeke's opinion that image = Rayy. رى اردشير and ريشهر not being identical, and Bisṭām being in Parthia, not in Media; admits that Bisṭām was once defeated by Khosraw II at Rayy, but this does not prove that during his six years' rebellion he lived at Rayy (pp. 141–142); and Rayy = Rai-Ardeshir, quoting Dimishqi, and arguing rather wildly that image = "Rajan" or "Ragan" or "Raj, Rag", since Pahlevi image can be read n or v, and v can be dropped (pp. 141–142). (On Rēw-Ardašīr, cf. J. Marquart, Ērānšahr etc., Abhandl. K. G. der Wiss. zu Göttingen, Ph.-Hist. Klasse, N. F. Band III, no. 2, Berlin, 1901, pg. 27). Th. Nöldeke, Geschichte der Perser und Araber zur Zeit der Sasaniden, aus der arabischen Chronik des Tabari etc., Leyden, 1879, pg. 486, foot-note 2: image = RD = Rayy, recapitulation of argument, and perhaps the absence of Khosraw II's coins of the years 4, 5, 6, 7, are to be explained by his anger against the rebellious city or the fact that Rayy was in ruins, cf. Firdawsi, 1986ff., Mohl VII, 217–221. Ed. Drouin (Observations sur les monnaies à Légendes en Pehlvi et Pehlvi-Arabe, in Rev. Archéologique, Paris, 1886, pg. 49): the usual reading, image = Rayy. J. de Morgan, Contributions à l'Étude des Ateliers monétaires sous la Dynastie des Rois Sassanides de Perse (Rev.Num., Paris, 1913): image = RD = راضيان (Hekatompylos near Mōṣul) or راذكان ("bourg du district de Neça"), or روذان (small village of Fārs), or رودهر (the name of several towns near al-Mawṣil, Balkh, Marv, between Rasht and Qazwīn etc., (sect. 131, pp. 488–489 — De Morgan made these blind suggestions, even though he called attention to the fact that this mint seemed to be the most important and productive of all the Sasanian mints! I know of no instance in which the issue is so admirably confused as in this contribution); image = ZD or ID = Zadracarta or زيتان on the Persian Gulf (sect. 183, pp. 505–506); image etc. = RIU = Rayy, "cette identification est fort acceptable" (sect. 134, pg. 490); along with this a quantity of uselessly perpetuated mistaken readings and forms of image, identified as "villes inconnues" and as Rām, ال ران,راشت,راسك (Er Ran), etc., — sections 129, pg. 488; 135–137, pp. 490–491; 142–144, pg. 492). Furdoonjee D. J. Paruck, Sasanian Coins, Bombay, 1924: image = RD = everything that the above cited scholars had suggested before, and with no contribution of his own, but implying that Hekatompylos is the correct identification (no. 163, pg. 172); image = ZD = Zadrakarta, no opinion of Paruck's (no. 238, pp. 188–189); image etc. etc. = RIU = Rayy, Paruck apparently accepting the Rayy identification but not giving his own opinion (nos. 172–177, pp. 174–176). Cf. also W.H. Valentine, Sassanian Coins, London, 1921, where lists are drawn up according to Mordtmann; and J. de Morgan, Manuel de Numismatique Orientale, Paris, 1924, pp. 297–299, with no new contributions and the customary false identifications.

The correct identification has been convincingly made by E. Herzfeld. Nöldeke's suggestion was correct but he wrote before the discovery of Pahlevi material that makes the identification certain. Professor Herzfeld has pointed out that the Pahlevi Commentary to Vīd. I, 15, gives both forms, Raγa and Ray; and that on the (unpublished) inscription of Sar Mashhad the form image = RGY is used, while on the coins we find image = RDY (E. Herzfeld, Archaeologische Mitteilungen aus Iran, II, 2, pg.96)1. Actually the common form on the coins is the simple image, but note the specimens of Bahrām V and Khosraw II mentioned above where the inscription is said to be image or image. In any case the letter image represents here, as in many other instances, the generalized casus obliquus termination (derived from the O. P. genitive). It is the lapidary equivalent of the terminal downward stroke (v) in MS, and sometimes numismatic, Pahlevi. In lapidary Pahlevi, g, d and i are differentiated. In MS Pahlevi they are not. Both g and d had in pre-Sasanian times changed to i/y. Hence we have in lapidary image = RG a representation of spoken RY (Ray), and in numismatic image = RD = RY, the same, with what Herzfeld calls a pseudo-archaic restitution by the Sasanian scribe of D for Y, because it was known at the time that spoken Y often represented "classical" D. This purely graphical and unetymological peculiarity (which Nyberg calls "inverse writing") produces in this case a D which had never existed, and which naturally was never read as D by Sasanian contemporaries who could read the script. Cf. the case of KDY for KY = kay = "king" on coins of Yazdikirt II, Pērōz, and Kawāt I (Herzfeld, Zarathustra, Archaeologische Mitteilungen aus Iran, I, Heft 2, foot-note 1, pp. 77–78).

An interesting sidelight on the Rayy mint is afforded by the coins of Bisṭām (Vistahm), who revolted against Khosraw II during the years ca. 592–596 A. D., and who struck coins bearing the regnal years 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 (and perhaps 10), all of them with the mint mark image, Rayy. (Cf. Arthur Christensen, L'Iran sous les Sassanides, Copenhagen and Paris, 1936, pp. 439–442). Bisṭām's field of revolt was all of Khurāsān, and Rayy seems to have been his capital. These coins of this rebel king's are very scarce but no single specimen has come to light with any mint monogram other than image, Rayy. I should like to suggest (only briefly here for want of space) that the tale of the other rebel Bahrām Chōbīn's having struck 100,000 dirhams at Rayy in the name of Khosraw Parvīz during the life time of Hormizd IV in order to set father and son at variance, has an historical basis in the Rayy issues of Bisṭām. The legendary embellishments of the story and the mistaken attribution to Bahrām Chōbin, the popular hero and a contemporary of Bisṭām's, are quite in keeping with the mythical character of oriental historiography. The fact that Bahrām was a native of Rayy (Ṭab. I, 992) lent credence to the tale. The story is told, with a description of the coins, by Bal'ami in his Persian translation of Ṭabari (Transl. H. Zotenberg, Chronique de Abou-Djafar-Mo'hammed-ben-Djarir etc., Paris 1867, II, pp. 268–269). It is not to be found in the original Arabic Ṭabari. I was unable to find the account in the Cawnpore 1896 Persian edition of Bal'ami-Ṭabari. Cf. Ya'qūbi, I, pg. 190: وسار بهرام حتى صار الى الرى ثم دبر ان يوقع بين هرمز و بين ابنه كسرى ابرويز شرا وكان هرمز متهما لابنه قد بلغه ان قوما قد حملوه على ان يثب بابيه فضرب دراهم كثيرة و صير عليها اسم كسرى ابرويز وبعث بها الى مدينة هرمز فكثرت فى ايدى الناس ولما بلغ هرمز خبرها اشتد غمه فاراد ان يحبس ابنه كسرى ابرويز فلما بلغ ابرويز الخبر هرب الى اّّذربيجان; al-Tha'ālibi, ed. H. Zotenberg, Paris, 1900, pp. 658–659; Dīnawari, pg. 86; Mas'ūdi, II, pg. 214; Firdawsi, Mohl, VI, pg. 554. Cf. also Sir William Ouseley, Travels in various countries of the East etc., London, 1819–1823, III, pp. 195–198, where he quotes the Persian from his Bal'ami MS; E. Thomas, N. C., 1873, pp. 236ff.; Th. Nöldeke, Geschichte der Perser und Araber zur Zeit der Sasaniden aus der Arabischen Chronik des Tabari, etc., Leyden, 1879, pp. 276, 474ff. The story is also, I believe, referred to in Niẓāmi's "Khosraw and Shīrīn". (I do not find it in A. Christensen's analysis of the Romance of Bahrām Chōbīn: Romanen om Bahrâm Tschôbîn et Rekonstruktionsforsøg, in Studier fra Sprog- og Oldtidsforskning, no. 75, Copenhagen, 1907).

End Notes

1
The forms of the name are: O. P. Ragā (Behistun, Col. II, ll. 71–72: ed. Weißbach, Die Keilinschriften der Achämeniden, Leipzig, 1911, sect. 32, pg. 38; ed. British Museum, 1907, pg. 35), abl. Ragāyā (Behistun, Col. III, ll. 2–3: ed. Weißbach, sect. 36, pg. 42; ed. B. M., pg. 42). Av. Raγa (Yasn, 19: 18), acc. Raγam (Vīdēvdāt, I: 15), abl. Raγaǰōit (Yasn, 19: 18), (Bartholomae, Altiranisches Wörterbuch, Straßburg, 1904, col. 1497). Gr. 'Ράγαι (Strabo, Arrian, Diodorus Siculus, Isidore of Charax, Tobit), from which various Latin spellings. Pahl. Raγ(i) = Rey, lapidary (cf. Herzfeld, Archaeologische Mitteilungen aus Iran, I, Heft 2, foot-note 1, pp. 77–78; II, Heft 2, pg. 96), Raγ = Rey, manuscript (Dīnkart, 7, 2, 51; 7, 13, 19; Zāt-Sparam, 16, 11–13); Syriac Bēth Rāzīqāyē (cf. Ērānšahr, pg. 122); Arabic al-Rayy; M. P. Rey. I do not propose at the present time to discuss the Arab-Persian popular etymologies of the word. The scientific etymologies have been handled by Bartholomae, op. cit.; J. Marquart, Ērānšahr, nach der Geographie des Ps. Moses Xorenac'i, Abhandl. K. G. der Wiss., zu Göttingen, Ph.-Hist. Klasse, N. F. Band III, no. 2, Berlin, 1901, pp. 122ff.; J. Markwart, A Catalogue of the Provincial Capitals of Ērānshahr, ed. G. Messina, S. I., in Analecta Orientalia, no. 3, Rome, 1931, pp. 23, 112–114; cf. also: Weissbach, articles Raga, Europos, and Arsakia in Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encyclopädie, Halbband 3, col. 1270, Halbband 11, col. 1310, 2. Reihe, Halbband 1, cols. 125–127; A. V. W. Jackson, A Historical Sketch of Ragha, the Supposed Home of Zoroaster's Mother, in Spiegel Memorial Volume, Bombay, 1908, pp. 237–245.
1
Professor Herzfeld acknowledged to me the slip in this foot-note where he speaks of "all of Bahrām Chōbīn's coins" — he meant, of course, Bisṭām's (see below).

II. THE ARAB-SASANIAN COINAGE OF RAYY

The following list of dirhams issued at the Rayy mint during the period between the Arab conquest of Rayy in 21 A. H. (or 18, according to some authorities) and the beginning of the reformed currency, the first specimen of which is of the year 81 (cf. no. 14 below), is simply an inventory of the examples that have come to my attention. For the moment the doubtful monogram image = R (not Z?) D, as well as the almost certain one image = RD, is included; naturally if a more satisfactory explanation of image is ultimately arrived at, all the specimens with these two letters should be struck out. It is my hope that sometime in the near future I shall be able to describe the anonymous and Arab governor coins of the Sasanian type in detail together with a full treatment of the historical background of the city during this period. The only virtue in the following catalogue is that there are assembled here in one place references to specimens of nearly all, I think, of the Arab-Sasanian type issues of the Rayy mint that have been published together with a few unpublished specimens. Mr. John Walker of the Department of Coins and Medals of the British Museum, is at present occupied in the compilation of an exhaustive study of the early Arab coinage, and his catalogue will doubtless add much to this cursory list. References to Ṭabari or other Arabic chronicles or histories following the numismatic entries are given to serve as material for a skeleton background of the political history of the given year as such history bears directly or indirectly upon Rayy. During the first century of the Hijrah we seldom have a reference to the actual governor or prefect charged with the administration of this city. Hence many of the historical citations are simply to the passage in the chronicles where we can find the name of the governor or viceregent of the province to which Rayy belonged. The anonymous coinage of the earlier years throws no light on the government or political history of the city, and the coinage with the governor's name recorded affords us very little more information. Wherever the Kufic inscriptions were noted in the original publication of the coin they are recorded here.

1. image. image = R(?)D. Anonymous. Year 21.

Type and name of Yazdikirt.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1880, no. 560, pg. 160.

(Year 21: Ṭab. I, 2634; Balādhuri, 317–318: conquest of Rayy.)

2. image. image = R(?)D. Anonymous. Year 26.

Type and name of Khosraw II. بسم الله ربى.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 3, pg. 84.

(Year 22: Ṭab. I, 2647: reported conquest of Rayy in 18. Ṭab. I, 2650–2657: conquest of Rayy under Nu'aym b. Muqrin. Ṭab. I, 2681–2682: Yazdikirt's passage through Rayy. Usurpation of the seals of the city by Abān Jādhwiyyah. Year 24: Ṭab. I, 2805: soldiers of al-Kūfah at Rayy.)

3. image. image = RD. Anonymous. Year 29.

Type and name of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 6, pg. 84.

(Year 29: Ṭab. I, 2828ff.: Abu-Mūsa al-Ash'ari deposed; 'Abdullāh b. 'Āmir becomes governor of al-Baṣrah.)

4. image. image = R(?)D. Ziyād b. abi-Sufyān. Year 30.

Type of Khosraw II. بسم الله ربى.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1880, no. 562, pg. 161.

(Year 31: Ṭab. I, 2885: Ziyād b. 'Āmir governor of al-Baṣrah.)

Mordtmann must have been mistaken. Ziyād b. abi-Sufyān's coins are 43, 47, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56; governor of al-Baṣrah in 46, ruler of all al-'Irāq (i. e. the entire East) in 50, died in 57 (?). Cf. Ṭab. and Balādhuri, indices; Lammens, Ziād b. Abīhi, Rivista degli Studi Orientali, IV, 1912; Thomas, JRAS, 1850, pp. 284ff. Even changing the date to the Yazdikirt era does not help.

5A. image. image = RD. Anonymous. Year 32.

Type and name of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Thomas, JRAS, 1850, pg. 282 (Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1854, no. 750, pg. 150); B. M., unpublished.

5X. image. image = R(?)D. Anonymous. Year 35.

Type and name of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Beschreibung einer Sammlung von Sassanidenmünzen (Karabacek), Wiener Numismatische Monatshefte, I, Hefte III—IV, Wien, 1865, pg. 67, no. 119.

(Two coins, year 35, image = RIU, Thomas, JRAS, 1850, pg. 282 (Mordtmann, ZDMG 1854, nos. 753–4, pg. 150), cf. Caetani, Chronographia Islamica, I, 367, do not belong here. Besides, the supposed Kufic inscription is not Kufic.)

6A. image. image = RD. Anonymous. Year 37.

Type and name of Khosraw II.

Sir Richard Burn's Collection, unpublished (personal communication of Mr. John Walker, B. M.).

6b. image. image = R(?)D. Anonymous. Year 37.

Type and name of Khosraw II. ?...ولى الله

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1865, no. 153, pg.464 — "Eine schiitische Münze" (!); Paris, no. 138.

(Year 37: Ṭab. I, 3352, ll. 6–8: 'Ali gives the government of Rayy and Iṣbahān to Yazīd b. Qays al-Hamadhāni.)

7A. image. image = RD. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 60.

Type of Khosraw II.

B. M., unpublished.

7B. image. image = R(?)D. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 60.

Type of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Berlin, no. 117; Herzfeld Collection; ANS.

(Year 60: Ṭab. II, 281: 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād governor of Rayy.)

8A. image. image = RD. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 61.

Type of Khosraw II.

Spink's Numismatic Circular, Dec., 1935, col. 433, nos. S416–420; B. M., unpublished.

8B. image. image = R(?)D. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 61.

Type of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 56, pg. 94; Stickel, Handbuch II, no. 45, pg. 89 (illustr.); Berlin, nos. 118–119; Herzfeld Collection.

9A. image. image = RD. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 62.

Type of Khosraw II.

Thomas, JRAS, 1850, no. 12, pg. 291 (Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1854, no. 782, pg. 155; ZDMG, 1879, no. 56, pg. 94); V. A. Smith, Catalogue of the Coins in the Indian Museum, Calcutta, Vol. I, Oxford, 1906, pg. 229, no. 1; Spink's Numismatic Circular, Dec., 1935, col. 433, nos. S421–422; B. M., unpublished.

9B. image. image = R(?)D. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 62.

Type of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1858, no. 297, pg. 51 (ZDMG, 1879, no. 56, pg. 94); Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 57, pg. 94; Herzfeld Collection (two dies, do shast and tlyn shast); ANS.

10. image. image = R(?)D. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 63.

Type of Khosraw II. بسم الله.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1858, no. 299, pg. 51 (ZDMG, 1879, no. 60, pg. 95); Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 62, pg. 95; Herzfeld Collection (two dies).

11. image. image = R(?)D (or image = RD?). "Ezlem bin Sufah". Year 67.

Type of Khosraw II.

Thomas, JRAS, 1850, no. XIX (no. 58) (Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1854, no. 861, pg. 169).

(Could this be Aslam b. Zur'ah al-Kilābi? Cf. Ṭab. II, 65, 81, 168, 172, 179–180, 189, 390–391: Khurāsān, years 43, 45, 53, 55, 56; arrested, year 59.)

12. image. image = R(?)D. 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād. Year 68.

Type of Khosraw II.

Mordtmann, ZDMG, 1879, no. 68, pg. 95; Berlin, no. 120.

13. image. image = R(?)D. Bishr b. Marwān. Year 74.

Type of Khosraw II.

Walker, N.C., 1934, pp. 284–288 (with suggestion زادقان).

(Year 71: Ṭab. II, 817: Yazīd b. Ruwaym governor of Rayy. Anonymous Chronicle, 32: Ḥawshab b. Yazīd b. Ruwaym governor of Rayy, cf. ibid., pg. 118, appearance of Khawārij at Rayy; Year 74: For Bishr b. Marwān b. al-Ḥakam, governor of al-'Irāq in year 74, cf. Ṭab. II, 862, Ya'qūbi, II, 307, 324.)


III. THE REFORMED ARAB COINAGE OF THE UMAYYAD PERIOD

With the year 81 of the Hijrah at Rayy begins the conventional Umayyad type of coinage introduced by 'Abd-al-Malik and al-Ḥajjāj in ca. 77 A. H. There may well have been dirhams of Rayy of this type dated before 81 A. H., but the earliest recorded that has come to my attention is of the year 81. With this issue we commence a series that, in the dirhams at least, continues without variation of form until the years immediately preceding the 'Abbāsid revolt in 132, when the culmination of the political successes in Khurāsān and the eastern provinces generally begins a new era in the oriental empire, a revolution which unavoidably required a recognizable change in the formulae of the coinage, which, as always in the Islāmic states, went hand in hand with the acknowledgment of sovereignty and allegiance in the khuṭbah or official prayers. The formulae of the Umayyad currency are well known. Till the beginning of 'Abbāsid supremacy, with the dirhams at least, there is no necessity of repeating the following formulae for each issue.

14. image. Al-Rayy. Year 81.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

الله احد الله

الصمد لم يلدو

لم يولد ولم يكن

له كفوًا احد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرىّ فى سنة احدى وثمنين

Rev. margin: مُحَمَّد رَسُولُ الِلَّه اَرْسَلَهُ بِاْلهُدَى وَدِيْنِ الحَقِّ لِيُظْهِرُهُ على الدِّينِ كُلهِِّ وَلَوْكَرِهَ المشْرِكُونَ

(Qur'ān, IX, 33.)

(With only occasional minor alterations in annulets and border, and very rarely in the assignment of words to the lines, the stereotyped form represented here is constant in the silver till the overthrow of the Umayyad rule.)

Codrington, N.C., 1902, pg. 268; B. M., 1922/7/17, no. 50. (Is this perhaps the same coin as that described by Codrington and later acquired by the B. M.?)

Governor of al-'Irāq and al-Mashriq1 in the year 80: Al-Ḥajjāj. (Ṭab. II, 1047, ll. 3–5; 1063, ll. 9–10.)

15. image. Al-Rayy. Year 82.

Codrington, N.C., 1902, pg. 268; B. M., 1922/7/17, no. 114 (the same coin?).

16. image. Al-Rayy. Year 84.

B. M. i, no. 119 (illustr. Pl. II).

In 83, Qutaybah b. Muslim, who had been sent out by al-Ḥajjāj, put to flight 'Umar b. abi-al-Ṣalt, who had taken possession of Rayy. Qutaybah was then invested with the governorship of Rayy. (Ṭab. II, 1118, l. 16–1119, l. 3.)

17. image. Al-Rayy. Year 90.

B. M. i, no. 120; Ties. no. 329 (with reference to W. K. Loftus, Travels and Researches in Chaldaea and Susiana).

Al-Ḥajjāj was still, as in the year 87, administrator of al-'Irāq and the entire East; in al-Baṣrah, his lieutenant was al-Jarraḥ b. 'Abdullāh; in Khurāsān, Qutaybah b. Muslim. (Ṭab. II, 1208, ll. 5–8.)

18. image. Al-Rayy. Year 91.

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 440, pg. 21; B. M., 1905/12/6, no. 19.

19. image. Al-Rayy. Year 92.

Paris, no. 284; ANS (two specimens).

20. image. Al-Rayy. Year 93.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, VI, N.C., 1887, pg. 325; Paris, no. 285; B.M., 1905/10/12, no. 17.

21. image. Al-Rayy. Year 94.

B. M. i, no. 121; Paris, no. 286; Ties., no. 400 (with two references); Istanbul, unnumbered.

Over the East, al-Baṣrah and Khurāsān, the same governors as in the year 90 continued in office. (Ṭab. II, 1266, ll.13–15.)

22. image. Al-Rayy. Year 95.

Lettre du Prince Alexandre Gagarine à M. F. Soret sur Quelques Monnaies orientales Inédites de sa Collection, Rev. Num. Belge, 1862, pg. 460; Paris, no. 287; Ties., no. 421 (with two references); Istanbul, unnumbered; ANS.

Al-Ḥajjāj died in Ramaḍān or Shawwāl of this year. (Ṭab. II, 1217, ll. 7–8; 1268, 1.5.) Yazīd b. abi-Kabshah was military and civil governor of al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah; the tax collector for these provinces was Yazīd b. abi-Muslim. (Ṭab. II, 1268, l.5–1269, l. 2.)

23. image. Al-Rayy. Year 96.

Cairo, no. 129; E. T. Rogers, Notes on some inedited coins of the Dynasty of the Khalifahs of Bani Umeya, N.C., N. Ser., Vol. XIV, pg. 350.

Yazīd b. abi-Muslim and Yazīd b. abi-Kabshah (see no. 22 above) were displaced; Yazīd b. al-Muhallab b. abi-Ṣufrah was appointed to the government of al-'Irāq, and Ṣāliḥ b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān to the tax-collectorship of the province. Qutaybah b. Muslim was killed (Ṭab. II, 1284, l. 4–1304, l. 20) and Waqī' b. abi-Sūd took his place in Khurāsān. (Ṭab. II, 1282, ll. 16–18; 1305, ll. 13–17.)

24. image. Al-Rayy. Year 97.

B. M. Add. i, no. 121c, pg. 33; Berlin, no. 452; Guthrie Collection, no. 109; Paris, no. 383.

The Caliph Sulaymān appointed Yazīd b. al-Muhallab to the governorship of Khurāsān. The latter sent his son Makhlad to arrest Waqī' b. abi-Sūd (see no. 23 above). (Ṭab. II, 1306, l.10–1314, l.2.)

25. image. Al-Rayy. Year 98.

B. M., i, no. 122; Ties., no. 464 (one reference); Ties., no. 2739 (one reference); ANS.

Makhlad (see no. 24 above) controlled Khurāsān. (The government of al-'Irāq remained unchanged.) (Ṭab. II, 1318, l.2.)

26. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 101.

Obv.

امر الله

بالوفاء

والعدل

Rev.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا

الفلس بالرىّ سنة

احدى ومئة

B. M. i, cop. no. 72 (illustr. Pl. VIII); ANS; Rayy, 1934, RB 961 (date obscure); Rayy, 1936, RCi 7340 (another die, with dots beneath the reverse area thus: ∵).

(Leggett lists a Rayy dirham of the year 101, but this, along with a good many other unique coins on Leggett's table, I am strongly inclined to reject. Many errors are likely to creep into such lists. Leggett's sources were: the B. M. catalogues, E. T. Rogers Bey, C. J. Rodgers, Esq., Col. Guthrie, and his own collection (see preface, pp. v–vi, Notes on the Mint-Towns, etc.)

Yazīd b. al-Muhallab, after having been imprisoned in the year 100 (Ṭab. II, 1349, ll. 16ff.), rebelled in 101 and took possession of al-Baṣrah. (Ṭab. II, 1359, l. 12–1361, l. 3; 1379, l. 5–1394, l. 8; 1394, l. 15.) 'Abd-al-Raḥmān b. Nu'aym, who had been named for the post in the year 100 (Ṭab. II, 1356), was governor of Khurāsān in 101. (Ṭab. II, 1394, ll. 15–16.)

27. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 104.

Obv.

امر الله

بالوفاء

والعدل

Rev.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا

الفلس بالرىّ سنة

اربع ومئة

The descriptions relating to the pellets above and below the obverse and reverse vary, but the variations are probably due to the state of preservation of the different specimens, and the recorded specimens are probably all of one style if not from one die.

B. M. i, cop. no. 73; Berlin, nos. 2012, 2013 (the last line of the obverse is transcribed وبالعدل); Rayy, 1934, RGQ 2024.

(Leggett lists a Rayy dirham of 104, probably to be rejected; see the note under no. 26 above.)

'Umar b. Hubayrah, governor of al-'Irāq and all the Mashriq (Ṭab. II, 1461, l. 16), removes Sa'īd b. 'Amr al-Ḥarashi from the Khurāsān post and replaces him by Muslim b. Sa'īd b. Aslam b. Zur'ah b. 'Amr b. Khuwaylid al-Ṣa'iq (or Muslim b. Sa'īd b. Aslam al-Kilābi) (Ṭab. II, 1453, l. 15–1461, l. 11, 1457, ll. 10–12).

28. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 110.

Obv.

••

امر الله

بالوفاء

والعدل

image

Beaded border.

Rev.

••

بسم الله

ضرب هذاا

لفلس بالرىّ سنة

عشر ومئة

Beaded border.

GCM, two specimens (GCM, year 11x, is probably also this date).1

As in the year 109, Khālid b. 'Abdullāh governed in al-Kūfah and al-Baṣrah; Ashras b. 'Abdullāh, who had been named for Khurāsān in 109, continued in the post in 110. (Ṭab. II, 1506, l. 6, l. 9; 1507, l. 3–1512, l. 6.)

The Pahlevi inscription on this coin is similar to that on the coins of the year 116 (Istanbul specimen assigned to 113), described under no. 30 below. No effort was made to decipher the legend until Col. Allotte de la Fuÿe made an attempt in the Mémoires de la Mission Archéologique de Perse, Tome XX, Mission en Susiane, pp. 50–52. The explanation offered with hesitation there ("lepton deux fois") is too fanciful and far-fetched in every way to merit serious consideration. The line is almost certainly to be transcribed R D/G Y (=Ray) RaVAN (cf. the discussion of the identification of the Sasanian image mint monogram in the introductory remarks on the etymology of Rayy, etc.); and can be translated "Rayy current", or, in other words, current in Rayy 2. Another form, also derived from raftan, "to go", is found in MS Pahlevi spelled image, literally RVB'K, actually pronounced ravāk, defined by H. S. Nyberg (Hilfsbuch des Pehlevi, Upsala, 1931, II, pg. 194) as "in Gang gekommen, laufend"; cf. the word in Pahlevi characters, ibid. I, pg. 51. Rā'ij, current, is a similar term employed later by die-engravers to indicate genuineness or validity, as for example, till quite recently on the modern coins of Persia (رائج مماكت ايران, current in the Empire of Īrān).

29. Æ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 115 (?).

Obv.

......

....اا...

[شريك [؟ ....

Obv. margin: Traces?

(Very primitive execution.)

Rev.

....[الله[؟...

ذا الفلس....

...بالر[؟][ى]...سنة خمس

..[ر[؟...

Rayy, 1936, CT 118.

The government of al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah was in the hands of Khālid b. 'Abdullāh as in the years 109, 111, and 113; al-Junayd b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān al-Mazani, named in 111, was over Khurāsān. (Ṭab. II, 1506, l. 6; 1527, ll. 2–3; 1560, l. 15.)

30. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 116.

Obv.

امر الله

بالوفاء

والعدل

image

Beaded border.

Rev.

••

بسم الله

ضرب هذا>

الفلس بالرىّ سنة ست

عشر ومئة

Beaded border.

Variation A: No ∴ beneath the reverse area, and obverse bears a linear border. Variation B: Second line of the obverse bears a pellet: فا • بالو. Variation C: Pellet above امر, obverse; pellet beneath و of الوفا, obverse; ••• (possibly only two) above reverse; ∴ beneath reverse. Variation D: Above obverse ••; beneath obverse ••. Variation E: A specimen at Istanbul, with •• above the area of the obverse and no ∴ beneath the area of the reverse, assigned to the year 113 and illustrated (Pl. 2). The illustration is, however, illegible to me at least, as regards the ثلث of the date, and I am inclined to believe that the word is ست, easily misread ثلث on an obscure specimen.

B.M.i, cop. no. 74; Istanbul, no. 276; Paris, nos. 1473, 1474; ANS; Rayy, 1934, RB 939, 995, 1010, RGQ 1991, RE 2869 (all obscure); Rayy, 1936, RG 8201.

(Leggett lists a Rayy dirham of 116, probably to be rejected; see the note under no. 26 above.)

Al-Junayd b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān al-Mazani (cf. no. 29 above) was removed from Khurāsān, and dying shortly thereafter left the government of that province to 'Umārah b. Ḥuraym al-Murri (Ṭab. II, 1565, ll. 1–2). The Caliph Hishām sent 'Āṣim b. 'Abdullāh b. Yazīd al-Hilāli to govern Khurāsān. The latter arrested and imprisoned 'Umārah and his lieutenants (Ṭab. II, 1564, l. 6–1565, l. 15). Khālid b. 'Abdullāh continued as governor of al-'Irāq, cf. year 110, no. 28 above (Ṭab. II, 1658, ll. 14–15).

31A. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 120.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا

الفلس بالرىّ سنة

عشرين ومئة

Berlin, no. 2014 (reverse illustrated Pl. VI), no. 2015 (the dots are represented ∵); Stickel ZDMG, 1856, no. 5, pg. 293 (Ties., no. 606); Istanbul, unnumbered (date obscure); GCM, two specimens; Rayy, 1935, RCi 4025, 4097 (both poorly preserved).

31B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 120.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

image

(i. e., retrograde.)

Reverse as no. 31 A.

ANS, unnumbered.

(An amusing coin of very inferior workmanship. The die-engraver can be forgiven perhaps for having fallen asleep over the 3rd line of the obverse; — but how did the die ever happen to be used and the coins go into circulation?)

Khālid b. 'Abdullāh, who had had control not only of al-'Irāq but of all the East as well from 117 onward (Ṭab. II, 1586, l.8), fell into disgrace. Yūsuf b. 'Umar, who was authorized to arrest him, became governor of the eastern provinces. (Ṭab. II, 1641, l. 1–1658, l. 17.) In Khurāsān, events had been as follows: Asad b. 'Abdullāh, who had directed the affairs of the province from the year 118, died in 120 (Ṭab. II, 1591, ll. 18–19); he left the government to Ja'far b. Ḥanẓalah al-Bahrāni, who remained in office only four months (Ṭab. II, 1638, ll. 11–13). Yūsuf b. 'Umar, the new governor of the East, removed him and gave Khurāsān to Juday' b. 'Ali al-Karmāni (Ṭab. II, 1659, ll. 1–2), who was in turn deposed and replaced by the famous Naṣr b. Sayyār (b. Layth b. Rāfi' b. Rabī'ah b. Juray b. 'Auf b. 'Āmir b. Junda' b. Layth b. Bakr b. 'Abd-Manāh b. Kinānah) (Ṭab. II, 1635, l. 15–1639, l. 12; 1659, l. 1–1666, l. 10).

(Ṭabari mentions the lieutenants named by Naṣr in Balkh, Marw al-Rūdh, Harāt, Abrashahr, Khwārizm and Sughd (Ṭab. II, 1664, ll. 13–19). It is clear that Rayy was still, at this date, under the control, at least in principle, of the governor of al-'Irāq.)

32. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 121.

Obv.

لا الله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا

الفلس بالرىّ سنة احدىو

عشرين و مئة

(The assignment of the words to the lines of the reverse is not indicated in the description of the Zambaur specimen.)

Zambaur, Contrib.I, no. 3, pg.44; Rayy, 1934, RGQ 2061 (reverse dots effaced), RC 2626. (Probably to this date should be assigned also the obscure specimens, where either date or mint or other details are effaced: Rayy, 1934, RGQ 2033, RD 2123, RB 2622.)

Yūsuf b. 'Umar continued over al-'Irāq and its dependencies (i. e. the East), and Naṣr b. Sayyār over Khurāsān. (Cf. the year 120, no. 31 above). (Ṭab. II, 1698, ll. 5–7).

33. Æ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 122.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

بسم الله ضر

ب هذا الفلس

بالرىّ [؟]سنة اثنين و

شرين ومئة...

Bartholomae à Soret I, no. 44, pp. 346–347 (illustr. Pl. XIV, fig. 4) (Ties., no. 615).

(Bartholomae omitted the و in the 3rd line of the reverse, but it is clear in the illustration; he believed the mint to be uncertain but that it could only be al-Rayy. The illustration proves both the mint and the عشرين to be strange, but there is a good likelihood that the assignment of both date and mint is correct.)

The political situation was as in the year 121. (Ṭab. II, 1698, ll.5–6.)

34. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 124.

Obv.

Traces of three line inscription.

Rev.

بسم الله

ب هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة اربع و

عشرين [و]مئة

(Border, if any, effaced.)

Rayy, 1934, RGQ 1992, RD 2160 (mint effaced).

Yūsuf b. 'Umar and Naṣr b. Sayyār continued to govern al-'Irāq and Khurāsān respectively, although Yūsuf attempted to persuade the Caliph Hishām to displace Naṣr and give Khurāsān to al-Ḥakam b. al-Ṣalt. (Ṭab. II, 1718, l.9–1719, l. 10).

35. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 127.

Obv.

بسم الله ضر

ب هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة سبع و

عشرين ومئة

Rev.

مما امر به

الامير عبد الله

بن معوية

Rev. margin: قل لا اسالبكم عليه اجرا الا المودة فى القربى (Qur'ān, XLII, 22.)

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 5, pg. 45 (a similar reverse is illustrated in Paris, no. 1588, Pl. IX; cf. no. 36 below).

This coin is the first contemporary documentary evidence of the success of the 'Alid-'Abbāsid revolutionary faction at Rayy. 'Abdullāh b. Mu'āwiyah, whose name appears on the reverse of the coin, had revolted at al-Kūfah in Muḥarram, 127. Thence he proceeded to al-Madā'in and on to al-Jibāl, later making his headquarters at Iṣbahān and in 129, Iṣṭakhr (Ṭab. II, 1879ff.; 1976ff.). His occupation of al-Māhayn (i.e. Dīnawar and Nihāwand), Hamadhān, Qūmis, Iṣbahān and Rayy seems to have been before the end of 127 (Ṭab. II, 1880, l.20), but this is not expressly stated, and I question just a little whether Zambaur's digit seven might not be the very similar Kufic digit nine. However, seven seems just barely possible.

The significance of the border legend on the revolutionary coins of these years (till 131 A. H.), قل لا اسالكم عليه اجرا الا المودة فى القربى (Qur'ān, XLII, 22), "Say, for this I ask no wage of you, save love of my kin", is patent in view of the "platform" of the 'Abbāsid party. This same verse was employed by abu-al-'Abbās in his inaugural address (Ṭab. III, 29, ll. 11–12). Zambaur has pointed out that there are two groups of these revolutionary issues: a) al-Kūfah, Hamadhān, Māhi (probably Nihāwand), Rayy, Jayy (old Iṣbahān), al-Taymarah, and Rām Hurmuz (in Khūzistān) (to which should be added Sābūr and Iṣṭakhr, —see below), from 127–131; and b) the abu-Muslim group from Khurāsān (Bukhāra, Balkh and Marw), and Jurjān, and the a) group from the year 131.

The following coins, with their mints and dates, struck by 'Abdullāh and abu-Muslim are known to me. Almost all have the common characteristics of marginal date and mint legends interrupted by annulets (◯ or image) together with the 'Abbāsid party "motto". (Citations are not duplicated, i. e. I have given only one reference to each issue, although other museums or collections may possess another specimen of the same issue.)

Iṣṭakhr, year 129 Paris, no. 1684.
Bukhāra, year lXX B. M. i, cop. no. 80
Balkh, year 130 B. M. i, no. 215b, pg. 225
Balkh, year 131 Paris, no. 553
al-Taymarah, year 128 Paris, no. 554–555 (two dies)
al-Taymarah, date effaced Berlin, no. 601
Jayy, year 127 Paris, no. 556
Jayy, year 128 S. Lane-Poole, Private Collections of Mohammadan Coins and other Essays..., 3rd Series, London, 1892, pg. 18
Jayy, year 129 Berlin, nos. 599–600 (two dies); GCM
Rām Hurmuz, year 128 B. M. i, no. 216, and ANS
al-Rayy, year 127 No. 35
al-Rayy, year 129 No. 36
al-Rayy, year 131 No. 38
Sābūr, year 129 Codrington, N. C., 1902, pg. 269
al-Kūfah, year 128 Paris, no. 559
Māhi, year 129 Paris, no. 560
Marw, year 130 Codrington, N. C., 1902, pg. 269
Marw, year 131 Paris, no. 561
Marw, year 132 Paris, nos. 562, 563 (two dies)
Hamadhān, year 129 S. Lane-Poole, Private Collections, etc., —Mr. Theobald's Cabinet, pg. 18
No mint, year 131 (abu-Muslim) Berlin, no. 2064 and ANS.
No mint, year 131 (abu-Muslim) R. Guest, A coin of Abu Muslim, JRAS, 1932, pp. 555–556; GCM, better preserved than the Guest specimen and bearing ornaments not clearly evident on the published coin.
No mint, year 13X ('Abdullāh?) Berlin, no. 2065
No mint (?), year 13X (abu-Muslim) Rayy, 1934, RF 3254
Mint effaced, year 132? B.M. i, cop. no. 79, and (?) Rayy, 1935, RH 5012

The issue of al-Kūfah, year 128 bears the Khārijite "war-cry" لاَ حكم الا لله "Judgment belongs to God alone" (a variation of Qur'ān, XII, 40 etc.).

Ṭabari's informants supply us with the so to speak official chronicle as opposed to the vulgar testimony of the local coinage. In Rajab, 126, the Caliph had sent Manṣūr b. Jamhūr (vocalized Jumhūr in Ṭab. II, 1836, l. 6) to govern al-'Irāq (Ṭab. II, 1836, l. 5–1845, l. 13; 1850, ll. 4–5). Subsequently, in the same year, Manṣūr was removed, again on the order of the Caliph, and 'Abdullāh b. 'Umar b. 'Abd-al-'Azīz b. Marwān was named in his place (Ṭab. II, 1854, l. 8–1855, l. 10; 1875, ll. 4–6). In Khurāsān, Naṣr b. Sayyār refused to recognize the authority of Jamhūr; when 'Abdullāh b. 'Umar took office in al-'Irāq (and over the East), he confirmed Naṣr in the latter's government of Khurāsān, but Naṣr found difficulty in exercising his authority due to the increasing political disorder accompanying the decline of the Umayyad power and the rise of the 'Abbāsid party in the East (Ṭab.II, 1855, l. 11–1866, l. 17; 1875, ll. 7–8).

36A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 129.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

الله احد الله

الصمد لم يلد و

لم يولد ولم يكن

له كفوأ احد

Obv. inner margin: (Qur'ān, XLII, 22.) قل لا اسالكم عليه اجرا الا المودة فى القربى

Obv. outer margin: ومئة ◯ عشرين ◯ تسع ◯ سنة ◯ بالرىّ ◯ ضرب ◯ الله ◯ بسم

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 558 (illustr., Pl. III).

36B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 129.

Obv.

>بسم الله ضرب

هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة تسع

وعشرين ومئة

Rev.

مما امر به

الامير عبد الله

بن معوية

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XLII, 22.

Paris, no. 1588 (illustr., Pl.IX); Rayy, 1935, RCi 3572 (largely effaced, possibly 127); Rayy 1936, RG 8548 (date obscure, 12X).

36C. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 129.

Obv.

بسم الله ضر

ب هذا الفاس

بالرىّ سنة تسع

(وع)شين و(مئة)

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لامير عبد الله

بن معوية

Rev. margin: As no. 36 B.

ANS.

36D. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 129.

Obv.

بسم الله ضر

ب هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة تسع و

[وع]شيرين و[مئة]

Rev.

مما امر الا

مير عبد الله

بن معوية

Traces of reverse margin.

Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn.

In 128, the Caliph had sent a new governor to al-'Irāq, Yazīd b. 'Umar b. Hubayrah (Ṭab. II, 1941, ll. 20–21), who confirmed Naṣr b. Sayyār in Khurāsān (Ṭab. II, 1917). 'Abdullāh b. Mu'āwiyah, by 129 undisputed master of al-Jibāl, including Iṣbahān, Qūmis, Rayy and Ḥulwān (Ṭab. II, 1976, ll. 8–11), in this year took over Fārs as well, but in a battle with the new governor of the East, ibn-Hubayrah, was beaten and fled from Iṣṭakhr (Ṭab. II, 1976, l. 4–1981, l. 6) to Khurāsān where he was executed by abu-Muslim.

(Bartholomae published a coin, — Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 46, pp. 347–348, illustr. Pl. XIV, fig. 5 (Ties., no. 607), — struck at Rayy in 12(?)X, by Muḥammad (?) b. Thaml (?), or perhaps Naṣr (?). The coin was obviously in very poor preservation and the illustrated drawing is illegible in the significant parts of the inscriptions. I have not been able to find any one in the chronicles by the names suggested. Only a better preserved specimen could solve the question.)

37A. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 130.

Obv.

بسم الله ضرب

هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة>

ثلثين ومئة

Rev.

مما امر به

[sic] الامير يزد

بن عمر

Rayy, 1935, RCi 4045.

37B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 130.

Obv.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا الفلس

بالرىّ سنة

ثلثين ومئة

Rev.

مما اهر به

الامير يزيد

بن عمر

Berlin, no. 2016; Berlin, 187/1893 (probably the same coin as no. 2016).|

37C. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 130.

Obv.

بسم الله

ضرب هذا

الفلس بالرىّ سنة

ثلثين ومئة

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لامير مكين

[عاصم [؟.....

........

This poorly preserved and probably misinterpreted coin is in all likelihood the same as no.37 D below.

Cairo, no. 849.

37D. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 130.

Obv.

بسم الله

ضرب هذاا

لفلس بالرىّ سنة

ثلثين ومئة

Annulets: ◯◯◯◯◯◯◯◯ between inner beaded and outer linear borders.

Rev.

مما امر به

الامير يزيد نب

عمر على يدى

حبيب بن بديل

Double beaded border.

GCM; Rayy, 1934, RD 2530.

37E. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 130.

Obv.

بسم الله

ضرب هذاا

لفلس بالرىّ سنة

ثاثين ومئة

Annulets: ◯◯◯◯◯◯◯◯ between inner beaded and outer linear borders.

Rev.

مما امر به

الامير يزيد

بن عمر على يدى

حبيب بن نديل

Double beaded border.

GCM; Rayy, 1936, RGQ 8658.

The governor Yazīd b. 'Umar, whose name appears on nos. 37 A, 37 B, 37 D and 37 E, is the same Yazīd b. 'Umar b. Hubayrah referred to as governor of al-'Irāq and the East under no.36 above (year 129). Yazīd continued in 130 as governor of the East, while Naṣr b. Sayyār, officially still governor of Khurāsān, appealed to his overlord for assistance against the 'Abbāsid revolutionary abu-Muslim who had by this time become actual master of Khurāsān (Ṭab. II, 2000, l. 6–2006, l. 10; 2016, l. 4–2017, l. 13; 2017, ll. 17–22). Naṣr was actually forced to flee before the growing force of abu-Muslim's attack (Ṭab. II, 1990).

Ḥabīb b. Budayl, whose name appears on the coins nos. 37 D and 37 E, is mentioned in the chronicles, year 131, as prefect at Rayy. Ṭabari calls him Ḥabīb b. Budayl al-Nahshali (Ṭab. III, 2, ll. 5–6). These coins prove that Ḥabīb was already prefect in the year 130. His subsequent history appears under the year 131 (see no. 38 below). The family of this Ḥabīb b. Budayl has a greater claim to fame than Ḥabīb's troubled governorship of Rayy in these transition years. Into the hands of a member of his family (a man of the Banu Nahshal b. Dārim) fell the sword of Ḥusayn, grandson of the Prophet, after the battle of Karbalā'; later, this sword was passed on to Ḥabīb's family (reported under year 61 in Ṭab. II, 366, ll. 14–15). فوقع بعد ذلك الى اهل حبيب بن بديل Ḥabīb (more probably his father or grandfather) figures also in an isnād under the year 67 (Ṭab. II, 718).

38A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 131.

Description lacking.

Ties., no. 659, with single reference to Tornberg, Symbol II.

38B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 131.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول الله

بالرىّ

Annulets: ◯∵◯∵◯∵

Obv. margin: Qur'ān, XLII, 22.

Rev. margin: (between two beaded borders) مما امر به ابو مسلم.....سنة احدى.....ومئة

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 6, pg. 46; S. Lane-Poole, The Oriental Cabinet at Copenhagen. N. C., 1876, pg. 267 (the description is abbreviated, but the probability is that this coin is identical with that of Zambaur).

38C. Æ. (Al-Rayy?). Year 1(3)1.

Obv.

لا اله

الا الله

وحده

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: Qur'ān, XLII, 22.

Rev. margin: مما امر ابو مسام....سنة احدى.....ومئة

Rayy, 1936, RGQ 8567.

Ibn-Hubayrah continued as governor of al-'Irāq and the East (Ṭab. III, 10). Ḥabīb b. Budayl (cf. no. 37 above), prefect at Rayy, maintained his authority there until he heard that al-Ḥasan b. Qaḥṭabah, who had been in Qūmis, was approaching Rayy from the East; he then fled from Rayy with all those faithful to the Umayyad cause. Ḥasan entered the city and stayed there until Qaḥṭabah arrived to take over the government of the city for abu-Muslim (Ṭab. III, 3). Ibn-al-Athīr adds to the account in Ṭabari the month Ṣafar, establishing the fact that the present coins, with the interesting inscription, "Abu-Muslim Amīr of the family of Muḥammad", were struck between say Rabī' I and Dhu-al-Ḥijjah.

وبلغ حبيب بن بديل النهشلى ومن معه من اهل الشام مسير الحسن فخرجوا عن الرىّ ودخل الحسن فى صفر فاقام حتى قدم ابوه [قحطبة] والما قدم الرىّ كتب الى مسلم يعلمه بذلك

(Ibn-al-Athīr, V, 303, ll. 17–20.)

We must place before these events the efforts to obtain peace between Naṣr b. Sayyār and abu-Muslim and the mission of abu-Muslim's to assassinate Naṣr (Ya'qūbi, II, 409–410); as well as Naṣr's arrival and subsequent illness in Rayy. He died in Sāwah, the 12th of Rabī' I, 131 (Ṭab. III, 2, ll. 10–13), that is, shortly after the occupation of Rayy by al-Ḥasan.

39. Æ. Al-Rayy. Undated.

Obv.

لا اله

الا الله

وحده

(No margin.)

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Sprig, position not indicated.

Rev. margin: o بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ

Bodleian, nos. 28–31.

End Notes

1
Until the rise of the Persian dynasties, the government of Rayy (and of other cities in Irān) was under the administrative offices of al-'Irāq (al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah). At times the governor of Rayy was answerable to a governor-general of the East (al-Mashriq) or a governor of Khurāsān. Hence, throughout the first and second centuries I have continued to give the names of the incumbents of these high offices.
1
There is perhaps another specimen in Dr. J. M. Unvala's collection (cf. foot-note immediately below).
2
This reading was first suggested to me by Dr. J. M. Unvala of the French Expedition at Susa, and Dr. Herzfeld has agreed that this interpretation is a likely one. After the present material had already been set in type, Dr. Unvala's interesting contribution, Quelques Monnaies Arabes à Légendes Pehlevies et quelques autres Monnaies bilingues Pehlevie-Arabes appeared in the N. C., 1937, pp. 280—296. Specimens from Susa where "šūš rowāk" (RVB'K) is entirely clear tend to indicate that the reading here should be RVB'K rather than RaVAN, but no specimen which I have examined is clear enough to fix the identity of the final consonant. Dr. Unvala does not indicate the literal reading of the Pahlevi letters for "Rayy". Does he mean that the letters are to be transcribed rai (pg. 295)? His drawing of the inscription as it appears on the issue of 116 (cf. no. 30 below) is not clear in respect to the letter or letters immediately following the R (op. cit., no. 55, pg. 284); no clearer in fact than in the "copie inexacte" of Allotte de la Fuÿe and Lavoix (nos. 72 and 73, pg. 284). Dr. Unvala describes and illustrates (op. cit., pg. 295, no. 32, and Pl. XXXIV, no. 32.) a specimen in his own collection attributed to the year 116, but ست and the ع of عشر are effaced; and to judge by the photograph, his coin is from a die similar to, if not identical with, the one from which one of my coins of the year 110 was struck; there is surely no room for the digit 6.

IV. THE 'ABBĀSID PERIOD

40. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 137(?).

Undescribed, except لله above the reverse. The date is obscure and 167 is also suggested. In view of its obscurity together with the fact that the coin cited here is the only example, I am strongly inclined to believe that the issue is to be rejected.

Dorn, Nova Supplementa, no.8a, pg. 223 (Ties., no.691).

In 137, al-Baṣrah and its dependencies were governed by Sulaymān b. 'Ali; Khurāsān by abu-Dāwūd Khālid b. Ibrāhīm (Ṭab. III, 121, ll.8–10).

41. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 138.

Obv.

(within octagon formed by two squares)

لا اله

الا الله

وحده

Rev. (in a square with 8 annulets at the corners and the middle of the sides)

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: (in the segments) ◯ ومئة ◯ وثلثين ◯ ثمان ◯ سنة

Rev. margin: (in the segments) بسم الله مما||امر به المير||جهوربن المرار||بالرىّ.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 49, pp. 350–351, illustr. Pl. I, no. 6 (Ties., no. 698); Zambaur, Contrib. I, no.42, pg. 63; Rayy, 1934, RGQ 2043, RD 2122, RD–G 3501 (obscure, and date effaced); Rayy, 1936, RCi 7349 (digit 8 of date preserved).

Bartholomae was unable to decipher either name; Tiesenhausen tentatively read the father's name correctly, but not the man's own name; Zambaur read جمهور بن المرار. It is true that جمهور is a variant (cf. Ṭab. III, 64, l.20, footnote: Codd. جمهور interdum جهور), but the approved form in Ṭabari (and cf. Ya'qūbi II, 442) is جهور, and the spelling is attested by the coins, which cannot read, as Zambaur reads, جمهور. Zambaur has rightly pointed out (loc. cit.) that the numismatic evidence establishes المرار in place of the name without the definite article as it occurs in the chronicles.

In the preceding year, 137, Sinbādh of Khurāsān had revolted with the intention of avenging the death of abu-Muslim. He marched toward al-'Irāq, but was halted by Jahwar b. (al)-Marrār (of the present coin), who had been sent against him by the Caliph, in a battle between Hamadhān and Rayy (Ṭab. III, 119, l. 11–120, l. 1), and was killed between Ṭabaristān and Qūmis (Ṭab. III, 120, l.2). (Zambaur, after ibn-al-Athīr, gives 138 for the date of this event, but 137 would seem to be correct.) Then, during the year 138, Jahwar, having seized the treasures of abu-Muslim at Rayy, revolted on his own account and drew upon himself the anger of the Caliph, who dispatched Muḥammad b. al-Ash'ath against him with a large army. Jahwar was defeated and fled to Adharbayjān where he was finally captured and executed. (Ṭab. III, 122, ll. 6–14; cf. Mas'ūdi, VI, 188, l. 6–189, l. 4, who has the revolution of Sinbādh wrongly dated in 136.)

42. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 139.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله

وحده

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: ......بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ على يدى عبد الحميد بن

Rev. margin: مما امر عبد الله عبد الله امير المؤمنين سنة وثلثين ومئة

Berlin, nos. 2088, 2088a; ANS; GCM; Rayy 1934, RGQ 2041 (date and mint effaced).

The name of the father of 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd (or Ḥumayd) is effaced on the Berlin and Rayy excavations specimens; on the ANS specimen, I can see only حر (?). The digit of the date and the father's name are effaced on the GCM specimen.

'Abdullāh 'Abdullāh Amīr al-Mu'minīn, whose name appears on the reverse is of course the Caliph al-Manṣūr. Can the prefect 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd be 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd b. Ja'far b. 'Abdullāh al-Anṣāri (died 153) mentioned in ibn-al-Athīr V, 467, ll. 16–17? Cf. no. 43, year 141, below.

The governors of al-Kūfah, al-Baṣrah and Khurāsān in 139 were, respectively: 'Īsa b. Mūsa, Sufyān b. Mu'āwiyah, and Khālid b. Ibrāhim. (Ṭab. III, 127, ll. 17–19.)

43A. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 141.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

س

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة احدى واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: مما امر عبد الله عبد الله امير المؤمنين على يدى عبد الحميد بن جعفر

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 43, pp. 63–64.

43B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 141.

As no.43 A, but without • beneath the reverse, and on none of the specimens which I have examined is the word جعفر clear.

GCM; Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn; Rayy, 1934, RCh 1973 (date and mint effaced), RF 2890 (date effaced); Rayy 1935, RH 4168; Rayy, 1936, RG 8214 (date and mint effaced).

Zambaur reads جعفر (Ja'far), but his coin is not illustrated. He adopts the identification of 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd b. Ja'far b. 'Abdullāh al-Anṣāri as the prefect (cf. no. 42 above). His description of the coin is somewhat ambiguous as he refers the obverse to the year 138, which is of an entirely different style. He must mean 139.

In this year al-Mahdi was sent by his father the Caliph al-Manṣūr to Khurāsān at the head of an army, with orders to make his headquarters in Rayy. وفى هذه السنة وحّه ابو جعفر المنصور ولده محمدا وهو يومئذ ولى خراسان فى الجنود وامره بنزول الرىّ ففعل ذلك محمد He remained at Rayy till the year 151. (Ṭab. III, 133, l. 20–134, l. 2.). al-Mahdi's representative in Khurāsān was al-Sirri b. 'Abdullāh. The governors of al-Kūfah and al-Baṣrah were as in the year 139 (cf. no. 42 above). (Ṭab. III, 138, ll.8–10).

44A. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 143.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة ثلث واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: مما امر به اصغر بن عبد الرحمن عامل محمد بن امير المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 402, pg. 117; GCM.

Zambaur read [اصع[د, but his specimen must be poorly preserved, as mine clearly has اصغر.

44B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 143.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

•••

Obv. margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة ثلث واربعين ومئة

Rev. Margin: مما امر به عمران (عمران؟ )بن صلح عامل الامير محمد بن امير المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Berlin, nos. 2089, 2090.

The Amīr Muḥammad whose name appears on both coins is of course al-Mahdi, the heir apparent. As for the two prefects (Zambaur transliterates "Talh", but this is impossible; it must be صُلح or صَلِح for صالح; and Aṣghar b. 'Abd-al-Raḥman is certain on my coin). I have searched through Ṭabari, Balādhuri, the Anonymous Chronicle (Balādhuri), Ya'qūbi, Yāqūt, ibn-al-Athīr and others for some clue as to their identity but without success. It would seem that their names are preserved to us only on these coins. Aṣghar must have been the first of the two prefects at Rayy in 143, as 'Imrān's (or Ghafrān's??) name appears again as prefect in the year 144 (cf. no. 45 below).

The governors of al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah remained as in 139; al-Mahdi was of course still at Rayy and nominally over the East. (Ṭab. III, 141, ll. 11–12; 142, l. 15.)

45. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 144.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة اربع و اربعين ومئة

Rev. margin:بن صلح عامل الامير محمد بن امير المؤمنين اكرمه الله [or مما امر به [عمران؟ فران

Berlin, no. 2091; Berlin (14X), no. 2095; Berlin, 191/1893; Paris, no. 1589; ANS, ANS (14X); GCM (two specimens); Rayy 1934, RC 2625; Rayy 1936, RG 8405.

(Lavoix (Paris) read ابقاه الله instead of اكرمه الله, but as اكرمه الله is clear on all the other specimens, it is likely that ابفاه is a misreading.)

The governors of the eastern provinces remained unchanged (Ṭab. III, 189, ll.9–10). For عمران بن صلح, cf. no. 44 A above.

46. Æ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 14X (143 or 144).

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

[لله[؟

محمد

رسول

الله

••

Obv. margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ [؟]سنة ....واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin:ا امر به عمرا....[غفرا...؟]بن صل ... محمد....المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Rayy 1934, RD 2451.

Cf. nos. 44 and 45 above. This coin is undoubtedly a specimen of another die of one of these two years, 143 or 144.

(Leggett's al-Muḥammadīyah dirham of 144 is surely to be rejected.)

47A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 145.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب الدرهم بالرىّ سنة خمس واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, no. 27 (Ties., no. 743).

47B. image. Al-Rayy. Year 145.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب الدرهم بالرىّ سنة خمس واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no. 45, o, pg. 43.

47C. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 145.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة خمس واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: مما امر به المهدى محمد بن امير المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Cairo, no. 854.

47D. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 145.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: واربعين[sic]بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة خمسة

Rev. margin: مما امر به سلم بن ....سه عامل الامير محمد بن المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Berlin, no. 2092 (reverse illustr., Pl. VII, but illegible).

(The Berlin catalogue has له ؟... for the name of the prefect. I had occasion to examine the coin at first hand in Berlin, and read سه ... with space for one or two letters before it; I therefore believe one can read قتيبة, see below.)

It is interesting to note the existence of two different silver and two copper issues at Rayy in this year 145. A should precede B in the silver issues as the latter bears the name of al-Mahdi in the form so common in the issues of the next few years. Of the copper issues, C has al-Mahdi only, D his name together with that of his prefect at Rayy. Although in written history Salm b. Qutaybah b. Muslim al-Bāhili is nowhere specifically mentioned as prefect at Rayy, it should be clear from his history summarized below, that he is the individual whose name appears as al-Mahdi's 'āmil on the coin under discussion.

Year 120: Yūsuf b. 'Umar (cf. no. 31 above) wrote to Hishām suggesting Salm as governor of Khurāsān, but the Caliph objected that none of Salm's people were in Khurāsān; if there had been, he said, Salm's father Qutaybah would not have been killed. (Ṭab. II, 1659, ll. 1–6.)

Year 123: Salm was again mentioned by Yūsuf b. 'Umar to the Caliph as a possibility for Khurāsān; Naṣr b. Sayyār's old age and increasing weakness were cited as grounds for his removal. (Ṭab. II, 1721, ll. 13–14).

Year 132: Salm was 'āmil for Yazīd b. 'Umar b. Hubayrah in al-Baṣrah. (Ṭab. III, 21–23).

Year 145: Salm was at Rayy. (Tab. III, 206, ll. 16–17; cf. ibn-al-Athīr, V, 432, l. 21.)

Year 145: Al-Manṣūr recalls 'Īsa b. Mūsa and Salm b. Qutaybah on the death of the rebel Muḥammad b. 'Abdullāh, and Salm leaves Rayy and joins Ja'far b. Sulaymān (Ṭab. III, 305, ll. 8–9).

Year 146: Salm b. Qutaybah is removed from al-Baṣrah by al-Manṣūr. (Tab. III, 326, ll. 19–20; 327, ll. 1–12.)

It is stated that Salm b. Qutaybah was governor of al-Baṣrah in 145 (Ṭab. III, 319, ll. 1–3); hence, in this one year, he was appointed to the governorship of Rayy, had copper coins struck bearing his name there, was removed, and reappointed to al-Baṣrah. I can find no evidence of his having struck fulūs at al-Baṣrah in the years 145 or 146.

48A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مماامربه ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرىّ سنة ست واربيعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no.46; Berlin, nos. 669, 670; 12 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 289; Istanbul, nos. 342, 343 (two dies), and one unnumbered; Paris, nos. 632, 633 (two dies); Ties., no. 755 (with three references).

48B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

image

Rev. margin: بسم الله محمد رسول الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة ست واربعين ومئة

Paris, no. 1590.

48C. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

As no. 48 B above, but above the obverse, image; beneath the reverse image.

Paris, no. 1591.

48D. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

As no. 48 B above, but beneath the reverse image (and no ornament above the obverse ?).

B.M.i, cop. no. 91; Cairo, no. 289.

48E. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

As no. 48 B above, but above the obverse image; beneath the reverse image.

GCM (pellet above اله of the obverse); Rayy 1935, RH 4415, 6568, RCi 6763.

48F. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

As no. 48 B above, but with image beneath the reverse only.

Berlin, no. 2094 (digit of 146 effaced).

48G. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 146.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

••

Rev. margin: مما امر....دى محمد....المؤمنين اكرمه الله

Berlin, no. 2093; Rayy 1934, RB 1008 (mint questioned, date effaced).

To these specimens are to be added Ties., nos. 755, 756, 757, descriptions inadequate for purposes of classification. Complete preservation and more accurate description would no doubt reduce the number of variants necessarily described separately under nos. 48 B through F; it is not likely that there were so many distinct dies.

It was stated by Prince Alexandre Gagarine that he possessed two dirhams "dont la lecture est incontestable, frappés à el-Muhammodia, en 146 et en 147" (Lettre...... à M. F. Soret sur quelques monnaies orientales inédites...., Rev. Num. Belge, 1862, pg. 460). Numismatic and historical evidence argue overwhelmingly against this contention. The name al-Muḥammadīyah does not appear till the year 148, see below.

In this year, 146, Salm b. Qutaybah (cf. no. 47 above) was removed from the government of al-Baṣrah and was replaced by Muḥammad b. Sulaymān b. 'Ali (Ṭab. III, 326, ll. 19–20; 327, ll. 1–12).

49A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 147.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرىّ سنة سبع واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 47; Berlin, no. 671; 24 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos. 290, 291; Fonrobert, no. 6230; Istanbul, nos. 344, 345, 346 (two dies), and one unnumbered; Paris, nos. 634, 635 (two dies); Ties., no. 764 (with nine references); ANS; GCM.

49B. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 147.

Undescribed.

Ties., no. 769 (undescribed; with single reference to Saveliev, inaccessible to me).

In 147 the governor of al-Kūfah was Muḥammad b. Sulaymān; of al-Baṣrah, 'Uqbah b. Salm. (Ṭab. III, 353, ll. 3–4.)

50A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 148.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Obv. margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرىّ سنة واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. i, no. 48 (illustr. Pl. III); Berlin, no. 672; 6 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 292; Ties., no. 774 (with three references); ANS; GCM.

50B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 148.

As no. 50 A, but with mint al-Muḥammadīyah instead of al-Rayy .

B.M. i, no. 49 (illustr., Pl. III); Berlin, nos. 690, 691; 27 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos. 302–304; Fonrobert, no. 6231; Istanbul, nos. 367, 368 (two dies); Paris, no. 648; Ties., no. 773 (with ten references); ANS (two specimens); GCM.

50C. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 148.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Rev. margin: يسم الله محمد رسول الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ سنة ثمان واربعين ومئة

Paris, no. 1592; ANS (two specimens, two dies); Rayy, 1936, RN 6959 (obscure), RCh 7263.

50D. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 148.

As no. 50 C, but with a pellet before لا, first line of the obverse, and و omitted before مئة.

Rayy, 1934, RE 2666.

50E. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 148.

As no. 50 C, but with the ا of المهدى on the 2nd rather than on the 1st line of the obverse area. It is curious that this improvement was made on one die in the year 148, and yet both the copper and the silver issues of 149 return to the clumsy arrangement with the ا on the first line.

Rayy, 1936, RGQ 8605.

(Too obscure to be identified positively, but certainly of the year 146 or 148 are the following fulūs from the Rayy Excavations: 1934, RB 1001, RCH 1972, 1935, RH 6490.)

The governors in the year 148 were as in 147 (Ṭab. III, 353, ll. 13–14).

Note that in this year al-Muḥammadīyah, the new mint name for Rayy, occurs for the first time. Since there are issues of the same year with the old name al-Rayy, it is obvious that al-Mahdi, whom the city-title honoured by the use of his name Muḥammad, introduced the innovation in the course of the year. In the strict sense al-Muḥammadīyah applied only to the inner city situated at the base of the citadel hill, Ṭabarak, called also the castle of al-Zaynabi or al-Zabandi, or al-Farrukhān. The new name is reported by Balādhuri and others under the year 158 when al-Mahdi's mosque and his other reconstructions and building operations were completed (Balādhuri, 319–320; al-Hamadhāni, 269, ll. 4–9).

51A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 149.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

ه

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدبة سنة تسع واربعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 50; Berlin, nos. 694, 695; 42 of the several types in Assur Collection, Berlin (of nos. 51 B and 51 C below); Cairo, nos. 306–310; Istanbul, nos. 373, 374 (two dies); Paris, nos. 649, 650 (two dies); Ties., no.784 (with two references, including Tornberg which however should be classified under no. 51 B below); ANS (two specimens, two dies); GCM.

51B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 149.

As no. 51 A but with م above and ع beneath the reverse area.

Istanbul, no. 372; Tornberg, no. 37, pg. 18.

(This die is perhaps to be rejected, there being a reasonable presumption that ه was read for ه.)

51C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 149.

As no. 51 A but with ه above and بخ beneath the reverse area.

ANS.

51D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 149.

As no. 51 A but without marks above or beneath the reverse area.

Berlin, nos. 692, 693 (two dies); Cairo, no. 305; Istanbul, nos. 369–371 (two dies); ANS.

To nos. 51 A, B, C, D are to be added specimens in Fonrobert, Nesselman and Stickel where descriptions are inadequate, and two unnumbered in Istanbul (where I failed to note the letters).

51E. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 149.

Obv.

لا الله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Rev. margin: رسول اللهضرب هذا الفاس بالرىّ سنت تسع واربعين ومئة ....

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 1106, pg. 44 (simply listed, not described); Rayy 1936, RG 7752.

With the silver issues of al-Muḥammadīyah of the year 149, isolated letters begin to occur frequently on the areas. (An isolated س has already been noted on a copper issue of 141, see no. 43 above). The use of these letters is not restricted to the al-Muḥammadīyah mint, but they are perhaps more common there than at other mints. (Cf. the issues of Afrīqīyah, Bukhāra, Balkh, al-Baṣrah, al-Rāfiqah, Sarra-man-ra'ā, Madīnat-al-Salām, Miṣr, al-Yamāmah, and others.) A great deal of ingenuity has been exercised, and a good deal of time wasted perhaps, by savants who have attempted to explain the meanings of the isolated letters. See, for example, the articles of E. Meier (referred to in the bibliography), C. G. Tornberg, Über die sogenannten 'Wertbezeichnungen' auf muhammedanischen Münzen (ZDMG, 1865, pp. 626–632), where one can recognize the beginnings of a feud; and Stickel and von Tiesenhausen, Die Werthbezeichnungen auf muhammedanischen Münzen (ZDMG, 1879, pp. 341–386). I do not propose to discuss the matter in general, and shall only point out a plausible hypothesis from time to time as the letters occur. Any explanation is a guess. In the present instance the letters would seem to be minter's or engraver's marks, whether or not they stand for words (e.g. ه = م = مبارك, a common word later, cf. below nos. 70 C, etc.; ع = ع = بخ .(عدل is very common and I accept the frequently advanced theory that the word is a mark of genuineness, i.e. "good".

The occasional reappearance of the name al-Rayy in the 'Abbāsid period can hardly be inadvertent. In this case, however, we have no information of any political situation that might explain the use of the officially discarded name. Possibly a die engraver found the old name more convenient to write, or used an old die that had never had the date engraved on it; but it is curious that the die passed the inspector or the controller of the mint (if, indeed, it did so), in view of the fact that al-Mahdi, after whom the official Rayy was named, was still in the neighbourhood and might well have objected to the neglect of the honour due him on a public and official document. We may of course have to do with contemporary forgery.

The governors in the year 149 were as in 148 (Ṭab. III, 354, ll. 6–7).

52A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

مماامر به ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 375; Tornberg, no. 39.

52B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

As no. 52 A but above the obverse area *.

Tornberg, no. 40.

52C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

As no. 52 A but above the reverse area و and nothing below.

Tychsen, Introductio, pp. 65–66.

There are two specimens in the Assur Collection, Berlin, with the ا of المهدى on the 1st line of the obverse, but I failed to note the isolated letters if any.

52D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

As no. 52 A but the ا of المهدى is on the 2nd line; above the reverse area م; beneath ء.

B.M.i, no. 51; Berlin, nos. 696–700; 23 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos. 311–314; Istanbul, no. 376; Paris, nos. 651, 652 (two dies); Ties., no. 790 (with seven references, including Tornberg, no. 39, – cf. no. 52 A above, – which apparently should not be here); ANS (three specimens, two dies); Rayy, 1934, RB 2624.

52E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

Obverse area as no. 52 A.

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

بخ بخ

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحدمية سنة خمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33?

Tornberg, no. 41.

(I am inclined to believe that Tornberg misread this coin, possibly a Madīnat al-Salām issue.)

52F. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امربه ا

لمهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

لله

Rev. margin: بسم الله رسول الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة خمسين ومئة

Berlin, nos. 2103, 2104; GCM (two specimens); Rayy, 1934, RD 2190, RB 2621 (date effaced), RD 2862, 2863, RF 2880, 3253; 1936, CT 9 (and probably the following obscure specimens, Rayy 1934, RCh 106, RF 3255).

52G. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 150.

As no. 52 F but with the ا of المهدى on the 2nd line of the obverse.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 52, pg. 352 (Ties., no. 795); Rayy 1934, RB 1007 (date effaced).

(For a curious coin misdated 150, see no. 107 below.)

The governors in al-Kūfah, al-Baṣrah and Khurāsān remained unchanged. (Ṭab. II, 359, ll.8–9.)

53. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 151.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

مماامربه

المهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وخمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 52; Berlin, nos. 701, 702; 19 in the Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 315; Istanbul, nos. 377, 378 (two dies); Ties., no.800 (with four references, 7 coins); Paris, no.653; ANS (the ء beneath the reverse is elongated).

The governor in al-Kūfah was Muḥammad b. Sulaymān (see above); in al-Baṣrah, Jābir b. Tawbah al-Kilābi; al-Mahdi was still in the East. (Ṭab. III, 368, l.20–369, l.1.)

54A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 152.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

مما امربه

المهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين وخمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 53; Berlin, nos. 703, 704; 19 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos.316–318; Istanbul, nos. 379, 380; Paris, no. 655; Ties., no. 807 (with six references); ANS (two specimens); GCM.

54B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 152.

As no. 54 A but reverse with ◯ beneath the area and nothing above.

Paris, no. 654.

In 152, al-Manṣūr appointed Ḥumayd b. Qaḥṭabah to Khurāsān as al-Mahdi's 'āmil (cf. no. 59 below); Jābir b. Tawbah was removed from al-Baṣrah and replaced by Yazīd b. Manṣūr. (Ṭab. III, 369, ll.8–9, 12–13.)

55. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 153.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لاشريك له

Rev.

م

مما امر به

المهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وخمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 54; Berlin, nos. 705, 706; 15 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos. 319, 320; Istanbul, nos. 381–383 (three dies); Paris, no. 656; Ties., no. 817 (with seven references); ANS.

No change in the governors (Ṭab. III, 371, ll. 19–20). al-Mahdi led the pilgrimage this year. (Ṭab. III, 371, l.17.)

56A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 154.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

مما امربه

المهدى محمد

بن امير مؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع وخمسين ومئة>

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 384, and one unnumbered; Paris, no. 657; three in Assur Collection, Berlin; ANS.

56B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 154.

As no. 56 A but beneath the reverse ه, and nothing above.

B.M.i, no. 55; Berlin, no. 709 (date questioned); 7 in Assur Collection, Berlin (this type or else nos. 56 C or 56 D below); Istanbul, no. 385; Tornberg, no. 52 (probably this type); ANS.

56C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 154.

As no. 56 A above, but beneath the reverse image and nothing above.

Stickel, Handbuch I, XLVIII; Berlin, no. 708; ANS.

56D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 154.

As no. 56 A, but above the reverse •, beneath image.

Berlin, no. 707.

56E. image. Al-Muhammadīyah. Year 154.

As no. 56 A but with nothing above or beneath the reverse.

Ties., no. 829 (with one reference).

(Tiesenhausen, no. 832, cites four other specimens of the year 154, unspecific.)

Muḥammad b. Sulaymān continued in al-Kūfah; in al-Baṣrah the governor was 'Abd-al-Malik b. Ayyūb b. Ẓabyān. (Ṭab. III, 373, ll. 1, 5–6.)

57A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 155.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مماامربه

المهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ه

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وخمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 56; Berlin, no. 710 (described as • beneath reverse, but probably it belongs here); 32 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, nos.386, 387; Paris, no.658; Ties., no.843 (with five references); ANS; GCM.

57B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 155.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مماامربه

المهدى محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Foliate border.

Rev. margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة خمس وخمسين ومئة

Berlin, nos. 2105, 2106; Paris, no. 1611; ANS (two specimens); GCM, six specimens; Rayy 1934, RE 2872, and (in various degrees of effacement) RE 2865, 2870, 2873, 2889; Rayy 1936, RG 8519 (date and mint effaced).

In this year, 'Abd-al-Malik b. Ayyūb was removed from al-Baṣrah and replaced by al-Haytham b. Mu'āwiyah al-'Ataki (with whom was associated Sa'īd b. Da'laj, or Ṣaliḥ (Ṭab. III, 373, ll.20–21); Muḥammad b. Sulaymān, also, was removed from al-Kūfah, his position being taken by 'Umar b. Zuhayr (some say in 153). (Ṭab. III, 375, l.9–377, l.5.)

(In Istanbul, there is an unnumbered dirham assigned to the year 157, but on examining it I found both the خمسين and the سبع to be extremely doubtful, and the lack of any other example of this year argues against the reading.)

58. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 158.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: ....وم [sic] سنة ثمان خمسين [sic] حمدية فى ... هذا الفلس .....

Rev. margin: [مما امر به ....محمد بن امير المؤمنين على يدى عامله ممس سبان [؟

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 54, pp. 353–354 (illustr., obverse only, Pl. XIV, fig. 8) (Ties., no. 879).

In the illustration (a drawing), there is no و between ثمان and خمسين, although the و is present in Bartholomae's transcription. The author points out that there is a word at the end of the obverse margin, مما, for which he suggests the reading تمان, "complet, parfait". The reverse margin is unfortunately not illustrated, and the name of the prefect as transcribed, is, I am afraid, impossible to recover.

In this year al-Mahdi went from al-Raqqah to Baghdād in Ramaḍān (Ṭab. III, 385, ll.9–10). The governors of al-Kūfah, al-Baṣrah and Khurāsān remained the same (Ṭab. III, 458, l.11–459, l.4).

59. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 159.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

مما امربه

المهدى محمد

نب امبر المؤمنين

ء

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع وخمسين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33?

(ع = عدل, justus, —Tornberg.)

Tornberg, no. 66, pg. 23.

Tornberg's reading of the date at least is probably to be rejected; a solespecimen, with the anachronistic "al-Mahdi, son of the Commander of the Faithful", after the son had already become the Commander of the Faithful in 158, is not at all convincing. It is, therefore, in my opinion, probable that we have no example of a 159 issue from al-Muḥammadīyah.

In this year Ḥumayd b. Qaḥṭabah, who had been al-Mahdi's 'amil over Khurāsān, died; al-Mahdi appointed abu-'Aun 'Abd-al-Malik b. Yazīd in his place. Sa'īd b. Da'laj was removed from al-Baṣrah and 'Abd-al-Malik b. Ayyūb b. Ẓabyān replaced him. (Ṭab. III, 466, ll.3–5; 469, l.17.)

60A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 160.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

Obv. margin:بسم الله هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 116; Berlin, no. 840; Cairo, no. 369; Ties., no. 896 (with four references); ANS.

60B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 160.

Obverse as no. 60 A.

Reverse as no. 60 A, but with م above the area, and و below.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 55, pg. 354; Paris, no. 718; Ties., nos.897 and 899 (with six references, all to be classified here, I believe; there are errors in the Tiesenhausen classification).

60C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 160.

Obverse as no. 60 A.

Reverse as no. 60 A, but with the last line of the area وسلم الخليفة المهدى; above: م and beneath: و.

Berlin, no. 841; Tornberg, Suppl., no. 75a, pg. 304; ANS.

To the above (nos. 60 A, B, C) are to be added two specimens in Istanbul, unnumbered; and eight specimens in the Assur Collection, Berlin, my notes on which do not give details as to isolated letters, etc.

60D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 160.

Obverse as no. 60 A.

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

بخ

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, no. 76, pg. 25.

60E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 160.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امر به

المهدى محمد

امير المؤمنين

له

Two beaded borders, between which: ∞∞∞∞

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة ستين ومئة

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 50, pg. 67.

(Zambaur reports that the word beneath the reverse area is "fort indistinct"; perhaps it is جاز ("ayant cours"), "car له se place ordinairement en haut du champ". ??)

60F. Æ. Al-Rayy. Year 160.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

Rev. margin: مللك؟] سنة =] بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالرىّ على يدى الامير حمزة يبحيى ستين ومئة

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 49, pg. 67 (date actually illegible); ANS (mint obscure, date effaced); GCM (date clear, mint clear enough); GCM (mint clear, date not preserved); Rayy 1934, RCh 21 (mint effaced), RB 938 (date and mint effaced); Rayy 1936, RG 8549 (date clear, mint effaced), CT 31 (date and mint effaced.).

Zambaur read حمزة بن يحيى and argued that there was insufficient space on his specimen (where the date is effaced) for anything but (60) ستين, and bore out his arguement by citing حمزة بن يحيى, governor of Sijistān in 159. On the ANS specimen, حمزة is clear, but I cannot read يحيى in ...ملل (one or two letters at end indistinct). حمزة is clear (but not يحيى) on the first GCM specimen, and the date (but not the mint) is preserved: on the second GCM specimen the mint is legible, but the date is effaced, or else, if the patronymic is long following حمزة, there is no date at all. On the Rayy Excavations specimens, the legends are fragmentarily preserved and the critical last word of the margin is effaced.

Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya = Ḥamzah b. Mālik. This is evident if one makes cross references in Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr. Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya is not mentioned in Ṭabari, and occurs only once in ibn-al-Athīr (VI, 27); but Ḥamzah b. Mālik (b. al-Haytham al-Khuzā'i) is mentioned several times in both Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr, and the identity is established by the appointment of Ḥamzah b. Mālik as governor of Sijistān in 159 (Ṭab. III, 459, l.18), or Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya as governor of Sijistān in 159 (ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 27, l.12). In the year 161 (the year following the coin in question), Ḥamzah's brother, Naṣr, who was the general at the head of the royal body-guard (شرطة), died, and was replaced by Ḥamzah (Ṭab. III, 491. ll.20–21; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 38, ll.6–7; Ya'qūbi, II, 483, ll.17–18, without date). Ḥamzah's subsequent history: he went to al-Jazīrah in 169 (ibn-al-Athīr, VI, ll.20–21); was appointed (year 176) to the governorship of Khurāsān by Hārūn al-Rashīd (Ṭab. III, 626, ll.10–11): removed from that office in the following year (Ṭab. III, 629, ll.6–8; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 96, ll.21–22; cf. no. 77 below); died in the year 181 (Ṭab. III, 646, l.14).

It is more than likely that Zambaur's identification is correct (loc. cit.). He read Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya, but his coin is unfortunately not illustrated. Of the specimens which I have been able to see at first hand, there is only one (the ANS specimen) where I can even attempt to read the father's name, and in this case I have not been able to read Yaḥya, but Mālik 1 is just possible. The single occurrence of the name Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya (in ibn-al-Athīr) as against the relatively frequent mention of the same individual as Ḥamzah b. Mālik, makes me incline to the opinion that the inscription on the coin in question is Ḥamzah b. Mālik; but this cannot be stated positively unless another and better preserved specimen should be found and a reexamination of Zambaur's coin should testify to the correctness of this reading. It is, in any case, not surprising that we should find no mention in the chronicles of Ḥamzah's appointment to Rayy, in view of the fact that he must have held office for a short time only, having been in Sijistān in 159 and then appointed as chief of the body-guard in 161.

I cannot explain the reoccurrence of the mint name al-Rayy here (cf. no. 51 E above).

The governors of al-Baṣrah and its dependencies (Kūrat Dijlah, al-Baḥrayn, 'Umān, al-Ahwāz and Fārs) in 160 was Muḥammad b. Sulaymān; of Khurāsān, Mu'ādh b. Muslim (Ṭab. III, 484, ll.7–10). Note that Rayy and the northern provinces generally of Irān are not included as among the dependencies of al-Baṣrah.

61A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 161.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 117; Berlin, no. 842; 21 in Assur Collection, Berlin (not noted whether all are like this, or whether some are like no. 61 B below); Bodleian, no. 69; Cairo, no. 370; Istanbul, nos. 442, 443 (two dies); Paris, no. 719; Ties., no. 908 (with fourteen references); ANS; GCM, two specimens.

61B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 161.

As no. 61 A, but with a pellet beneath the reverse area.

Berlin, no. 843.

In this year Iṣhāq b. al-Ṣabbāḥ and Yazīd b. Manṣūr were associated in the government of al-Kūfah. The government of al-Baṣrah and Khurāsān remained unchanged. (Ṭab. III, 492, ll.9–10.)

62. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 162.

The coin is not described, but bears the word Ṭalḥah on the obverse, and al-Ṭāhir b. on the reverse.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N.C., 1886, pg. 228.

I have not been able to identify this governor or prefect al-Ṭāhir b. Ṭalḥah. The governors of al-Baṣrah, al-Kūfah and Khurāsān were as in the year 161. (Ṭab. III, 494, l.5).

63A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 163.

As no. 62 above, except the date ?? It is impossible to tell from the abbreviated description whether or not the coin bears the name al-Ṭāhir b. Ṭalḥah.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N.C., 1886, pg. 228.

63B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 163.

Obv.

لا اله الا

ا لله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

المهدى [sic] مما امر

على يدى

كلثوم بن حفص

لله (indistinct)

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 51, pg. 68.

63C. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 163.

As no. 63 B, but no لله beneath the reverse area.

Rayy 1936, RG 8517.

(Nos. 63 B and 63 C should perhaps be rated as a single issue, since Zambaur's لله is indistinct.)

For Kulthūm b. Ḥafṣ, whose name appears as 'āmil on nos. 63 B and C, cf. no. 64 A, below, in the following year. This prefect remains unidentified; his name is apparently preserved to us only on these coins. I have searched in all the chronicles for his name without success.

In 163, Mu'ādh b. Muslim was removed from Khurāsān, and al-Musayyab b. Zuhayr replaced him (Ṭab. III, 500, l.15, 501, ll.7–8). Al-Kūfah and al-Baṣrah (with the dependencies as mentioned under the year 160, no. 60 above, with the addition of Furaḍ1) remained unchanged. (Ṭab. III, 501, ll.5–7).

64A. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 164.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Border: image

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة اربع وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: [ولى عهد المسلمين الامير موسى بن امير المؤمنين على يدى كلثوم بن حفص الموصلى [؟

Paris, no. 1612 (illustr. Pl. X); Ties., no. 960 (illustr. Pl. III, no. 12); Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn; GCM; Rayy, 1935, RCi 3546, RH 6357 (the latter very obscure).

In the Paris illustration, حفص is clear, but الموصلى although not questioned in the transcription, is obscure to me, except لى ...; Tiesenhausen transcribes with dots (i. e. illegible) between كلثوم and يدى, but the illustration shows no omission; in the GCM specimen, the three last words are nearly effaced, but there is clearly a word like الموصلى after حفص. On RCi 3546, there is also clearly a word with و,ل and ل after حف] ص].

64B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 164.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة اربع وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: مما امر به ولى عهد المسلمين الامير موسى بن امير المؤمنين على يد سلم بن عبد الله

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 52, pg. 68.

Kulthūm b. Ḥafṣ is unidentified (cf. the note under no. 63 above).

There is a strong presumption against Zambaur's reading سلم بن عبد الله Salm b. 'Abdullāh, in his unique coin, no. 64 B, for Ṭabari provides us with the name of the prefect at Rayy in this year: Khalaf b. 'Abdullāh (Ṭab. III, 503, ll. 12–13). The coin is not illustrated. Khalaf could, if the margin is poorly preserved, quite easily be misread Salm; or alternatively, if Zambaur's reading is correct, the name as preserved in Ṭabari is wrong. But the latter alternative is made virtually unacceptable and the reading Khalaf b. 'Abdullāh is almost assured by the occurrence of the name خلف on a fals of the next year (see nos. 65 B and C below). Zambaur (Contrib. I, no. 53–54, pg. 68) quotes ibn-al-Athīr to show that Khalaf was governor of "Media" in the year 165, but he fails to note that this man was already prefect in 164, probably because this fact is not recorded in ibn-al-Athīr, and I presume Zambaur did not consult Ṭabari. Khalaf must have followed Kulthūm (since Kulthūm appears on the fulūs of 163 and 164); and Ṭabari tells us that Khalaf was removed from the government of Rayy the following year, and was replaced by 'Īsa, mawla of Ja'far (Ṭab. III, 505, l.12).

(I know of only one Salm b. 'Abdullāh, mentioned in Balādhuri, 365, ll.17–18 and Yāqūt, Mu'jam, IV, 840, l. 19, as Salm b. 'Abdullāh b. abi-Bakrah, —written 'Ubaydullāh in the Balādhuri text, —a man after whom a stream in al-Baṣrah was named.)

The Mūsa mentioned in the marginal legends of both types is of course al-Mahdi's son, later (year 169) to become Caliph for one year. Henceforth it becomes a common practice to recognize the heir apparent in this fashion on the coins.

In this year Muḥammad b. Sulaymān was removed from al-Baṣrah and its dependencies and replaced by Ṣāliḥ b. Dāwūd b. 'Ali, with 'Āṣim b. Mūsa al-Khurāsāni as tax-collector (Ṭab. III, 501, l.16–502, l.2; 503, ll.6–8); al-Kūfah went to Hishām b. Sa'īd b. Manṣūr (Ṭab. III, 503, ll.4–5); and Khurāsān remained as before (Ṭab. III, 503, ll.8–9).

65A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 165.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

غليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

م

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 118; Berlin, nos. 844–846; 15 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 371; Istanbul no. 44, and two unnumbered; Ties., no. 969 (with ten references).

65B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 165.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

ء

محمد

رسول

الله

موسى

Obv. margin:بس الله ضرب هذا الفاس بالمحمدية سنة خمس وستين ومئة خلف

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33, till المشر.

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 53, pg. 68.

65C. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 165.

As no. 65 B, but reverse margin has Qur'ān, IX, 33, only as far as كره.

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 54, pg. 68.

Mūsa, beneath the reverse of nos. 65 B and C, is the heir apparent; for Khalaf, whose name occurs without that of his father, 'Abdullāh, in the most unusual position after the date in the marginal legend of the obverse, see the discussion above under no. 64.

The governors were in 165 as in 164, except that Rūḥ b. Ḥātim was added to al-Baṣrah; and over the Baṣrah dependencies, Dijlah, al-Baḥrayn, 'Umān, Kaskar and al-Ahwāz, was one of al-Mahdi's mawlas, al-Mu'alla (Ṭab. III, 505, ll.14–18).

66A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 166.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

م

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 119; Berlin, nos. 847, 848; 24 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos. 372, 373; Istanbul, no. 445, and two unnumbered; Ties., no. 988 (with eleven references); ANS (two specimens).

66B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 166.

As no. 66 A above, but ه beneath the reverse area.

Paris, no. 720.

66C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 166.

As no. 66 A but beneath the reverse area: بخ.

Ties., no. 987 (with two references).

66D. image. Al-Muhammadīyah. Year 166.

As no. 66 A but beneath the reverse area: د.

Ties., no. 989 (with one reference).

The prefect in Rayy in 166 was Sa'd, a freedman of the Caliph's, but we have no coin to support this statement. See, however, the Sa'd discussed under 68 E below, year 168. (Ṭab. III, 518, l.15; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 50, l.4). The governors in al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah were as before (Ṭab. III, 518, ll.8–12). A rising in Khurāsān against al-Musayyab put al-Faḍl b. Sulaymān al-Ṭūsi in his place. (Ṭab. III, 517, ll.8–10, 518, ll.8–12.)

67A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 167.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

علبه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

بخ

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 120; Berlin, nos. 849, 850; 16 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 374; Istanbul, no. 446, and two unnumbered; Paris, no. 721; Ties., no. 1013 (with seven references); ANS (two specimens).

67B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 167.

As no. 67 A, but with image beneath the reverse area instead of بخ.

Berlin, no. 851; Ties., no. 1014 (with د, probably the same as Berlin, – with two references).

67C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 167.

As no. 67 A, but the reverse reads:

الخليفة المهدى

مما امر به

موسى ولى

عهد المسلمين

Berlin, no. 852; one in Assur Collection, Berlin; Ties., no. 1015 (with two references).

The prefect in Rayy in 167 continued to be Sa'd, freedman of the Caliph (Ṭab. III, 521, l.11). The governors in al-Baṣrah, al-Kūfah and Khurāsān were as in the last year (Ṭab. III, 521, ll.4–8).

68A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 168.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

• بخ •

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 121 (the ف of الخلبفة is lacking); Berlin, no. 853; Istanbul, nos. 447–449 (three dies), and two unnumbered; Paris, no. 722; Ties., no. 1040 (with 15 references); ANS; GCM, two specimens.

68B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 168.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Obv. margin:بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Porter, N.C., 1921, pg. 318 (referred to by Zambaur in Neue Khalifenmünzen, N.Z., Wien, 1922, pg. 5).

68C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 168.

As no. 68 B, but without ه beneath the reverse area, and with pellets as follows on the reverse margin: above س of ارسله; above و of ودين; above ظ of ليظهره; above ه of كله; and with the latter part of the reverse margin written so: على الدين كله لوكرلشركن. The first part of the obverse margin so: بسم الله هذا الدرهم لمحمدرسة سنة الخ.

ANS.

68D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 168.

Obverse as no. 68 A above.

Rev. (Arrangement of lines not indicated)

الخلييفة المهدى مما امر به موسى ولى عهد المسلمين

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Marsden, Vol. I, no. xxxii, pp. 32–34.

68E. image. Al-Rayy. Year 168.

Size and type of the Ṭabaristān Sasanian style.

Obv. Usual head of Khosraw II.

At left, in Pahlevi: image GDH AFZUT

image crescat majestas!

At right, in Kufic: image= سعد

Rev. Usual fire-altar and attendants.

At left, in Kufic: بالرىّ سنة

At right, in Kufic: ثمان وستين ومئة

Obv. margin: right lower quarter: image = AFD

left lower quarter: image

Istanbul, unpublished, no. 84/46; Berlin, unpublished, no. 127/1935, Gotha.

Mūsa, the heir apparent, whose name appears on no. 68 D, is al-Hādi.

For Sa'd, the mawla of al-Mahdi, (no. 68 E), cf. the notes under nos. 66 and 67 above. Although the chroniclers do not tell us that Sa'd continued as prefect of Rayy in the year 168, we have in this remarkable coin not only evidence of his continuation in office, but also reasonable confirmation of the accuracy of the reports for the years 166 and 167. The coin is unique in the numismatic history of Rayy, and for the moment can only be explained as testimony of some political endeavour the history of which has not been preserved. We know nothing of Sa'd other than the report that he held office at Rayy, but I believe we may safely assume that he was a freedman of Ṭabaristān, who was accustomed to and probably admired the fine coinage of the Sasanian type still in use in that province. But there can hardly be any doubt that there was a political significance as well. The Ispahbad and Arab governor coinage of Sasanian type continued to be struck in Ṭabaristān until the year 143 of the Ṭabaristān era = 178 A. H. = 794 A. D. The Ṭabaristān era began in 31 A.H./651 A.D. with the death of Yazdikirt. Relations between Ṭabaristān and Rayy were throughout history close, either in enmity or amity. No better insight into the traffic between the two provinces is afforded than in ibn-Isfandiyār's History of Ṭabaristān. See for example Hārūn al-Rashīd's placing his son, al-Ma'mūn, in the hands of Wandād Hurmuzd for tutelage (Ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 43–45). In 167 and for three years 'Umar b. al-'Alā' of Rayy was governor of Ṭabaristān (Ṭab. III, 520, l.14; al-Hamadhāni, 311, l.4)1.

69A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 169.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Obv. margin: بس الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع وستين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Marsden, Vol. I, no. XXXIV, pg. 35; Tornberg, no. 124, pg. 34; Istanbul (two specimens).

69B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 169.

Obverse as no. 69 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة المهدى

بخ

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1075 (with three references).

69C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 169.

Obverse as no. 69 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة موسى

ح

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 75 (176), pg. 27; Ties., no. 2779.

69D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 169.

As no. 69 C, but last line of the reverse area reads الخليفة الهادى and above: به; beneath: صل. (My notes may be inaccurate.)

One specimen in Assur Collection, Berlin.

69E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 169.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

م

Rev.

محمد

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة موسى

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة تسع وستين ومئة

B.M.i, cop. no. 124; Berlin, no. 2170; Ties., no. 1092 (with one reference); ANS (two specimens); GCM, three specimens; Rayy, 1934, RCh 113, Rayy, 1936, RGQ 8576 (all in poor condition, with date and/or mint effaced).

No. 69 A is probably al-Mahdi's (cf. no. 68 B above); no. 69 B is certainly al-Mahdi's; the rest are al-Hādi's (note that in two cases, nos. 69 C and 69 E, the new Caliph still uses his own personal name, Mūsa). al-Mahdi died on the 22nd of Muḥarram, 169, and was succeeded by his son Mūsa al-Hādi. The governor of al-Kūfah (and Bihqubādh) was Mūsa b. 'Īsa; of al-Baṣrah, Muḥammad b. Sulaymān. A prefect in Iṣbahān is mentioned (Ṭayfūr, mawla of al-Hādi), but I find no reference to a prefect at Rayy. (Ṭab. III, 568, ll.12–17.)

70A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد رسول

اللهصلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الهادى

ر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

(بر = بركة; E. Meir, ZDMG, 1864, pg. 762, says برٌ.)

Istanbul, no. 472, and one unnumbered; Paris, no. 742; Ties., no. 1096 (with seven references); ANS.

70B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

As no. 70 A, but beneath the reverse area: به instead of بر.

Berlin, no. 923; four in Assur Collection, Berlin.

70C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

Obverse as no. 70 A.

Rev.

مبا

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

رك

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

مبا above, and رك beneath = مبارك

B.M. i, no. 188; Berlin, nos. 1073, 1074; 7 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 465; Paris, no. 810; Ties., no. 1110 (with seven references); ANS.

70D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

As no. 70 A, but the reverse reads:

مبا

محمد رسول الله

صلى الله عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

رك

Cairo, no. 464 (note typographical error, 107 instead of 170).

70E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

Obverse as no. 70 A.

Rev.

دا

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

ود

[دا [؟ above, and [ود [؟ beneath = [دادو [؟ (see discussion below).

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 497.

70F. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

image

Rev.

image

مما امر به

هرون امير المؤمنين

اعز الله نصره

بخ بخ

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة سبعين ومئة

Berlin, no. 2185; Paris, no. 1613; Ties., no. 1120 (ornaments not described); GCM (four specimens, of which three are obscure); Rayy, 1934, RG 2899; Rayy, 1936, RG 7955, 8215, RGQ 8581 (all poorly preserved, the ornaments obscure).

70G. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170 (?).

As no. 70 F, but beneath the obverse area image; above the reverse area: image.

Berlin, no. 2186.

70H. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 170.

As no. 70 F, but with image beneath the obverse area; and above the reverse area: image.

ANS; GCM, two specimens (two dies), date and mint obscure; Rayy, 1936, RG 8554 (mint effaced).

Nos. 70 A and 70 B are records of al-Hādi's brief reign. The rest are all Hārūn al-Rashīd's. It is to be noted that he uses the title al-Rashīd on the dirhams, and his own name, Hārūn, on the fulūs; and also that in this the first year of his reign, he himself "orders" the striking of the coppers (nos. 70 F, G, and H).

The word داوك,كاوك,داود or كاود appearing on no. 70 E, raises a problem. Ismā'īl Ghālib, author of the Istanbul catalogue, states (Istanbul, no. 500) that it is the name of Dāwūd b. Yazīd b. Ḥātim, and that he was appointed to the province of Rayy, upon the succession of his uncle, Rūḥ b. Ḥātim to the governorship of Africa. اشبو سكه لرده اسمى بولنان داود بن يزيد بن حاتم عميسى روح بن حاتمك آفريقيه واليسى اولمسى اوزرينه محمديه [رى] ولايتنه مأمور اولمشدى But he cites no authority to prove that this was the case. — We know that Dāwūd b. Yazīd b. Ḥātim became for a short time governor of Afrīqīyah following his father's death in Ramaḍān, 170 (Ibn-al-Athīr, V, 461, ll.8–10; VI, 75, ll.3ff.); that he was relieved of this post in Rajab, 171, when his uncle Rūḥ arrived there, and that he (Dāwūd) then went to al-Rashīd, who made use of him in some other capacity (Ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 78, ll.15–19); that he was in Khurāsān in 175 (Ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 84, ll.17ff.), governor of al-Sind in 184 (Ṭab. III, 649, ll.15–16; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 113, ll.17–18), and died in the year 205, then still governor of al-Sind (Ṭab. III, 1044, l.9; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 256, l.22). Did Ismā'īl Ghālib merely presume, using the name Dāwūd on the coin as evidence, that this individual was appointed to Rayy in 170, or did he draw his information from some historical source? His movements in the years 170–171 noted above, argue against the possibility of his having been at Rayy in 170. According to Ḥamzah b. al-Ḥasan al-Iṣbahāni, Dāwūd b. Yazīd was representative for Ghaṭrīf b. 'Atā, governor of Khurāsān, Jurjān and Sijistān in 175 (Ta'rīkh Sini Mulūk al-Arḍ wa-al-Anbiyā', ed. I. M. E. Gottwaldt, Petropoli-Lipsiae, 1844, p. 223, ll.11–14; cf. Stickel, Handbuch I, pg. 97).

If this word is actually the name of an individual, and this individual is to be identified as Dāwūd b. Yazīd b. Ḥātim, then we must correct either ibn-al-Athīr on the arrival of Rūḥ in Africa and the relieving of Dāwūd in 171, or Ismā'īl Ghālib in his reading of the date 170 on the coin in question. But there is further data that makes the adoption of this identification, I think, out of the question. The word appears on dirhams of al-Muḥammadīyah of the years 171, 172, 173, 174, 182, 183, 184, 186, 187 and 195 (cf. below), and also on the following dirhams: Zaranj 176, Sijistān 176, Ma'din Bājunais (near Khilāṭ in Armenia, cf. Yāqūt, I, 455, ll. 5–11) 190, 191, 192, 194, 195; and on dinars of the year 174. Bearing in mind that Dāwūd b. Yazīd was in Khurāsān in 175, and governor of al-Sind from 184 till 205, it is, to cite only two of many aspects of the conflicting geography and chronology, impossible for me to reconcile the historical information with the Muḥammadīyah issues of 186, 187, and 195, or the Armenian issues of 190–195.

Without elaborating the question, I think there are strong arguments against Dāwūd (or however the word is to be transliterated) being, in the case of Rayy at least, the name of an individual who had anything directly to do with the government of the city or the province. It has occurred to me, however, that the word, if it is to be read Dāwūd, might just possibly be the Dāwūd b. Yazīd b. Ḥātim we have been discussing, not in a particular capacity, but as the most prominent member of the Muhallabid family in the eastern provinces, who was thus occasionally honoured by having his name introduced on the coinage, a privilege which would be somewhat analogous to that exercised by the Barmakid Ja'far (cf. the discussion under no. 76 below). But I suggest this only out of desperation; I consider it very unlikely. If the word is not a name, then it is one of the auxiliary words used to indicate genuineness, validity etc. But I can suggest no reading of the four ambiguous Kufic letters that produces a legitimate word. E. Meier, ZDMG, 1864, pp. 769–770, made out كأَوْدٍ, "wie eine Beschwerung", from أاد, "beschweren", اود, "Beschwerung", i. e. "certified weight". The explanation is ingenious but unattractive. I am compelled to leave the question open for the time being. In the descriptions of the coins which follow bearing the word, I have, for the sake of brevity, always transcribed داود, even though this may not be the correct transcription.

Al-Hādi died the 16th of Rabī' I, 170, and Hārūn al-Rashīd then succeeded to the Caliphate. The governors in al-Baṣrah and al-Kūfah were as in the preceding year (Ṭab. III, 605, ll.14–17); the governor of Khurāsān was al-Faḍl b. Sulaymān al-Ṭūsi (Ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 75, ll.21–22).

71A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 171.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مبا

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

رك

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 189; Berlin, nos. 1075, 1076; 7 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 466; Paris, no. 811; Ties., no. 1123 (with five references); Istanbul, two unnumbered; (see also no. 92 below).

71B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 171.

As no. 71 A, but above the reverse area دا and beneath ود = داود, in place of مبارك.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 80 (185), pg. 28; Istanbul, no. 498; Ties., no. 1124, and no. 1124 (pg. 303) (with two references); 4 in Assur Collection, Berlin; ANS.

71C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 171.

Obverse as no. 71 A.

Rev.

حارب

محمد رسول الله

الخليفة الرشيد

مما امر به محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ص

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1077.

Nützel transcribes the word above the reverse area as حارث. I think it is more probably جارب, a strange and philologically unsound form for مُجرِب, "warranted" or "assayed". As for ص beneath the reverse, it may be a minter's mark; or does it stand for صرد = "pure, unmixed", or possibly صحيح = "perfect, genuine, valid"?

For Dāwūd (no. 71 B), see the discussion under no. 70 above. Muḥammad, mentioned on the coin no. 71 C, is al-Amīn, later Caliph, and now, in 171, recognized in this fashion as heir apparent. Al-Faḍl b. Sulaymān al-Ṭūsi, mentioned already under no. 70 above, left Khurāsān for Baghdād (Ṭab. III, 605, l.20–606, l.1).

72A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 172.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

دا

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسام

الخليفة الرشيد

ود

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين مسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 190; Berlin, nos. 1078, 1079; 8 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Bodleian, no. 76; Cairo, no. 469; Istanbul, nos. 499, 500 (two dies); Paris, no. 812; Ties., no. 1150 (with eight references); ANS.

72B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 172.

Obverse as no. 72 A.

Rev.

حارب

محمد رسول

الله الخليفة الرشيد

مما امر به محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

ص

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 191; Cairo, no. 467 (word above the reverse transcribed حارث); ANS.

72C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 172.

Obverse as no. 72 A.

Reverse as no. 72 B, but above: حارب and beneath: الفضل.

Cairo, no. 468.

72D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 172.

Obverse as no. 72 A.

Reverse as no. 72 C, but فضل in place of • الفضل •.

Ties., no. 1151 (حارب = حارب or حارت sic.); ANS.

72E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 172.

As no. 72 B, but above the reverse area يحيى, beneath به.

Porter, N. C., 1921, pg. 319 (discussed by Zambaur in N. Z., Wien, 1922, pg. 6); 6 in Assur Collection, Berlin.

For داود (no. 72 A), see the discussion under no. 70 above. For حارب and ص (nos. 72 B, C and D), see under no. 71. Faḍl and al-Faḍl (nos. 72 C and 72 D) is doubtless in the category of words like مبارك,بركة, etc. Yaḥya (transcribed الهلى "probably for الجلى" by Porter) is undoubtedly Yaḥya b. Khālid, the Barmakid, who was appointed vizier in the year 170 (Ṭab. III, 603, l. 19). (Cf. Stickel, Handbuch I, CIX, pg. 93.)

73A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 173.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

يحيى

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

بهلول

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنت ثلث وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 83A (XI), pg. 101; B.M.i, no. 193 (illustr. Pl. V); Cairo, no. 470; Ties., no. 1169 (with three references); 8 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, unnumbered.

73B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 173.

As no. 73 A, but above the reverse area, سلام, in place of يحيى; beneath, معوية, in place of بهلول.

B.M.i, no. 192; Ties., no. 1172; two in Assur Collection, Berlin.

73C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 173.

As no. 73 A, but above the reverse area دا, beneath ود = داود.

Ties., no. 1170.

73D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 173.

A partially preserved coin as no. 73 A above (apparently), but beneath the reverse area: داود (the top is not preserved).

Tornberg, Suppl., no. 143a (pg. 305).

For Yaḥya (no. 73 A) see the note under no. 72 above; داود (nos. 73 C and 73 D), see no. 70.

For Mu'āwiyah (no. 73 B), I can suggest with a fair amount of confidence that the person is Mu'āwiyah b. Zufar b. 'Āṣim, whose name is preserved to us solely through the fact that he led the summer raiding campaigns in the years 178 and 180 (Ṭab. III, 637, l.11; 645, l.15). This identification is supported by my argument in reference to 'Uthmān b. Zufar under no. 79 below, q. v.

As for بهلول (no. 73 A), usually transcribed بهلول, which occurs so far as I know, on no other 'Abbāsid coin, Stickel suggested (Handbuch, I, pp. 93–94) that we should read يحيى بهلول, i.e. Yaḥya is Herr, der alles Guten voll, or Yaḥya is princeps omni bono praeditus. Meier (ZDMG, 1864, no. 9, pp. 772–773) wanted to read it as a mark of genuineness, "schön, vortrefflich" with بخي (i.e. a بخ dirham!) instead of يحيى. I know of no individual by this name who might be the Bahlūl in question, and can put forward nothing more appropriate than Stickel's suggestion, which however is not very satisfactory.

سلام (no. 73 B) is surely a word used as a benedictory or pious accessory, like مبارك,بركة, etc.

In this year Ja'far b. Muḥammad b. al-Ash'ath was recalled from Khurāsān and was succeeded by his son al-'Abbās (Ṭab. III, 609, ll.12–13).

74A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 174.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله حوده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 84 (189), pg. 29; B.M. i, no. 194; Ties., no. 1183 (with six references); one in Assur Collection, Berlin.

74B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 174.

Obverse as no. 74 A.

Rev.

دا

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله

عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشبد

ود

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

74C. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah (?). Year 174 (?).

This coin, the reading of both the date and the mint questioned, is almost certainly 184, q. v. (Tiesenhausen had already pointed out the likelihood of this, no. 1193, pg. 303).

Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Additamentis, no. 148b, pg. 226 (Ties., no. 1193; Tiesenhausen's other reference, Fraehn, Bull. hist. phil. I, pg. 106, no. 5, has not been accessible to me).

سلام (no. 74 A), see under no. 73. صرد, which, so far as I know, appears only on the coins of al-Muḥammadīyah, is probably to be interpreted as meaning "pure, unmixed", and not as a person's name. (Cf. Stickel, Handbuch, I, no. CX, pp. 94–97, where he suggests among other things that it may refer to the director of the mint.) For داود cf. no. 70 above.

75A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 175.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه محمد

ولى هد المسلمين

صرد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 814; one in Assur Collection, Berlin.

75B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 175.

Obverse as no. 75 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

صلى الله عليه

وسلم الخليفة الرشيد

يزيد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, nos.1080–1082; seven in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 471 (with reference to B.M. i, no. 195, although transcribed Yazīd, while B.M.i, no. 195 has راد, cf. no. 75 C below); Paris, no. 813; Ties., no. 1196 (with ten references, at least two dies); Istanbul, unnumbered; ANS (two specimens).

75C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 175.

Obverse as no. 75 A.

Reverse as no. 75 B, but in place of يزيد, beneath the reverse area يراك?

B.M.i, no. 195.

(I would presume that on this specimen the word below the reverse is obscure and that يرايد is thus merely a misreading for يزيد. Still, it may represent another die on which the engraver made an error with a new name. Lane-Poole refers the specimens to Ties., no. 1196, but those, no. 75 B, are presumably all correct يزيد.)

Al-Amīn is here (no. 75 A) given the title Wali 'Ahd, whereas heretofore, while the presence of his name on the coinage was sufficient evidence of his proclamation as heir apparent, he was termed only "son of the Commander of the Faithful". The probability is that the Yazīd in question (no. 75 B and no. 75 C?) is Yazīd b. Mazīd al-Shaybāni, who was a general in Khurāsān, year 160 (Ṭab. III, 470, ll.10ff.); with Hārūn al-Rashīd in al-Rūm in 165 (Ṭab. III, 503, ll.19ff.); with Mūsa in Jurjān in 167 (Ṭab. III, 519, l.5), and again with Mūsa in 170 (Ṭab. III, 572, l.1); removed from his post in Armenia in 172 (Ṭab. III, 607, ll.5–6). Between 172 and 179 I have not been able to find mention of his movements, but in the latter year he was called into service by al-Rashīd (Ṭab. III, 638, ll.6–7), and in 183 was recalled to Armenia and Adharbayjān (Ṭab. III, 648, ll.5–6, and 748, ll.17ff.). He died in 185 at Bardha'ah in Adharbayjān (Ṭab. III, 650, l.16). His name appears in full, Yazīd b. Mazīd, on several coins: e. g. al-Hārūnīyah, years 169, 170; Armīnīyah, year 183; Arrān, years 183, 184 (Ties., B.M., Berlin). Stickel (Handbuch, I, no. CXI, pg. 97), following Fraehn (Recensio, pg. 15*, no. 150), and Nesselman (nos. 112, 113) pointed out that this identification was a possibility.

In this year, 175, al-'Abbās b. Ja'far was removed from the governorship of Khurāsān (Ṭab. III, 612, ll.5–6).

76A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 176.

Obv.

لا الله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مماامريه محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست وسعبين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 156, pg. 16*, obscure (Ties., no. 1210); Stickel, Handbuch, I, no. CXIII, pg. 98 (with date questioned, possibly 173, – but this is unlikely, cf. no. 73 above; the author states that the marginal legend is badly stamped).

76B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 176.

Obverse as no. 76 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامين

ولى عهد المسلمين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1211 (with four references, but the Fraehn Recensio specimen may well be no. 76C below).

76C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 176.

Obverse as no. 76 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به محمد

ولى عهد المسلمين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, unpublished, no. 404/1913 (with blundered سبعين); Fraehn, Recensio, no. 157, pg. 16* (?).

76D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 176.

Obverse as no. 76 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

الخليفة الرشيد على

يدى جعفر بن يحيى

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Two in Assur Collection, Berlin.

(My notes on these two specimens record that I considered the date and mint to be clear.)

76E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 176 (?).

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

مما امربه

هرون امير المؤمنين

اعز الله نصره

بخ بخ

Rev. margin: "Très-corrompue". Mint apparently clear, and the editor thought he could make out "176".

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 59, pg. 356 (Ties., no. 1222).

I am inclined to reject this coin, no. 76 E. Is it not more probably a poor specimen of the copper issue of the year 170, cf. nos. 70 F, G, and H, above?

With the exception of no. 76 D, the year 176 seems to have been a poor one at the mint of al-Muḥammadīyah. The few specimens extant are obscure or badly engraved or struck. As for no. 76 D, with the name of Ja'far b. Yaḥya, I hardly believe that the name of the Barmakid, Hārūn's favourite, on the coins ever has any real administrative significance in connection with the particular mint by which the coin was issued. For example in this year 176, Ja'far was appointed by Hārūn to Egypt, and in 177 he was removed from there (Ṭab. III, 626, l.12; 629; ll.5–6), and yet his name appears here on a coin of Rayy in 176. In 181, his name is to be found in full (i. e. Ja'far b. Yaḥya, as here) on coins of Miṣr and Damascus and yet he was not actually administering these cities. (In 180 he was nominally chief of the guard at Baghdād, Ṭab. III, 645, ll.3–4). Earlier, and later, his name, without his father's, is used quite extensively for a reason which I am about to explain; for example, on dīnārs of the years 170, 175, 179, 182, 183, 184, and 185 (and perhaps others, — I have not investigated exhaustively), and on dirhams of al-Muḥammadīyah (see the succeeding issues) and of Madīnat al-Salām, 179, Zaranj, 180, and Miṣr, 182. And in the present instance, the governor of al-Jibāl, Ṭabaristān, Damāwand, Qūmis, Armīnīyah and Adharbayjān was his brother al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya (Ṭab. III, 612, ll.16–17). Ja'far's appointments were seldom anything but honorary. I question if Zambaur is justified in listing him as vizier from the year 177 (Manuel, pg. 6), basing this assertion on the numismatic evidence. On that basis he could be called vizier in 176, or even in 170.

Of especial significance is the fact that we find in Maqrīzi an unusually satisfying statement bearing on the use of the vizier's name on the coinage. We learn that Hārūn al-Rashīd was the first to give up the personal superintendence of the coinage, and that he delegated the duty to Ja'far, thus adding greatly to the latter's prestige. Ja'far accordingly put his name on dīnārs, and on dirhams struck at Madīnat al-Salām and al-Muḥammadīyah. فلما صير امير المؤنين هرون الرشيد السكك الى جعفر بن يحيى البرمكى كتب اسمه لمدينة السلام وبالمحمدية من الرىّ على الدنانير و الدرهم....وهرون الرشيد اول خليفة ترفع عن مباشرة العيار بنفسه وكان الخلفا من قلبله يتولون النطر فى عيار الدرهم [sic] مالدنانير بانفسهم (Al-Maqrīzī, Shudhūr al-'Uqūd fi Dhikr al-Nuqūd, pg. 8, ll. 8–10, ll. 13–14 of L.A. Mayer's facsimile of Maqrīzi's revised autograph, Leyden MS. Or. 560 Warn., Alexandria, 1933. Tychsen's text is faulty: وبالمحمدية من الذى على الدنانير والدراهم instead of وبالمحمدية من الرىّ etc. Maqrīzi recognized the identity of al-Muḥammadīyah and Rayy, a fact that was not rediscovered till the middle of the last century. Tychsen did not know it; if he had read الرىّ instead of الذى, – it is clear in the Maqrīzi autograph – he would have been able to establish the identification late in the 18th Century. Furthermore, Lane-Poole, quoting from de Sacy's translation, which I have not seen, would not have mistranslated the passage in question. O. G. Tychsen, Al-Makrizi Historia Monetae Arabicae, etc., Rostochii, 1797, pg. 24, ll.7–11, l.15–pg.25, l.3; cf. Lane-Poole, The Arabian Historians on Muhammadan Numismatics, pg. 27, in Some Private Collections of Mohammadan Coins and other Essays, etc., London, 1892.)

In this year, 176, al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, as mentioned above, was appointed over the districts of al-Jibāl, Ṭabaristān, Damāwand (Dunbāwand), Qūmis, Armīnīyah and Adharbayjān (Rayy is not specifically mentioned, but presumably is included in al-Jibāl; but cf. the note from Ṭabari under no. 77 below, where Rayy is added to his domains, as a part of Khurāsān, in the year 177). (Ṭab. III, 612, ll.16–17.)

Ḥamzah b. Mālik was appointed to Khurāsān (cf. nos. 60 above and 77 below) (Ṭab. loc. cit.).

77A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه محمد

ولى عهد المسلمين>

صرد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع و سبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1228 (and pg. 303) (with three references).

77B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

Obverse as no. 77 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه محمد

ولى عهد المسامين

محبوب

Pellet under the ب of محبوب.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1083.

77C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

Obverse as no. 77 A.

Rev.

رو

محمد رسول الله

صلى الله عليه وسلم

الخليفة الرشيد

ح

رو and ح above and beneath = روح

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1229 (one reference).

77D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

Obverse as no. 77 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1230 (one specimen).

77E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

*

Rev.

بخ

مما امر به

الاميرالعباس

بن محمد

• * •

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة وسبعين مئة

Istanbul, no. 780; Rayy, 1934, RF 2883 (date and mint effaced); Rayy, 1936, RG 8216 (date effaced).

77F. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 177.

As no. 77 E, but with nothing beneath the obverse area, and nothing above the reverse area, but و beneath (and العباس effaced).

Paris, no. 1614.

77G. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 17(7).

As no. 77 E, but with ◯ beneath the obverse area, • above the reverse area, and • * • beneath; the digit of the date obscure.

Berlin, no. 2199 (mint effaced and listed among the "Unbestimmte Prägörte"); ANS; GCM, two specimens.

"Maḥbūb" beneath the reverse of no. 77 B is probably to be interpreted as meaning "approved", but the use of the word is strange. It is of interest to note the use of the term "Zar maḥbūb", or simply "Maḥbūb", for a gold coin introduced by the Ottoman Sulṭān Aḥmed III (1115–1143), a term said to have originated in Egypt (cf. B.M. viii, pp. xx–xxi and Ismā'īl Ghālib's note in Taqvīm Meskūkāt-i-'Osmaniyyeh, Qusṭanṭīniyyah, 1307, pg. 272; and also, for a later period, R. Dozy, Supplément aux Dictionnaires Arabes, pg. 242, with references to E. Bocthor, Dictionnaire français-arabe, 3e. ed., Paris, 1864; Humbert, Guide de la conversation arabe. . ., Paris, Geneva, 1838; and Roland de Bussy, L'idiome d'Alger, Alger, 1847).

Rūḥ, no. 77 C, is quite possibly the freedman by that name who served al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, governor of most of the East in this year. Cf. the note below and also under no. 76 above. He is only mentioned once in Ṭabari (III, 610, l.19–611, l.1), and then simply as Rūḥ, mawla of al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, in connection with the reporting of Hārūn al-Rashīd's choice of Muḥammad al-Amīn as his successor in the year 174. It could not be Rūḥ b. Ḥātim, who died in Africa in 174 (Ṭab. III, 609, l.20).

For داود cf. the discussion under no. 70 above.

Al-Amīr al-'Abbās b. Muḥammad, who ordered the minting of the copper coins of al-Muḥammadīyah (3 variations, nos. 77E, F, and G), cannot be definitely identified. 'Abbās b. Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm b. 'Ali is a possibility; we know nothing of him except that he was a governor of Mecca in al-Rashīd's time (Ṭab. III, 739, ll.16–17). This identification has already been proposed by Zambaur (Contrib. III, no. 405, pg.118; cf. no. 78 below). A more likely candidate, it seems to me, is 'Abbās b. Muḥammad b. al-Musayyab, who was placed over the body-guard of Ja'far b. Yaḥya when the latter was sent to Syria in 180 (Ṭab. III, 639, ll.10–11), and was later with al-Ma'mūn in Khurāsān (Ṭab. III, 771, ll.16–18; 772, ll.6–9). 'Abbās b. Muḥammad appears on another coin (undated) described under no. 78 below.

In this year al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya (cf. no. 76 above), received a greater extension of his powers of governorship when Ḥamzah b. Mālik (cf. nos. 60 and 76 above) was removed from Khurāsān, and he, Faḍl, was given this province along with Rayy and Sijistān (Ṭab. III, 629, ll.6–8; ibn-al-Athīr adds "other places", to the last named localities, VI, 96, ll.21–23).

78. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Undated.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امربه ولى عهد

المسلمين محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية على يدى [العباس] بن محمد

Berlin, nos.2206, 2207 (mint and name of prefect effaced, unassigned); Zambaur, Contrib. III, no.405, pg.118; ANS.

Cf. the comments on al-'Abbās b. Muḥammad under no. 77, year 177.

79A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 178.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه االامير محمد

ولى عهد المسلمين

محبوب

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية ثمان وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

79B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 178.

Obverse as no. 79 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

ولى عهد المسلمين

محبوب

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1244 (with three references).

79C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 178.

Obverse as no. 79 A, but حسه beneath the area.

Rev.

Above the area: سلام

Beneath the area: عثمن

(I failed to note the inscriptions in the body of the area, but they are probably: محمد||رسول||الله).

Rev. inner margin: مما امربه الامير محمد ولى عهد المسلمين

Rev. outer margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

79D. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 178.

Not described by the editor.

Fonrobert, no. 6260.

For maḥbūb (nos. 79 A and B), cf. no. 77 above. I do not know how to explain the word beneath the obverse area of no. 79 C. Note the unusual position of the recognition of the heir apparent, al-Amīn, on an inner marginal legend of the reverse, and also the fact that in this year his name is given both as al-Amīn and as Muḥammad. I would reject the copper issue, no. 79 D, as I know of no other specimen, and the one cited here cannot be considered reliable, particularly as there is no description of the coin.

The 'Uthmān, whose name is recorded on the reverse of no. 79 C, is surely the same 'Uthmān b. Zufar whom we find on some coins of al-Muḥammadīyah in the following year, 179 (cf. no. 80 below). I have not been able to find any reference to a person by this name in the chronicles. I may suggest, however, the strong likelihood of his being a son of Zufar b. 'Āṣim al-Hilāli, a general and governor in the days of al-Manṣūr and al-Mahdi. Zufar was governor of Ḥalab (Aleppo) in 137, of Mecca in 160, of al-Jazīrah in 163 (Ṭab. III, 94, l.13: 487, l.7; 498, ll.15–16); and commanded the summer campaigns in 154, 156, and 157 (Ṭab. III, 373, l.2; 378, l.16; 380, ll.12–13). If we are right in assuming this Zufar to be 'Uthmān's father, then 'Uthmān is a brother of that Mu'āwiyah b. Zufar b. 'Āṣim, who led the summer campaigns in the years 178 and 180, and whom I have tentatively identified as the Mu'āwiyah whose name appears on a Rayy coin of the year 173 (cf. no. 73 above). The two suggested identifications support each other to such an extent that I am inclined to put forward quite definitely the thesis that the Mu'āwiyah of 173 is Mu'āwiyah b. Zufar and that 'Uthmān of 178 and 179 (forgotten in history) is his brother. (Cf. no. 80 below). It is likely that the family had become residents of Rayy.

In this year, 178, al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, who had been appointed to Khurāsān the year before (cf. no. 77 above), took his post there (Ṭab. III, 631, l.5).

80A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 179.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير محمد

ولى عهد المسلمين

عثمن

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

80B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 179.

Obverse and reverse as no. 80A, but beneath the reverse area عثمن بن زفر instead of عثمن.

Paris, no. 815 (illustr. Pl. IV).

80C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 179.

Obverse and reverse as no. 80B, but beneath سلام a pellet.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

80D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 179.

A coin which I have not seen, but which is recorded on a marker in the cabinet at Istanbul, unnumbered (the coin itself had been removed) with the note ∴ الفضل.

80E. image. Al-Rayy. Year 179.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير ملى

عهد المسلمين الامين

محمد بن اميرالمؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب بالرىّ فى ولاية محمد بن يحيى سنة تسع وسبعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 793; Ties., no. 1260 (with three references); a specimen in the Novgorod 1920 hoard (referred to in Anderson-Vasmer, pg. XI, footnote).

80F. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 179.

Obv.

[لا اله [الا

ا [لله وحد ]ه

لا ش [ري]ك له

Rev.

محمد]رسول ]

[الله ]ص [لى الله ]

[عايه [وسام

[الخليفة [ال ]ر ش [يد

Rev. margin: [ب ]سم الله ضرب هذا الفلس [بالمحم]دية سنت وسبعين وم[ئة]

Rayy, 1934, RF 2885.

(The fragmentary coin Ties., no. 1261, image, al-Muḥammadīyah(?), 179, from Fraehn's Recensio, is probably to be rejected.)

For 'Uthmān and 'Uthmān b. Zufar on nos. 80A, 80B, and 80C, cf. no. 79 above. Faḍl (no. 80 D) must be al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, who in this year, 179, left Khurāsān and delegated in his place his lieutenant, 'Umar b. Shuraḥbīl (Ṭab. III, 637, ll.17–18). Al-Rashīd then appointed Manṣūr b. Yazīd b. Manṣūr al-Ḥimyari to the office (Ṭab. III, 638, l.1). For Ja'far (no. 80 E) cf. no. 76 above.

As for Muḥammad b. Yaḥya, whose name is engraved on the obverse margin of no. 80E, — "struck in al-Rayy1 in the province of Muḥammad b. Yaḥya", we have here a record of Muḥammad b. Yaḥya b. al-Ḥārith b. Shakhīr, who is mentioned in Ṭabari as having been given the government of Rayy in the year 180 (Ṭab. III, 645, ll.12–14; cf. no. 81 below). The coin under discussion here proves that Muḥammad was already governor of Rayy in 179, although Ṭabari has it that al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya was not removed from al-Rūyān, Ṭabaristān and Rayy till 180 (Ṭab., loc. cit.). I believe that we should consider that the passage in Ṭabari means that in the year 179 (see above, under discussion of no. 80D) al-Faḍl's large domains included the above-mentioned provinces, and that he was relieved of them in 180; and we need correct Ṭabari only in his placing the prefecture of Muḥammad b. Yaḥya in Rayy one year late.

81A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 180.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 196 (with point beneath ب ofضرب); Berlin, nos. 1084–1085; Berlin, no. 1086 (another die, annulet variation); 46 in Assur Collection, Berlin (two dies, annulet variation); Cairo, nos. 473, 474; Istanbul, nos. 501, 502; Ties., no. 1277 (with fifteen references); ANS.

81B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 180.

Obverse as no. 81 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير محمد

ولى عهد المسلمين

محبوب

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 503 (illustr. Pl. 3); Tornberg, no. 162, pg. 44 (Ties., no. 1275).

81C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 180.

Obverse as no. 81 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول

الله مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امين المؤمنين في

ولاية محمد بن يحيى

حعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, nos. 1087–1089; 14 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 472 (• above reverse area, probably a misreading); Istanbul, no. 504; Paris, no. 816 (with point below ب of ضر); Ties., no. 1276 (with eight references); ANS (two specimens).

81D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 180.

Obverse as no. 81 A.

Reverse blank.

Ties., no. 1278 (one reference).

81E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 180.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امربه ولى عهد

المسلمين محمد

بن امير المؤمنين

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية على يدى المير.....سنة ثمانين ومئة

Bartholomae à Soret, III, no. 12, pg.31 (with ابن, 3rd line of reverse, in the transcription) (Ties., no. 1292); Rayy, 1934, RTA 1171 (mint and date obscure); RH 4659 (mint effaced), RH 4777 (mint and date effaced).

In the bibliography of Tychsen, Introductio, pg. 42, there is a reference to a dīnār of al-Muḥammadīyah, year 180, Caroli Auriuillii disquisitio de numis arabicio...... unus Alamini a. 180, Mohammediae, Denarius Abbasidarum. I have not been able to run down this original citation, but I strongly suspect the authenticity of the supposed dīnār. Dīnārs with the mint name al-Muḥammadīyah are known only commencing with the year 234 A.H., and furthermore there is no record of the provincial mints in any part of the empire having struck dīnārs before the very end of the 2nd Century (see no.122 below, and the table of dīnārs there).

For Muḥammad b. Yaḥya (no. 81 C, and doubtless no. 81 E), see the note under no. 80 above. It is to be remarked that on the issues of the year 180 he uses the name of the city rather than that of the province.

Ja'far (nos. 81 A and 81 C), is doubtless the famous Ja'far b. Yaḥya again. During this year Ja'far "governed" Khurāsān for a brief twenty days (Ṭab. III, 644, ll.16–18), during which time, or rather probably after his appointment and before his actual taking of office, he chose Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan b. Qaḥṭabah as his legate (Ṭab. III, 644, ll.14–15). When the Caliph relieved Ja'far of the office in Khurāsān, 'Īsa b. Ja'far was appointed in his place (Ṭab. III, 694, ll.16–18). During this year also the State Seal was taken from Ja'far and given to his father, Yaḥya b. Khālid (Ṭab. III, 644, ll.12–13); and Ja'far was assigned the responsibility of the guard (الحرس) (Ṭab. III, 644, l.19). It is apparent that none of these events had any effect upon the privilege that Ja'far already possessed of placing his name on the coinage (cf. the discussion under no. 76 above).

82A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 181.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وثمنين و ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 197 (with point under ب of ضرب); Berlin, nos. 1090–1092; Berlin, no. 1093 (another die); 37 of one die, 33 of another, and one of a third die in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 475; Istanbul, nos. 505, 506, 507 (three dies, annulet and border variations); Paris, no. 817; Ties., no. 1296 (with thirteen references); ANS (two specimens, both with the point under the ب of ضرب); GCM (also with the point).

82B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 181.

Obverse as no. 82 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير الامين

ولى عهد المسلمين

[اسك or] اسد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

One specimen in Assur Collection, Berlin.

Asad (?), whose name appears on the unique coin, no. 82 B, might possibly be Asad b. Yazīd b. Mazīd, who later, on the death of his father in 185 (cf. no. 75 above) governed Armenia (Ṭab. III, 650, l.16) and was with al-Ma'mūn at the time of al-Rashīd's death in 193 (Ṭab. III, 734, ll.2–3); later, 196, imprisoned by al-Amīn (Ṭab. III, 833ff.). There is no mention in the chronicles of the removal of Muḥammad b. Yaḥya (nos. 80–81, above) from the government of Rayy in 181, but since the latter's name no longer appears on the dirhams of this year it is quite possible that the unique coin under discussion records the appointment of a new governor in his place; but it is curious that there should be only one specimen of this die extant. In the following year, 182 (see no. 83 J below), we meet the name again, and once more the small number of specimens known in comparison to the number of specimens of the same year of various other dies, without the name Asad, is remarkable. (Cf. a reference of Tiesenhausen under no. 1314a where it appears that Fraehn in his unpublished notes suggested "Ased ben-Jesid Scheibanides", i. e. Asad b. Yazīd b. Mazīd.)

83A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنين وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, nos.1094, 1095; 19 of one die, five of another, four of a third, and two of a fourth die in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, no. 510, and one unnumbered; Ties., no. 1314 (with seven references); ANS (two specimens).

83B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 A, but with ا.ا above the area in place of و, and جعفر beneath.

Berlin, no. 1096; 34 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, nos. 508, 509; Paris, no. 818; Ties., no. 1316 (with eight references); ANS.

83C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 A, but with ∴ above the area in place of و, and جعفر beneath.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 105 (233, 234), pg. 35; B.M. i, no.198; Cairo, nos. 476–478; Istanbul, no. 511, and two unnumbered; Ties., no. 1317 (with two references); 15 in Assur Collection, Berlin; ANS.

83D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 A, but with nothing above the area; and حعفر beneath.

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 840 (probably); Istanbul, no. 512; Tornberg, no. 174, pg. 47 (Ties., no. 1313).

83E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 A, but with a pellet beneath حعفر.

Ties., no. 1315.

83F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه االامين ولى

عهد المسلمين الامير

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1097; Ties., no. 1318 (one reference with arrangement of lines not indicated); Ties., no. 1322 (with one reference).

83G. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 F, but without و above the area; جعفر beneath.

Ties., no. 1321 (with three references).

83H. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امر به الامير لامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Ties., no. 1319 (with one reference).

83I. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Reverse as no. 83 H, but with س above the area in place of جعفر ;و beneath.

Ties., no. 1320 (with one reference).

83J. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 182.

Obverse as no. 83 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

اسد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1314a (with two references); one in Assur Collection, Berlin.

(The dirham, da Cunha, Pt.1, no. 841, pg. 34, cannot be assigned to one of the dies described above, for lack of exact description; so also with dirhams listed by Nesselman and Karabacek in ZDMG, 1858, pg. 694; 1866, pg. 610, and 1870, pg. 231.)

For Asad, see the note under no. 82 above; داود, see under no. 70.

84A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 183.

Obv.

لا الله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

س

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no 199; Berlin, nos. 1102–1104; 34 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, no. 513, and three unnumbered; Paris, no. 819; Ties., no. 1342 (with twelve references; the editor corrected the omission of the word صلى from the 3rd line, on pg. 304, no. 1342); ANS (three specimens).

84B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 183.

Obverse as no. 84 A.

Reverse as no.84 A, but with و above the area instead of جعفر :س beneath.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 110 (243), pg. 36; Ties., no. 2796 (with one reference).

84C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 183.

Obverse as no.84 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. Add. i, no. 198a, pg. 51; Berlin, nos. 1098–1101; 37 in Assur Collection, Berlin (two dies, variation in annulets); Cairo, nos. 479,479 A; Istanbul, no.515, and three unnumbered; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N.C., 1885, pg. 329; Rogers Collection, no. 359; Ties., no. 1341 (with ten references); ANS (two specimens).

84D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 183.

Obverse as no. 84 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 514 (the word beneath the reverse area transcribed صبر?); ANS.

84E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 183.

Obverse as no. 84 A.

Reverse as no. 84 D, but with داود above the area; صرد beneath.

Cairo, no. 480.

For داود see the discussion under no. 70 above.

In this year 'Ali b. 'Īsa named his son as his representative in Khurāsān, and the Caliph al-Rashīd approved the appointment (Ṭab. III, 648, l.17–649, l.1). As the name Asad appears on none of the coins of the year 183, I presume he was no longer (if ever) governor of Rayy; but the rarity of the specimens with his name in the two preceding years makes a definite conclusion impossible.

85A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

س

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 200; Berlin, nos. 1105–1108; 45 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 481; Istanbul, no. 516, and one unnumbered; Ties., no. 1357 (with 14 references); ANS.

85B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obverse as no. 85 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول

الله الامين ولى

عهد المسلمين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 820; Ties., no. 2804 (with one reference); Tornberg, Suppl. 186a (Ties., no. 1359).

85C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obverse as no. 85 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no. 201 (point beneath ر of ضرب); Ties., no. 1360 (with two references); Istanbul, unnumbered and misassigned to year 164.

85D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obverse as no. 85 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير ولى

عهد المسلمين الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

• بخ •

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 2801 (with one ref. to Nesselmann, ZDMG, 1858, pg. 694, no. 5).

85E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obverse as no. 85 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امر به الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 2800 (with one reference).

85F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obverse as no. 85 A.

Rev.

عبيد

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

محمد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 2803 (with one reference).

85G. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 184.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

مما امربه ولى عهد

المسلمين محمد بن امير

المؤمنين على يدى الحرب

مولى امير المؤمنين

*

Border: image

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة اربع وثمنين ومئة

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 61, pp. 356–357 (illustr. Pl. XIV, fig. 10; الحرث or الحرب; the pellets above the area not described or illustrated in the drawing, nor is the star beneath the transcription) (Ties., no. 1369); Berlin, no. 2187 (الحرب, so transcribed); GCM, obscure; Rayy, 1936, RN 6903 (date and mint effaced).

For Dāwūd (nos. 85 B and C), see the discussion under no. 70 above.

'Ubayd, appearing on no. 85 F, and later in the years 187, 188, 189, 190 and 195 (nos. 88, 89, 90, 91 and 96 below), sometimes as 'Ubaydullāh, is a name that I cannot explain. He might possibly be the 'Ubaydullāh b. Yaḥya who appears on coins of Arrān in 209 and 210 (F. Soret, Lettre à M. Sawelief, etc., in Rev. Num. Belge, 1854, no. 28, pp. 293–294; B.M.i, no. 272), but who was this individual? Or was it 'Ubaydullāh b. al-Mahdi, appointed to the governorship of Armenia in 172 (Ṭab. III, 607, ll.5–6)?

As for الحرب مولى امير المؤمنين, on the copper issue no. 85 G, it is impossible to tell whether the name of this freedman was al-Ḥarib (الحرب) or al-Ḥarith, for al-Ḥārith (الحارث). In either case his name is not preserved in the chronicles. The only Ḥarib possible is Ḥarib b. Qays abu-Ḥanīfah, and he was no freedman, and besides was already a grown man in the year 137 (Ṭab. III, 114, l.11). There is no Ḥārith who fits.

In this year Yaḥya al-Ḥarashi was governor of al-Jabal (Ṭab. III, 649, l. 16; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 113, l.18; الجبل, sic. in Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr). The usual name for the province (Media) was al-Jibāl, but from now on in the chronicles we quite often find al-Jabal, employed as far as I can make out, interchangeably. Sometimes it is Bilād al-Jabal, which of course, the abbreviated name means. Yāqūt defines al-Jibāl as: now (i. e. in his time, the early 7th Century) known as al-'ajam bi-al-'Irāq. It was what was between Iṣbahān, and Zanjan, Qazwīn, Hamadhān, al-Dīnawar, Qirmīsīn and al-Rayy (Yāqūt, II, 15–16). Al-Jabal, he says, was the comprehensive name for those districts which were included in al-Jibāl. الجبل هو اسم جامع لهذه الاعمال التى يقال لها الجبال. A certain al-Hamadhāni was called al-Jabali because Hamadhān was in the Bilād al-Jabal (Yāqūt, II, 22–23). To return to Yaḥya al-Ḥarashi, he had been a temporary governor of Miṣr in 162, was retired from the government of Iṣbahān in 163, governor of Ṭabaristān, al-Rūyān and Jurjān from 164 till 167, when he was relieved (Ṭab. III, 493, l.18, 500, l.16, 503, l.11, 518, ll.13–14, 520, ll.13–15)1.

86A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير ولى

عهد المسامين الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no.517, and five unnumbered; Ties., no. 1377 (with two references). (The published Istanbul specimen is erroneously transcribed: الامير محمد.)

86B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obverse as no. 86 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امر الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, no.202 (with image above reverse area, possibly blundered و); Berlin, nos.1109, 1110; 13 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 482; Ties., no.1374 (with eight references); ANS

86C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obverse as no. 86 A.

Reverse as no. 86 B, but with س in place of و, above the area; جعفر beneath.

Ties., no. 1375 (with two references); three in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, two unnumbered.

(Tiesenhausen, no. 1376, gives another variety with ∴ above the reverse area in place of و or س, with a single reference to Tornberg, no. 188, but as the latter specimen is described as bearing و, it is probable that Tiesenhausen slipped on his reference, though here may be a die with ∴).

86D. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

بخ

مما امر به ولى عهد

المسلمين محمد بن امير

المؤمنين على يدى الحرب

مولى امير المؤمنين

* بخ *

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة خمس وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M.i, cop. no.133 (illustr. Pl. VIII) (pellet described before لا of 1st line obverse area; transcription الحرب); Berlin, no. 2188 (transcription الحرب); ANS; GCM (mint obscure); Rayy, 1934, RCh 427, 428 (date and mint effaced).

86E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obverse as no. 86 D, but the margin has a curious fault in the die, or in the striking, i.e. the legend is interrupted by and overlaps with a link border.

Reverse as no. 86 D.

GCM

86F. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 185.

Obverse as no. 86 D.

Rev.

مما امربه ولى عهد

المسلمين محمد بن امير

المؤمنين على يدى الحرب

مولى امير المؤ

منين

"En haut il y a un trait recourbé en forme d'un S renversé" (on the reverse?).

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 62, pp. 357–358 (transcription, implicit, الحرب) (Ties., no. 1392).

For the unidentified al-Ḥarib or al-Ḥarith, cf. the note under no. 85 above.

87A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلم

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. Add. i, no. 203b, pg. 51; Berlin, nos.1116–1118; 13 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N. C. 1885, pg. 329, IV, N. C. 1886, pg. 228; Paris, no. 822; Ties., no.1395 (with seven references); Istanbul, two unnumbered; ANS.

87B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obverse as no. 87 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير النؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. i, no. 203 (point beneath ب of ضرب); B.M. Add. i, no. 203a (point?); Berlin, no. 1111; nos.1112–1115 (another die, annulet variation); 50 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos.483, 484; Istanbul, no. 518, and four unnumbered; Paris, no. 821; Ties., no. 1398 (with eight references, one of which has the point beneath the ب of ضرب noted).

87C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obverse as no. 87 A.

Reverse as no. 87 B, but without و above the area; جعفر beneath.

Tornberg, no.196; Istanbul, unnumbered and misassigned to year 176.

(Tiesenhausen, no.1397, has a specimen listed with no و or جعغر above and beneath the reverse area, but as his single reference is to Tornberg no. 196, — see above no. 87 C — we may assume that this is a slip.)

87D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obverse as no. 87 A.

Reverse as no. 87 B, but above the area سلام in place of و, and beneath صرد in place of جعفر.

Berlin, no. 1119; Istanbul, unnumbered and misassigned to year 176.

87E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obverse as no. 87 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول

الله الامين ولى

عهد المسلمين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1120; Ties., no. 1396 (داود or دانك) (with two references).

87F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 186.

Obverse as no. 87 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS (the د of صرد is off line).

For داود, see the discussion under no. 70 above.

88A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

سلم

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

بن امير المؤمنين [sic] عبد الله

جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدبة سنة سبع وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, no. 199a (Ties., no. 1416).

88B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامين ولى

عهد المسلمين الامير

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 121 B (XIX), pg. 104 (another die, annulet variation); Markoff, no. 518; Ties., no. 2810 (with one reference).

88C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1411 (with three references).

88D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Reverse as no. 88 C, but with سلم in place of صرد beneath the area, and nothing above.

Ties., no.1414 (with two references); one in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, unnumbered; ANS.

88E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Reverse as no. 88 C, but with عبيد beneath the area in place of صرد, and nothing above.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 216, pg. 29* (Ties., no. 1413).

88F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Reverse as no. 88 E, but with م above the area; عبيد beneath.

Ties., no. 1415 (with two references).

88G. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Reverse as no. 88 C, but with ام جعفر above the area, and داود or دانك beneath.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 215, pg. 29* (Ties., no. 1412).

88H. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 187.

Obverse as no. 88 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول

الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no.1121.

Al-Amīr al-Amīn 'Abdullāh son of the Commander of the Faithful (no. 88 A), must, I think, be a mistake of Tornberg's. If not, it is a very curious error of the die-engraver's.

For 'Ubayd (nos. 88 E and F), cf. the note under no. 85 above. For داود cf. the discussion under no. 70.

In this year, the first night of Ṣafar, 187, took place the notorious execution of Ja'far the Barmakid, at the orders of the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd (Ṭab. III, 685, ll. 3–5). It is an extraordinary fact that the name, Ja'far, continues to appear on coins of al-Muḥammadīyah after Ja'far's death, i.e. in 189 (no. 90) and 193 (no. 94). This practice may perhaps be explained as a remorseful homage which al-Rashīd ordered to be paid to his boon companion; or else we may conceivably account for it on the grounds that the word Ja'far on the coinage of this mint had by now become almost meaningless and was treated by the die designers more or less as a certification of the genuineness of the coin.

The extraordinary inscription ام جعفر, Umm-Ja'far (no. 88 G, and cf. nos. 89 C, year 188, 90 D, year 189, and 91 A, year 190 below), must, I think, have been engraved on the coins at the order of the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd. Umm-Ja'far was Hārūn's wife Zubaydah, daughter of Ja'far, son of the Caliph al-Manṣūr. She is famous in history and legend for her energy and her piety; no one exceeded her in good works, and her building of an aqueduct to supply the Holy City with water was a noteworthy contribution to the welfare of the people (ibn-Khallikān, I, 337, ll.12–25; cf. Weil, Geschichte der Chalifen, II, 164). She was al-Amīn's mother. I wonder if the first occurrence of the numismatic inscription in her honour cannot be linked in some way to the death of Ja'far b. Yaḥya in this year. An incident at Mecca in the preceding year, when Ja'far had cursed al-Amīn, had stirred her resentment against the Barmakid, and she was one of the first, according to Mas'ūdi, to rouse Hārūn's anger against his old friend. ولهذا السبب اضطغنت ام جعفر على جعفر بن يحيى فكانت احدى من حرض الرشيد على امره وبعثته على ما نزل به (Mas'ūdi, VI, 327–328). Umm-Ja'far died in Jumāda I, 216 (Ṭab. III, 1105, l.12).

89A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 188.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

م

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

عبيد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية ثمان وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 823 (the letter above the reverse area described as م, probably the shortened form as usual); Ties., no.1434 (with two references).

89B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 188.

Obverse as no. 89 A.

Reverse as no. 89 A, but with no letter above the area; عبيد beneath.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 223, pg. 30* (Ties., no. 1433).

89C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 188.

Obverse as no. 89 A.

Reverse as no. 89 A, but with ام جعفر above the area in place of م, and صرد beneath in place of عبيد.

Ties., no.1435 (with two references).

89D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 188.

Obverse as no. 89 A.

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B.M. i, nos.204, 205; Berlin, nos.1122–1125; 20 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, nos.485, 486; Ties., no.1431 (with nine references); Istanbul, three unnumbered; ANS.

89E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 188.

Obverse as no. 89 A.

Reverse as no. 89 D, but without the ه beneath the area.

Ties., no.1432 (with one reference); Istanbul, two unnumbered.

Note the return in the issues nos. 89 D and 89 E to the simple style of reverse legends. Ja'far may have had more than nominal administration of the coinage and we may have here the reflection of a reactionary reform instituted by a new director after Ja'far's death, although to be sure the elaborate reverse inscriptions are not entirely eliminated in the immediately ensuing years. Maqrīzi states (op. cit., ed. Mayer, pg. 8, ll.17–18; ed. Tychsen, pg. 25, ll.9–11) that when al-Rashīd executed Ja'far he turned the coinage over to al-Sindi. (Would this be al-Sindi b. Yaḥya al-Ḥarashi? Cf. Ṭabari index.) For 'Ubayd, cf. the note under no. 85 above. The way 'Ubayd alternates with auxiliary words, like ṣard, suggests that this word is not the name of a governor or prefect. For Umm-Ja'far (no. 89 C), cf. the discussion under no. 88 above.

90A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

عبيد

محمد رسول الله

مماامربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

مخلد

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة وثمنين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 131 (305–307), pg. 43; Fraehn, Recensio, no. 228, pg. 43; Fraehn, Recensio, no. 228, pg. 31* (Ties., no. 1451); four in Assur Collection, Berlin.

90B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obverse as no. 90 A.

Reverse as no. 90 A, but with ه above the area in place of عبيد, and عبيد beneath in place of مخلد.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

90C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obverse as no. 90 A.

Reverse as no. 90 A, but with سلام above the area in place of عبيد, and صرد beneath in place of مخلد.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin. (Tornberg describes a fragmentary coin in "Die Jüngsten... etc.", with only ولى عهد المسلمين and beneath صرد preserved; this coin is perhaps to be included here, if we suppose ولى عهد المسلمين to have been misread.)

90D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obv.

جعفر

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

عبيد الله

Rev.

يبق الله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

لام جعفر

Obv. margin: As on no. 90 A.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1452 (with three references).

90E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Obv. margin: as on no. 90 A.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B. M. i, no. 206; Berlin, nos. 1126–1128; 15 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 487; Paris, no. 824; Ties., no. 1449 (with twelve references); ANS (three specimens); Istanbul, three unnumbered; GCM.

90 F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obverse as no. 90 E, but with the date written: تسعين وثمنين ومئة.

Reverse as no. 90 E.

Berlin, no. 1129 (I did not examine each of the 15 specimens from the Assur Collection referred to under no. 90 E, to see if any has this fault in writing the date).

90G. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obverse as no. 90 E.

Reverse as no. 90 E, but with • beneath the area in place of ه. (Tiesenhausen describes the specimen as being without ه.)

Tornberg, no. 210 (Ties., no. 1450).

90H. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 189.

Obverse as no. 90 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير المأمون

عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين ولى

ولى عهد المسلمين

بخ

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1453 (with two references).

For 'Ubayd (nos. 90 A, 90 B, and 90 D), cf. the note under no. 85 above. The full name, عبيد الله, 'Ubaydullāh, occurs on no. 90 D for the first time on the obverse. This is the first instance of the introduction of anything but the religious formulae and occasional auxiliary letters or marks on the obverse types; henceforth, particularly after the mentioning of the name of the Caliph becomes a common practice, the obverse becomes less and less sacrosanct until in the later middle ages the religious formulae are forced entirely off many of the coins.

مخلد, (no. 90 A), probably مخلد, though the reading is not certain, might mean "eternal", i. e. "lasting metal".

On no. 90 D the remarkable inscription, ام جعفر, Umm-Ja'far, is again met with, this time in the form يبق الله لام جعفر, probably يبق. One of the specimens cited by Tiesenhausen (Hallenberg, II, Tab. III, no. I, pp. 14–17), was originally transcribed ومن الله, but the illustration of this inscription and the one specimen of a coin with a similar inscription which I have seen at first hand (in the Istanbul Cabinet, cf. no. 91 A below, year 190), convince me that يبق is the only possible reading. Besides ومن is unintelligible; and وفق الله لام جعفر, suggested by Fraehn, is intelligible but ungrammatical; and furthermore the first two letters cannot be read as و and ف. (Hallenberg transliterated عبد الله, but his illustration shows عبيد الله.) Nesselmann, after first reading و الله on his specimens of the year 190, transcribed يبق الله and translated "Gott erbarme sich (بقى IV) der Omm Dschafar, d. i. der Sobaida" (cf. Nesselmann, nos. 135, 136, and "Zur arabischen Numismatik" in ZDMG, 1857, pp. 145–146). Stickel criticised Fraehn's transcription and read correctly يبق الله لام جعفر, translating, "Gott gebe langes Leben (بقاء) der Mutter Dschafar's, in ZDMG, 1856, pp.565–566. For the significance of the appearance of the name Umm-Ja'far, cf. the discussion under no. 88 above. The inscription is, undoubtedly يبق الله لام جعفر, "God grant long life to Umm-Ja'far".

No. 90 H bears a most interesting inscription, "Al-Amīr al-Ma'mūn, 'Abdullāh b. Amīr al-Mu'minīn, Wali of the Wali 'Ahd of the Muslims", — that is, heir to the heir to the throne. One might take the repetition of the word wali for an error on the part of the die engraver, if it were not for the light that is thrown upon the inscription by a passage in the chronicles. Hārūn al-Rashīd made a four-months' visit (from Jumāda I till Sha'bān or Ramaḍān) to Rayy in this year, 189, during which time al-Ma'mūn was there. It was on this occasion that the Caliph gave his elder son a wealth of gifts including, it seems, the command of the entire army and the munitions, and at the same time formally announced al-Ma'mūn's appointment as second heir (Ṭab.III, 701, ll. 20–21; 702, l.1–705, l.11; cf. ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 130, l.18–132, l.24; Weil, II, pp. 164–165). Instructions were doubtless given at the time that this dignity should be recorded on the coinage at Rayy, or else al-Ma'mūn himself ordered it to be done1. Hence "Wali Wali 'Ahd". It is curious that the issues of the years 190 and 191 should not bear the same inscription, but note that it reappears in the year 192 (cf. no. 93 B below).

'Abdullāh b. Mālik was in this year appointed governor of Rayy, Ṭabaristān, al-Rūyān, Dunbāwand, Qūmis and Hamadhān (Ṭab. III, 705, ll.12–14; cf. ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 132, ll.20–22).

91A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 190.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

عبيد الله

Rev.

بيق الله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامير الامين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

لام جعفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no.1475 (with five references, and comment that the name under the obverse area is sometimes transcribed عبيد الله, sometimes عبيد الله; cf. Nesselmann, Zur arabischen Numismatik, in ZDMG, 1857, pg.146); Istanbul, unnumbered.

91B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 190.

Obverse as no. 91 A.

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B.M.i, no. 207; Berlin, no.1130, and nos.1131–1136 (another die, border variation); 8 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 488; Istanbul, nos.519, 520 (two dies, a difference in ornament), and one unnumbered; Nesselmann, no.134 (with و or •) (Ties., no.1474); Paris., no.825; Ties., no.1473 (with 13 references); ANS (two specimens); GCM.

For عبيد الله (no. 91 A), cf. no. 85 above. The inscription, يبق الله لام جعفر (no. 91 A), has been discussed under nos. 90 and 88 above.

92. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 191.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

÷

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B.M.i, no. 208; Berlin, nos.1137, 1138; six in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, nos.521, 522 (two dies) and two unnumbered; Paris, no. 826; Ties., no. 1493 (with seven references); ANS (two specimens); GCM.

(Tornberg has an entry, no.223, referred to by Tiesenhausen, no.1494, with the reverse area inscriptions: ||مبا||محمد رسول الله صلى الله||عليه وسلم||الخليفة الرشيد||رك. Unique, and identical in its formula with that used in the years 170 to 175 and discarded thereafter, the coin, it seems to me, is almost certainly wrongly attributed and should be read 171. Ninety for seventy is of course easily misread in numismatic Kufic.)

93A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 192.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين و تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B.M.i, no. 209; Berlin, nos.1139–1142; 9 in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, no. 523; Paris, no. 827; Ties., no.1508 (with ten references); ANS.

93B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 192.

Obverse as no. 93 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامير المأمون

عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين ولى

ولى عهد المسلمين

بخ

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1509 (with two references).

(Tiesenhausen has another entry, no. 1510, with a single reference, with reverse area inscription: دا||محمد رسول||الله صلى الله||عليه وسلم ||الخليفة الرشيد ||ور. For reasons similar to those stated under no. 92 above, I would reject the assignment of this coin to the year 192 and assign it to the year 172; cf. the identical type of the latter year, no. 72 A.)

For the significance of no. 93 B with al-Ma'mūn as Wali Wali 'Ahd, cf. the note under no. 90 above.

94A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 193.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث و تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Small size.

B.M. i, no. 210; Berlin, nos.1143, 1144; four in Assur Collection, Berlin; Cairo, no. 489; Ties., no.1532 (with nine references); Istanbul, three unnumbered; ANS; GCM; Iṣṭakhr, 1935, I1–97 (half coin), and I1–203.

94B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 193.

Obverse as no. 94 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامين ولى

عهد المسلمين

محمد بن امير المؤمنين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, II, N. C., 1885, pg.230; two in Assur Collection, Berlin (my notes show الامير in place of الامام, probably an error in copying on my part).

94C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 193.

Obverse as no. 94 A.

Rev.

و

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الامين الامين

ولى عهد المسلمين

جعفر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no.1533 (with one reference and Fraehn's MS. note: Hujus numi pars postica, quum reddat atquae referat numos Aminianos Dschafaro Bermekide vivo cusos, et maxime quidem numum signandam vetus typus per errorem sit adhibitus. There is no exact parallel to this inscription in the year 183, cf. no. 84 above).

94D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 193.

Obverse as no. 94 A.

Rev.

ربى

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no.1275.

94E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 193.

Neither obverse nor reverse is fully described, but the obverse is doubtless as usual, and the reverse bears al-Ma'mūn's name (or else the editor has assigned the coin to al-Ma'mūn on other grounds), and has above the area ربى الله

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no.853, pg.35.

The Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd died in this year, the 3rd of Jumāda II, according to the usual accounts (E. of I), or the 23rd of Ṣafar (Ṭab. III, 733ff.). He was succeeded by his younger son, al-Amīn. Nos.94 A, B, and C were struck during al-Rashīd's life-time, A being of the common type of the immediately preceding years; B and C (with the old Ja'far, cf. no. 88 above) bearing the name of al-Amīn Muḥammad as heir apparent. No. 94 D, with ربى above the reverse area, was assigned (on what grounds?) by Nützel to al-Amīn as Caliph. The attribution is undoubtedly correct. Maqrīzi, in his treatise on Arab numismatics, once more proves his reliability (or that of his sources) by telling us that on Hārūn al-Rashīd's death, the management of the coinage was assigned by al-Amīn to al-'Abbās b. al-Faḍl b. al-Rabī', who directed that there be inscribed on the coins the words ربى الله "Allah is my Lord", and his name al-'Abbās b. al-Faḍl. حتى كان ايام الامين محمد بن هرون الرشيد فصير دور الى العباس ابن الفضل بن الربيع فنقش فى السكة باعلى السطر ربى الله ومن اسفلها العباس بن الفضل...... (Al-Maqrīzī, Shudhūr al-'Uqūd fi Dhikr al-Nuqūd, ed. L. A. Mayer, pg. 8, ll.23–25, ed. Tychsen, pg. 26, ll.4–8; cf. Lane-Poole, The Arabian Historians on Muhammadan Numismatics, pg.28, in "Some Private Collections, etc.", London, 1892.) While on the coin here under discussion there is only ربى, "my Lord", a later issue (cf. no.95 below) and the incompletely described coin no. 94 E above, bear the full inscription ربى, but not the name of al-'Abbās b. al-Faḍl, whom I have not succeeded in identifying. On the basis of Maqrīzi's statement, I strongly suspect that al-Ma'mūn's name does not appear on the coin of the da Cunha collection (no. 94 E), and I believe that this coin too is to be attributed to al-Amīn.

95A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

ربى الله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع و تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 859; Ties., no. 1569 (with two references); one in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, unnumbered.

95B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obverse as no. 95 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الحليفة

محمد امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1568 (with two references).

95C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obverse as no. 95 A.

Rev.

سلام

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به محمد

امير المؤمنين [sic] بن

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, no.241 (Ties., no.1567).

95D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obverse as no. 95 A.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامام المأمون

ولى عهد المسلمين

عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.239p, pg.53; Berlin, nos. 1276, 1277; one in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, no.554; Ties., no. 1571 (with one reference); GCM.

95E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obverse as no. 95 A.

Reverse as no. 95 D, but without الفضل beneath the area.

Ties., no. 1570 (with one reference); two in Assur Collection, Berlin.

95F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 194.

Obverse as no.95 A.

Reverse as no.95 D, but with العباس in place of الفضل beneath the area.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, VII, N.C., 1892, pg. 161 (with mistaken reference to B.M.i, no.138; it should be B.M.i, no.238); one in Assur Collection, Berlin; Istanbul, three unnumbered, two of which wrongly assigned to year 184.

On the basis of the argument presented under no.94 above, we can assign no. 95 A to the Caliph al-Amīn. No.95 B has al-Khalīfah Muḥammad, Commander of the Faithful, and is therefore also al-Amīn's. No. 95 C is certainly al-Amīn's. The only question is whether the error "Muḥammad son of the Commander of the Faithful" is that of the die-engraver and mint-director, or Tornberg's. This question cannot be settled. Tornberg may have misread the date or the area inscriptions; on the other hand, an inadvertence in the designing of the coin, not long after al-Rashīd's death, is quite conceivable. Nos. 95 D, E, and F all bear al-Ma'mūn's name as heir apparent, and were, no doubt, struck at al-Ma'mūn's orders. It was in this year that the active dissension between al-Amīn and his brother began (Ṭab. III, 776ff.); and an important step was the occupation of Rayy by the famous general, Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn. ورد الرىّ فنزلها ووكل باطر وضع مسالحه وبث عيونه وطلائعة.... (Ṭab. III, 794, ll.1–9). Ṭāhir's name does not actually appear on the coins till a little later, but his successes at this point and in the following year (he earned the epithet of dhu-al-Yamīnayn, the Ambidextrous, at the battle of Rayy, cf. no. 96 below) gave him the prominence that later enabled him to found the first of the petty dynasties that later, as they grew into powerful dynasties, undermined the 'Abbāsid Caliphate in the East.

On no. 95 D we find, beneath al-Ma'mūn's titles, the name of another prominent figure, al-Faḍl (b. Sahl), the favourite of al-Ma'mūn and the leading personality of his rule, later to be known as dhu-al-Ri'āsatayn, "he of the two authorities" (the pen and the sword), an honorary title given him after Ṭāhir's successes against 'Ali b. 'Īsa and of frequent occurrence on the coins in the ensuing years. As for al-'Abbās on no.95 F, we find in Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr a report confirmed by the appearance of the name on one issue of the coins of the date. This is al-'Abbās b. 'Abdullāh b. Mālik, who was appointed governor of Rayy by al-Ma'mūn in this year, 194. We are told that the Caliph al-Amīn wrote to al-'Abbās at Rayy, asking him to send him certain exotic plants from the district. By his compliance with al-Amīn's request, al-'Abbās proved himself disloyal to al-Ma'mūn, his master, at least in the latter's opinion; al-Ma'mūn dismissed him. Subsequently al-Amīn wrote to the "Lord of Rayy" (who this was I do not know, but probably a powerful native inhabitant), telling him to prepare arms and munitions for war against al-Ma'mūn.

كتب الامين الى العباس بن عبد الله بن مالك وهو عامل المأمون على الرىّ وامره ان يبعث اليه بغرائب غروس الرىّ مريدا بذلك امتحانه فبعث اليه ما امره به وكتم المأمون وذو الرئاستين فبلع ذلك من امره المأمون فوجه الحسين بن على المأمونى واردفه بالرسهمى على البريد و عزل العباس بن عبد الله بن مالك فذكر عن الرسهمى انه لم ينزل عن دابته حتى اجتمع اليه الف رجل من اهل الرى ووجه محمد الى المأمون ثلثة انفس رسلا احدهم العباس بن موسى..... etc ...وكتب معهم كتابا الى صاحب الرى ان استقبلهم بالعدة والسلاح والظاهر (Ṭab. III, 777, l.20–778, l.8). Ibn-al-Athīr's report is virtually the same, but it is stated that four messengers were sent by al-Amīn; and ibn-al-Athīr adds that the news of al-Amīn's preparations came to al-Ma'mūn's attention, and that the latter instructed his officers in Rayy and Nīsābūr to prepare themselves. فبلغ الخبر المأمون فكتب الى عماله بالرى ونيسابور وغير هما باظهار العدة والقوة ففعلوا ذلك (Ibn-al-Athīr, V, 157, l.17–158, l.3).

96A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس و تسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1602 (with one reference).

96B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 A.

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الخليقة

محمد امير المؤمنين

عبيد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1598 (with five references).

96C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 A.

Rev.

داود

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به الخليفة

محمد امير المؤمنين

صرد

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Fraehn, Recensio, no.266, pg.6** (Ties., no.1600).

96D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 A.

Rev.

الفضل

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه الامام المأمون

ولى عهد المسلمين

عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين

طاهر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.289s, pg.56; Berlin, no. 1278; three in Assur Collection, Berlin; Fraehn, Recensio, no.268, pg.7** (Ties., no. 1601); Paris, no.860; ANS.

96E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 A.

Reverse as no. 96 D, but above the area لله in place of الفضل; and beneath the area الفضل in place of طاهر; beneath الفضل a pellet.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N.C., 1885, pg. 330.

96F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 A.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

[المأمون][sic]مما امربه الامير

ولى عهد المسلمين

عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, no.248 (Ties., no. 1599).

96G. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه عبد الله

عبد الله المأمون امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس و تسعين ومئة

Obv. outer margin: طاهر بن الحسين مولى المأمون

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no.1631 (with one reference); Tornberg, no. 262, fragmentary (Ties., no.1632).

(The reading of the above coin may be unreliable; it should perhaps be included with no.96 H or 96 I below.)

96H. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 G, but with ذواليمينين beneath the area, and the outer margin thus: ◯ طاهر||بن الحسين ||مولى المأمون ◯

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه عبد الله عبد الله

المأمون امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Porter, N. C., 1921, pg. 230 (commented on by Zambaur, N. Z. Wien, 1922, pg. 7).

96I. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obverse as no. 96 G, but with a star(?) beneath the area, and the outer margin obscure, but apparently:

المأمون image مولى image بن الحسين image طاهر image

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

...مما امربه عبد الله عبد

المأمون امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

96J. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 195.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

مما امر به

الامير المأمون

ولى عهد المسلمين

طاهر

Rev. margin: بال محمدية سنة خمس وتسعين ومئة.....

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 66, pg. 360 (illustr. Pl. XIV, fig. 12) (Ties., no. 2824).

Nos. 96 B and 96 C recognize al-Amīn, and no. 96 A, with no inscriptions other than the religious formulae, is probably in the "Amīn tradition". For 'Ubayd (no. 96 B), see the discussion under nos. 85 and 90 above. For داود, (no. 96 C), cf. no. 70. The dirhams, nos. 96 D, 96 E, and 96 F, and the fals, no. 96 J, bear inscriptions where al-Ma'mūn styles himself al-Imām (or al-Amīr) al-Ma'mūn, Heir Apparent of the Muslims, 'Abdullāh, son of the Commander of the Faithful (i. e. al-Rashīd), as in the previous year; but on nos. 96 G, 96 H, and 96 I, he begins to be recognized (probably at his own command) "'Abdullāh (sometimes "the Servant of God", 'Abdullāh) al-Ma'mūn, Commander of the Faithful", i. e. Caliph. Here, along with the presence of the names of his minister and general al-Faḍl and Ṭāhir, there is definite evidence of the break between the brothers. Al-Faḍl's name occurs on all of al-Ma'mūn's coins of Rayy in this year with the exception of the fals. (Cf. the discussion under no. 95 above for al-Faḍl (b. Sahl). Likewise, General Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn's name, although omitted from 96 E and 96 F, receives in the issues of this year even greater prominence, we may say, in that his name is on one type (with variations) inscribed in full and in a novel position around the outer margin of the obverse. He calls himself mawla (Freedman) of al-Ma'mūn, his master. The presence of his name on the fals is, I think, significant, in that it indicates his active supervision of the local currency. It was in this year that the battle of Rayy took place in which 'Ali b. 'Īsa was worsted at the hands of Ṭāhir (Ṭab. III, 797ff.), and that Ṭāhir received the epithet of dhu-al-Yamīnayn (Ṭab. III, 829, l. 20—830, l. 8).

97A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 196.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذوالرئاستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست وتسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1388 (with تسعين written ستين); Istanbul, no. 577, and one unnumbered; Ties., no.1644 (with three references).

97B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 196.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به عبد الله

المأمون بن امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدبة سنة ست وتسعين ومئة

Obv. outer margin: ◯ ذواليمينين ◯ مولى المأمون ◯ بن الحسين ◯ طاهر

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Ties., no.1619 (with three references).

97C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 196.

Obverse as no. 97 B.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امربه عبد الله عبد الله

المأمون امير المؤمنين

الفضل

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Die jüngsten.. etc., no.11, pg.287; Ties., no.1645 (reference to publication of Fraehn; ذواليمينين is inadvertently (?) omitted from the margin); B.M., unpublished, 1906/12/4, no. 95; four in Assur Collection, Berlin; ANS.

In this year there is no longer any evidence of the influence of al-Amīn; Rayy is completely al-Ma'mūn's. There appears still to be some question whether al-Ma'mūn will call himself heir apparent or Caliph (cf. nos. 97 B and 97 C), unless indeed the specimens reading "son of the Commander of the Faithful" were wrongly read, which I think is more than likely. For dhu-al-Ri'āsatayn (nos. 97 A), dhu-al-Yamīnayn, Ṭāhir and al-Faḍl (nos. 97 B and 97 C), cf. the notes under nos. 95 and 96 above.

98A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 197.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شرك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذوالرئاستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع وتسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 170 (369), pg. 61; da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 855, pg. 35; Markoff, no. 657; Ties., no. 1661 (with two references).

98B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 197.

Obverse as no. 98 A.

Reverse as no. 98 A, but with م beneath the area.

Cairo, no. 576 (it is not indicated whether the form of the letter is م or م).

98C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 197.

Obverse as no. 98 A.

Reverse as no. 98 A, but with مى beneath the area.

Berlin, nos. 1389, 1390; Ties., no. 1663 (with two references).

98D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 197.

Obverse as no. 98 A.

Reverse as no. 98 A, but with image (a sort of half annulet) beneath the area.

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 170 A (XXIV), pg. 105; Markoff, no.658; Ties., no. 1662 (with three references); two in Assur Collection, Berlin; ANS.

(Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 854, pg. 35, lists another, but the inadequate description does not permit classification here. – Vasmer, loc. cit., speaks of six types, counting variations in annulets as well as auxiliary letters.)

For dhu-al-Ri'āsatayn, cf. no. 95 above.

99A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 198.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذو الرئا ستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الردهم بالمحمدية ثمان وتسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.289v, pg.56; Fraehn, Recensio, no.284, pg. 10** (Ties., no. 1671); Paris, no. 916; one in Assur Collection, Berlin.

99B. image Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 198.

Obverse as no. 99 A, but with المشرق beneath the area.

Reverse as no. 99 A.

Berlin, no. 1391; two in Assur Collection, Berlin; Ties., no. 1672 (with two references).

99C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 198.

Obverse as no. 99 B.

Reverse as no. 99 A, but with the addition of ح beneath ذوالرئاستين. Lack of illustration makes it impossible to determine the exact form of this letter. It may be similar to no. 99 D below.

Tornberg, no. 273 (Ties., no.1673).

99D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 198.

Obverse as no. 99 B.

Reverse as no. 99 A, but with the addition of بخ beneath ذوالرئاستين.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

99E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 198.

Obverse as no. 99 B.

Reverse as no. 99 A, but with the addition of مى beneath ذوالرئاستين.

One in Assur Collection, Berlin.

In this year, the 26th of Muḥarram, occurred the death of al-Amīn; al-Maʾmūn's Caliphate was established. After the public general recognition of al-Maʾmūn as Caliph, he assigned the government of all the lands conquered by Ṭāhir to al-Ḥasan b. Sahl, brother of Faḍl b. Sahl. This domain included: al-Jibāl, Fārs, al-Ahwāz, al-Baṣrah, al-Baṣrah, al-Ḥijāz and al-Yaman (Ṭab. III, 975, ll. 10–12). The word al-Mashriq, i. e. "the East", which is inscribed on all but one (no. 99 A) of the coins struck at Rayy in this year, doubtless signifies these corporate provinces. In spite of the appointment of al-Ḥasan as governor, his brother's title, dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn (cf. no. 95 above), continues to appear on the coinage of the capital of al-Jibāl.

100A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 199.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذوالرئاستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة وتسعين ومئة

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Fraehn, Recensio, no.288, pg.ll**; four in Assur Collection, Berlin.

100B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 199.

Obverse as no. 100 A, but with المشرق beneath the area.

Reverse as no. 100 A.

Ties., no. 1697 (with five references; the Fraehn Recensio reference, however, should not be here).

For dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn, cf. no. 95 above; al-Mashriq, cf. no. 99 above.

101A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 200.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذوالرئاستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة مائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.289y, pg.56; Istanbul, no.578; Ties., no.1706 (with four references); three in Assur Collection, Berlin.

101B. Æ Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 200.

Obverse as no. 101 A, but without a marginal legend.

Rev.

عدل

محمد

رسول

الله

Rev. margin: بالمحمدبة سنة مائتين [sic, no هذا] بسم الله ضرب الفلس

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 67, pg.361 (Ties., no. 2834).

عدل, above the reverse area of the fals, no.101 B, is probably meant as "just", i.e. valid currency. For dhū-al-Riʾāsatayn, cf. no. 95 above.

102A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 201.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

ذوالرئاستين

Obv. margin: بسم الله هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.289z, pg. 57; Berlin, nos.1392, 1393; three in Assur Collection, Berlin; da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 856, pg. 35(?); Istanbul, no. 579, and three unnumbered; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici IV, N.C., 1886, pg. 228; Ties., no.1719 (with eight references); ANS; ANS (another die, annulet variation).

102B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 201.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

عدل

Chain border.

Rev. margin: بالمحمدية سنة احدى ومائتين [sic,noبسم الله ضرب الفاس[هذا Berlin, no 2215.

102C. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 201.

Obverse as no. 102 B.

Reverse as no. 102 B, but عدل above the area instead of beneath.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 68, pg.361 (Ties., no. 2835).

For dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn, cf. no. 95 above.

It was, according to the report in Ṭabari, in this year that al-Maʾmūn proclaimed al-Riḍa, descendant of ʿAli and the Prophet, as his heir apparent (cf. the note under no. 103 below). There is also an account of the declaration by the people of Baghdād of their allegiance to Ibrāhīm b. al-Mahdi in this year (for which cf. the same note below).

There was a great famine in this year which caused the price of food to go up and resulted in many deaths in Khurāsān, Rayy and Iṣbahān (Ṭab. III, 1015, ll.13–14).

103. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 202.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المشرق

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

المأمون

مما امر الامير الرضا

ولى عهد المسلمين على بن موسى

بن على بن ابى طالب

ذوالرئاستيت

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدبة سنة اثنتين ومائتين ⊙

Obv. outer margin: لله الامر من قبل ومن بعد ويومئذ يفرح المؤمنون بنصر الله (part of Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4).

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B.M.Add.i. no. 289aa, pg. 57; B.M., unpublished, 1906/12/4, no.92; Markoff, no. 712, pg. 41; Ties., no. 1733 (with one reference); ANS.

(There are in Tiesenhausen only two other coins of this date and type, of other mints, viz.: Samarqand, no. 1730, and Iṣbahān, no.1731.)

According to Ṭabari, as mentioned above (no. 102), it was in Muḥarram of the year 201 at Marw that al-Maʾmūn designated ʿAli al-Riḍa (the Eighth Imām of the Ithna-ʿAsharīyah) as the heir to the Caliphate. At the same time he ordered the army to be clothed in the ʿAlid green. وفى هذه السنة جعل المأمون على بن موسى جعفر بن محمد بن على بن حسين بن على بن ابى طالب رضّّه ولى عهد المسلمين و الخليفة من بعده وسماه الرضى من ال محمد صلعم و امر جنده بطرح السواد ولبس ثياب الخضرة (Ṭab. III, 1012, ll.12–16.) The appointment and the genealogy of al-Riḍa is recorded epigraphically on the present coin: Al-Maʾmūn Khalīfat-allāh; among what has been commanded by al-Amīr al-Riḍa Wali ʿAhd of the Muslims, ʿAli b. Mūsa b. ʿAli b. abi-Ṭālib; dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn. Historical tradition also preserves the fact that al-Riḍa's name was engraved on the coins. فبايع له بولاية العهد وضرب اسمه على الدنانير والدرهم (Masʾūdi, VII, 60, ll. 4–5, year 200). Among the troubles caused by this appointment was the rising of the population of Baghdād, their renunciation of al-Maʾmūn and their choice of Ibrāhīm b.al-Mahdi as successor (Ṭab. III, 1013, 1.17–1014, 1.18). If there were any coins bearing al-Riḍa's name struck in the year 201, none has so far come to light; it is unlikely that any were minted before the issue here of the year 202. Ṭabari reports the proclamation of Ibrāhīm b. al-Mahdi in the year 202 also, in the early days of Muḥarram (Ṭab. III, 1015, 1.19–1016, 1.18 and ff.). Al-Maʾmūn consequently moved from Marw toward al-ʿIrāq (Ṭab. III, 1025, ll.11ff.). The fact that there were two schools of tradition in the matter of these events throws considerable doubt on the exact date; perhaps the 202 issues are the first with the announcement of al-Riḍa's designation, and 202 is the proper date for the event.

For dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn, whose name appears again beneath the long reverse area legend, cf. no. 95 above; and for المشرق cf. no. 99.

104A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 203.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المشرق

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

المأمون خليفة الله

مما امربه الامير الرضا

ولى عهد المسلمين على بن موسى

بن على بن ابى طالب

ذوالرئاستين

م

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin; Qurʾān IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1395 (fragmentary legend); Ties., no. 1745 (with five references).

Other similar issues of this year are: Samarqand, (B.M.Add. i, no. 289a, pg. 55; Ties., no. 1743), Iṣbahān (Ties., no. 1746), Fārs (Paris, no. 913).

104B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 203.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

مما امر به امير المؤمنين

عبد الله امير المؤمنين

جائز

Obv. margin: As inner margin of no.104 A.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1394.

(جائز = lawful, i.e. certified currency.)

According to the most commonly accepted account, ʿAli al-Riḍa (cf. no. 104 A and no. 103 above) died at Ṭūs and was buried near the tomb of the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd toward the end of Ṣafar in this year, 203 (Ṭab. III, 1029, l.19–1030, l.4; cf. Masʿūdi, VII, 61, ll.8–9, end of Ṣafar, 203; Yaʿqūbi, II, 550, 1.19, early part of 203; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 248, 1.21, end of Ṣafar, 203; Cl. Huart, in his article in the E. of I., s. v. ʿAli al-Riḍa, appears to accept this date without any question)1. This date would, however, seem to be too early when we take into account the issues of the year 204, nos.105 A and 105 B below (the examination of the question is continued under no. 105).

Ṭabari tells us that the Baghdādis abandoned their allegiance to Ibrāhīm in this year, and returned to al-Maʾmūn (Ṭab. III, 1032, ll.9ff.), Ibrāhīm's "Caliphate" having lasted "one year, eleven months, and twelve days" (Ṭab. III, 1036, ll.7–8). Al-Maʾmūn himself, on his way to al-ʿIrāq, passed through Rayy and deducted 1,000,000 dirhams from the taxes (of the province?). فلما صار الى الرىّ اسقط من و ظيفتها الف الف درهم(Ṭab. III, 1030, 1.11–12); but this was probably the next year, 204, cf. no. 105 below.

For al-Mashriq and dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn, cf. nos. 95 and 99 above.

105A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 204.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المشرق

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

المأمد بن خليفة الله

مما امر به الامير الرضا

ولى عهد المسلمين على بن موسى

بن على بن ابى طالب

ذوالرئاستين

م

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية اربع ومئتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1756 (with four references).

105B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 204.

Obverse as no. 105 A.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

المأمون خليفة الله

مما امر به الامير الرضا

ولى عهد المسلمين

ذو الئاستين

م

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 580.

105C image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 204.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N.C., 1886, pg. 228 (probably belongs here, one cannot tell); Ties., no.1757 (with two references).

105D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 204.

Obverse as no. 105 C.

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

ه

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, unnumbered.

105E. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 204.

Obverse as no. 105 C.

Rev.

محمد

رسول الله

الخليفة المأمون

ه

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Ties., no. 1755 (with two references); three in Assur Collection, Berlin (204 is the last date of al-Muhḥammdīyah, and 205 the last date of any mint in the Assur hoard).

There are, to my mind, only two possible explanations for the two issues, nos.105 A and 105 B, bearing the name of al-Maʾmūn's designated heir, ʿAli al-Riḍa, in the year following the commonly accepted date of his death (at least ten months after his death if we agree to the date, end of Ṣafar, set forth in the note under no. 104 above). One solution would be that the date has been misread. But this solution need not, I think, detain us, for the following reason: there are five specimens of the Rayy issue (four of one die, and one of another with a slightly abbreviated inscription, and besides there is an Iṣbahān issue of the year 204 with similar inscriptions, of which ten specimens are known (Ties., no. 1768, with nine references, and Paris, no. 904). The date could not have been misread so many times. The other explanation, of course, is that we must reject the date of al-Riḍa's death as given in Ṭabari, Yaʿqūbi, Masʿūdi and ibn-al-Athīr, and accept in preference one of the variant reports recorded by ibn-Khallikān. The latter author, in his biography of ʿAli al-Riḍa, writes: و توفى فى اخر يوم من صفرسنة اثنتين ومائتين وقيل بل توفى خامس ذى الحجة وقيل ثالث عشر ذى القعدة سنة ثلث ومائتين (Ibn-Khallikān, I, 577, ll.18–19), i.e. the last day of Ṣafar, 202, or the 5th of dhu-al-Ḥijjah. 203, or the 13th of dhu-al-Qaʿdah, 203. The year 202 is certainly out of the question. The dates in dhu-al-Ḥijjah and dhu-al-Qaʿdah, 203, however, bring us very close to the year 204, and if we accept the 5th dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 203, as the real date of ʿAli's death, and allow a little more than three weeks for the news to travel from Khurāsān to the capital of al-Jibāl, we can safely assume that the coins, nos. 105 A and 105 B were minted in the early days of the month of Muḥarram, 204; in fact, for all we know, the dies for the first issue of any year may well have been engraved toward the end of the preceding year, and if this were true we would not have to allow so much time for the journey of a messenger from Ṭūs to Rayy. Since there exists a disagreement about the date of ʿAli al-Riḍa's death (and of his birth, cf. Ṭabari, ibn-Khallikān etc.), I am strongly inclined, in the light of these coins of Rayy and Iṣbahān, to propose the acceptance of a date later than the usually acknowledged Ṣafar, 203.

A similar chronological problem arises in connection with the occurrence of the title dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn, i. e. al-Faḍl b. Sahl (cf. no. 95 above), on nos. 105 A and B. Al-Faḍl was murdered in the bath at Sarakhs in 202 or 203: Ṭabari (III, 1027, ll.9–10), Friday, the 2nd of Shaʿbān, 202, يوم الجمعة لليلتين خلتا من شعبان; Masʿūdi (VII, 61, ll.3–4), in the year 202; ibn-Khallikān (II, 155, ll.16–20), Thursday, the 2nd of Shaʿbān, 202 or 203; ibn-al-Athīr (VI, 246, 1. 9), as Ṭabari; Zetterstéen (E. of I, s. v. al-Faḍl b. Sahl), 202 or 203; Zambaur (Manuel, pg. 6), the 2nd of Shaʿbān, 202, after ibn-Khallikān, but without mentioning the choice, 203. Here again there is a diversity in the record of the date of the death of a prominent individual, which causes one to incline toward the trustworthiness of the contemporary documents (i. e. the coins) as against the ambiguous historical tradition. But in this case, even if we do take the latest date of the murder, the 2nd of Shaʿbān, 203, we are forced to admit that the dies for 204 were engraved four to five months before the end of the year 203, and this is certainly unlikey. So either the historical tradition is altogether wrong or else the die-engravers continued to use the title dhu-al-Riʾāsatayn more or less as a symbol of the growing independence of the eastern provinces.

Ṭabari reports again in this year, 204, that al-Maʾmūn spent two days at Rayy on his way from Jurjān to al-Nahrawān (Ṭab. III, 1036, 1.20); cf. the note under no. 104 above.

106A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 205.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Ties., no.1772 (with two references).

106B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 205.

Obverse as no. 106 A.

Reverse as no. 106 A, but with the addition of ه beneath the area.

B.M.i, no. 290; Ties., no. 1773 (with four references).

106C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 205.

Obverse as no. 106 A.

Reverse as no. 106 A, but with addition of ك (or د) above the area, and image beneath.

Ties., no. 1774 (with two references).

106D. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 205.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله

لا شريك له

Rev.

عدل

محمد

رسول

الله

Rev. margin: بالمحمدية سنة خمس ومائتين [sic, no بسم الله ضرب الفلس[هذا

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 69, pg. 361 (Ties., no. 2845).

In this year al-Maʾmūn sent Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn (cf. no. 95 above and following), who had been occupied in al-Jazīrah and Baghdād as chief of the guard and sub-vizier (?) (معاون السواد), to the East (i. e. Khurāsān) as governor (Ṭab. III) 1039, ll.15ff.).

107. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year?

Probably a contemporary forgery with part of[ذو الر[ئاستين on the obverse and the date بالمحمدية سنة خمسين والله مئة....; and reverse of the 150 type. Probably two different dies were used for obverse and reverse; the editor believes the counterfeit is to be assigned to the rule of al-Mʾmūn. (Illustrated, but hardly legible.)

Anderson-Vasmer, no. 199 (410), pg. 72.

108A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 206.

Obv

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

الامام المأمون

محمد

رسول

الله

ذو اليمينين

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: ◯ الطاهرى ◯ حميد ◯ بن ◯ محمد

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no.l, pg. 77 (cf. Zambaur, Contrib. II, pg. 139; Zambaur's reference to Dorn no. 3 is to be corrected to no. l); Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, no.l, pp.190–191 (then in Musée de l'Institut oriental de Saint-Pétorsbourg, attaché au Ministre des Affaires Étrangéres).

108B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 206.

Obverse area and inner margin as no. 108 A.

Rev.

ذو

محمد

رسول

الله

اليمينين

Obv. outer margin: ◯ الطاهرى ◯ حميد ◯ محمد بن

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

W. Tiesenhausen, Über Zwei in Rußland gemachte kufische Münzfunde, Huber's Numism. Zeitschrift, Bd. III, 1871 (pp. 9–10 of reprint), no. 59.

108C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 206.

Obv.

اسحق

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

بن يحيى

Rev.

ذو

محمد

رسول

الله

اليمينين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Berlin, no. 1396 (fragment); Markoff, no. 3, pg. 98; Nesselman, no. 240; Tornberg, Nov. Symb. III, no. 22, pg. 14.

108D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 206.

Tiesenhausen, in the same publication as that quoted in no. 108 B, speaks of other coins of al-Muḥammdīyah of the year 206, with one obverse margin, محمد above the obverse area, and بن يحيى beneath the obverse area, but without further description. If these bore اسحق instead of محمد, they would probably fall in with no. 108 C.

Zambaur has reviewed and discussed at some length the whole difficult question of the attribution of Ṭāhirid coins (as opposed to ʿAbbāsid coins). His conclusion is, in substance, that only those coins which bear the name or title of one of the Ṭāhirids should be admitted into the Ṭāhirid category; others, even though struck in Ṭāhirid domains, should be classed as ʿAbbasīd. (Zambaur, Contrib. II, pp. 123–142). With this opinion I agree1. Coins like no. 108 B and 108 C where the Caliph's name is not mentioned at all, are "revolutionary".

Dhu-al-Yamīnayn, whose name appears on no. 108 A along with the name of the Caliph al-Maʾmūn, and on nos. 108 B and 108 C to the exclusion of the Caliph's name, is of course Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn, discussed above under no. 95, and who in the year 205 had been named governor of the East (cf. no. 106). Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd al-Ṭāhiri (nos. 108 A, B, and possibly D) is undoubtedly the same person as Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd al-Ṭūsi. Both Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr mention him as al-Ṭāhiri and as al-Ṭūsi but without apparently recognizing the identity. This individual was involved in the affair of al-Amīn's death in 198 (Ṭab. III, 917, l.21; 922, l.13; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 200, ll.19–20); was sent against Bābak in 212 (Ṭab. III, 1099, ll.3–6), when he built a trench or fortification of some sort (khandaq), mentioned in the year 221 (Ṭab. III, 1187, ll.6–7); was appointed ʿAbdullāh b. Ṭāhir's substitute in Nīsābūr (ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 9, l.13) when ʿAbdullāh was assigned to the government of Khurāsān (in 214 according to Ṭab. III, 1102, ll.3–5; ibn-al-Athīr VI, 292, ll.13–14; but more probably in 213, cf. E. of I., S. V. ʿAbd Allāh b. Ṭāhir); and was killed in battle with Bābak in Rabīʿ I, 214 (Ṭab. III, 1101, ll.9–11; 1233, l.5). Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd's name is also to be found on a coin of Abrashahr (Nīsābūr), year 206 (Tornberg, no. 315a, pg. 309; Zambaur, op. cit., pg. 139, gives the year 206, but on pg. 140 he lists the same reference as 209); and, if simply الطاهرى signifies the same person, on a coin of 208 minted in Samarqand (Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, pp. 190–191, no. 1). We may safely add him to the list of prefects of Rayy, for the year 206 at least, but his authority obviously was not limited to Rayy alone.

Isḥāq b. Yaḥya, no. 108 C, is probably Isḥāq b. Yaḥya b. Muʿādh, later military governor at Damascus in 218 (Ṭab. III, 1133, ll.13–14), chief of the watch (الحرس) in 225 (Ṭab. III, 1303, l.3; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 367, ll.20–21) and 229 (Ṭab. III, 1331, ll.1–2). Zambaur, Contrib. II, pg.139, calls him "le Barmekide(?)", later governor of al-Sind. (?)

Muḥammad b. Yaḥya on no. 108 D may be the die-engraver's or Tiesenhausen's error.

109A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 207.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الردهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Casts in the B. M. from the Dara Collection; Markoff, no. 7, pg. 98.

109B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 207.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Border of 16 annulets.

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة سنع ومائتين

Paris, no. 1615 (illustr. Pl. X); Rayy, 1936, CT 78 (date and mint effaced).

109C. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 207.

Obverse as no. 109 B, but a border of 26 to 30 annulets (several dies).

Reverse as no. 109 B.

Berlin, no. 2216 (etwa 30 Ringelchen); ANS (two specimens, approximately 30 annulets); GCM, four specimens (one with 26 annulets; one with 26? annulets; two with 27 annulets); Rayy, 1934, RTA 2618 (approx. 26 annulets, Rayy, 1935, RCi 3535 (approx. 30 annulets), Rayy, 1936, RG 7799 (26 annulets, date and mint effaced).

109D. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 207.

Obverse as no. 109 B, but with approximately 30 annulets.

Reverse as no. 109 B, but with a circular border.

Berlin, no. 2217.

109E. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 207.

Obverse as no. 109 B, but with approximately 30 annulets, and no ∴ beneath the area.

Reverse as no. 109 D.

Berlin, no. 2218.

(Two coppers in the B.M. (cop. nos. 140, 141) of the type of nos. 109 C–E, assigned to the year 209, are, in my opinion, more probably 207. I had the occasion to examine them: on both specimens the digit is not very clear, and in the case of no. 141, سبع can be more easily read than تسع).

In 207, Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn died (Ṭab. III, 1063, ll.5ff.), and the government of Khurāsān was assigned to Ṭalḥah b. Ṭāhir. واقام طلحة واليا على خراسان فى ايام المأمون سبع سنين بعد موت طاهر ثم توفى وولى عبد الله خراسان (Ṭab. III, 1065, ll.5–6; Zambaur's Manuel, pg. 44, should be corrected: ʿAbdullāh b. Ṭāhir is not governor till 213). A governor of Ṭabaristān, al-Rūyān, and Dunbāwand, Mūsa b. Ḥafṣ, was appointed in this year (Ṭab. III, 1066, ll.9–10).

110A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 208.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 2, pg. 129.

110B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 208.

Obverse effaced except for جرير in the exterior margin.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول

الله المأمون

......

Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. b, 1, pg. 34. (Fragmentary coin.)

111A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 209.

Obv

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

طلحة

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع ومئاتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tiesenhausen, Über Zwei in Rußland gemachte Münzfunde (cf. no. 108 B above for full title), no. 61, pg. 10; Markoff, no. 26, pg. 99.

111B. Æ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 209.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الفلس بالمحمدية سنة تسع ومائتين

Bartholomae à Soret, III, Rev. Num. Belge, 1862, no. 41, pp. 44–45.

This fals, which Bartholomae, without reasonable grounds, attributes to Ṭāhir or Ṭalḥah, may well be of the 207 type and possibly actually of that year, the seven misread nine, but as the annulets are not described and the coin is not illustrated, one cannot tell and I am forced to give the coin a separate entry. (For the two fulūs in the British Museum, B. M. i, cop. nos. 140, 141, assigned to the year 209, cf. no. 109 above.)

For Ṭalḥah (no. 111 A), cf. no. 109 above.

112A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 210.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

طلحة

Obv. margin: بسم الله هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة عشر ومائتين

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 7, pp. 130–131; Markoff, no. 30, pg. 99; Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn; ANS.

112B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 210.

Obverse as no. 112A, but the ∵ beneath the area is not mentioned, and there is an outer margin with Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Reverse as no. 112A.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 12, pg. 79; Dorn, Nova Supplemente, Cl. IV, no. 2, a, pg. 35 (two specimens).

For Ṭalḥah, cf. no. 109 above,

With this issue, an uninterrupted succession (except for one year, 156) of 68 years, from 143 to the year 210, during which we have one or more specimens of at least one issue for each year at Rayy, comes to an end. Most of the lacunae which henceforth become more and more frequent and of longer duration are inexplicable, but we have already entered the period when Rayy, and indeed most of the lands and cities of the East, led a troubled existence. Rayy particularly was the bone of contention of rival factions and dynasties as well as the unwilling host in later days to successive hordes of invaders.

113A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 218.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لاشريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان عشرة وماءئتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no. 290 m, pg.57; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N. C., 1885, pg. 330; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no.15, pg.132; Berlin, unpublished, no. 698/1912.

113B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 218.

Obverse as no. 113 A, but with an ornament

Ƨ prefixed to the outer marginal legend.

Reverse as no. 113 A.

B. M. i, no. 309.

This is the year of al-Maʾmūn's death (Ṭab. III, 1134, ll.9 and ff.). The above issues were most probably struck during al-Maʾmūn's reign. He was succeeded by abu-Isḥāq al-Muʿtaṣim on the 19th of Rajab,–Sunday, not Thursday, as Ṭabari has it (Ṭab. III, 1164, ll. 3–5).

Between the years 210 and 218 there are recorded in the chronicles but not reflected in the numismatics two individuals who were connected with the administration of Rayy: in 210 ʿAli b. Hishām was sent against Qumm which had rebelled in dissatisfaction because it had not received treatment similar to that accorded to Rayy by al-Maʾmūn when he passed through in 204 (cf. no. 105 above) (Ṭab. III, 1093; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 282, ll. 8ff.); and Rayy doubtless came under his influence when he occupied the neighbouring province; in 214 he administered al-Jabal, Qumm, Iṣbahān, and Adharbayjān (Ṭab. III, 1102, 1. 8; ibn-al-Athīr, VI, 293, ll. 7–8). In the year 218, Isḥāq b. Ibrāhīm b. Musʿab was sent against certain parts of the population of al-Jibāl who had joined the Khurrāmiyyah sect (Ṭab. III, 1165, ll. 1–7). Rayy is not mentioned, though Hamadhān and other towns are. He returned, after breaking the movement, to Baghdād in 219 (Ṭab. III, 1166, ll. 14–15). I think Zambaur is mistaken in calling him a governor of Rayy; is he not also mistaken (unless he has knowledge of a very unusual coin) in listing abu-Isḥāq al-Muʿtaṣim as honorary governor in 213 (Manuel, pg.44)? Al-Muʿtaṣim was in Miṣr in 213 and still in 214; in 216 he went to al-Rūm (Ṭab. III, 1100, 1101, 1104).

Ṭalḥah (cf. no. 109 above) died in 213 (Ṭab. III, 1099, l.19), and the government of the East passed to ʿAbdullāh b. Ṭāhir.

114. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 221.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المعتصم بالله

Obv. inner margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وعشرين ومائتيت.

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 310; da Cunha, Pt. l, no. 858, pg.35 (marked inedited, but not described and probably of this type); Dorn, Cl. XIII, no.19, pg.80.

115. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 222.

The inscriptions are not described; the coin is attributed to ʿAbdullāh the Ṭāhirid, but this attribution does not necessarily mean that ʿAbdullāh's name appears on the dirham. as it was the practice of the earlier numismatic writers to attribute all coins struck in Ṭāhirid years and Ṭāhirid lands to the appropriate prince of the line, whether the actual name was inscribed on the coin or not. Cf. the note under no. 108 above.

Tornberg, Die jüngsten, etc., no. 4, pg. 290; Blau, N.Z., Wien, VIII, pg. 53.

116. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 223.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المعتصم بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وعشرين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B.M. Add. i, no. 310d, pg. 59; Casanova, no.569, pg. 24; da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 859, pg. 35; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N. C., 1885, pg. 330.

117. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 225.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المعتصم

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وعشرين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B.M. Add. i, no. 310f., pg. 60; Cairo, no. 581; Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, III, N.C., 1885, pg. 330.

(Leggett lists a dīnār of al-Muḥammadīyah, year 225, but for reasons given in a note under no. 26 above, I question its authenticity. See the list of dīnārs under no. 122 below.)

118A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 226.

Descriptions are lacking, but the specimens are presumably like the issues of the years 218–225, cf. nos. 113–117 above.

J. Allan, Unpublished Coins of the Caliphate, N. C., 1919, reprint pg. 4; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 32, pg. 134 (reverse effaced); N. Siouffi, Supplément no. 1 au Catalogue de monnaies arabes, Mossoul, Avril, 1891.

In 220, al-Muʿtaṣim sent the famous general al-Afshīn Ḥaydar b. Kaʾūs to al-Jibāl to make war against the rebellious Bābak (Ṭab. III, 1170, l. 17–1171, l.2 and ff.). I hardly think that Zambaur (Manuel, pg. 44) is justified in classing him as a governor of Rayy on this account.

About the year 221, the revenue of Rayy province was approximately 20,200,000 dirhams (ibn Khurdādhbih, 244, ll. 14–16; E. Thomas, in N.C., 1873, pg.249, reports 10,000,000 (?)).

118X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 227.

No description.

Blau, N. Z., Wien, VIII, pg. 53; Markoff, no.72, pg.100 (listed as Ṭāhirid).

119. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 228.

Descriptions are lacking. Codrington lists the coin under al-Wāthiq; Soret and Blau class theirs as Ṭāhirid. Presumably the name of al-Wāthiq appears beneath the reverse area. I feel certain that the issue is not any more Ṭāhirid than most of the other coins so classed by numismaists.

Codrington, N. C., 1902, pg. 271; Soret à Fraehn, St. Pétersbourg, 1851, pg.16, no. 35 (no 239 of the collection); Blau, N. Z., Wien, VIII, pg. 53.

Al-Muʿtaṣim had died in the year 227, and was succeeded by his son al-Wāthiq biallāh (Ṭab. III, 1322, ll. 15 and ff.).

120A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 229.

Again no description, but probably the usual legends, with الوائق بالله beneath the reverse area.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 40, pg. 135; Blau, N. Z., Wien, VIII, pg. 53; Markoff, no.78, pg.101 (listed as Ṭāhirid).

120X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 231.

Description lacking but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 2a, pg. 882.

121. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 233.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وثلثين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 25, pg. 81; Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, nos. 10–14, pp.192–193 (one coin).

Al-Wāthiq was assassinated in the year 232 and was succeeded by his brother, al-Mutawakkil ʿala-allāh (Ṭab. III, 1363, ll.10ff.).

In 230, the 11th of Rabīʿ I, ʿAbdullāh b. Ṭāhir (cf. no. 109 and no. 113 above) died at Nīsābūr, being then the minister of war and the chief of the shurṭah and the sawād, as well as governor of Khurāsān and its dependencies and of Rayy and Ṭabaristān and Kirmān. Al-Wāthiq turned over all these offices to ʿAbdullāhʾs son, Ṭāhir. (Ṭab. III, 1338, 1.15–1339, l.2.).

122A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 234.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اربع وثلثين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 593; Berlin, unpublished, no. 361/1894; ANS.

122B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 234.

Obverse as no. 122 A, but الدرهم.

Reverse as no. 122 A.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no.29, pg.81; Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, nos. 10–14, pg. 193 (one coin).

No. 122A is the first gold issue of the Rayy mint. It is of interest to list here the years in which the other provincial capitals began to strike dīnārs. The following general catalo- gues were consulted for the specimens cited in the list below: Tiesenhausen, (T), British Museum (BM), Paris (P), Berlin (B), Istanbul (I). Earlier specimens from each of the sev­eral mints might be known to exist, but I have limited my inquiry to these catalogues; the present list is sufficient to indicate the approximaee if not the exact date at which each mint began issuing gold. A supplementary list records the years when other mints not producing dīnārs till after 234 began to do so. Madīnat al-Salām is included in the first list since, with the decentralization of the gold minting, the name of the capital begins to appear on its issues.

Year Mints Museums
198 Miṣr T.
199 Miṣr, al-ʿIrāq T, BM, P.
200 Miṣr T, BM, P, B.
201 Miṣr, al-ʿIrāq T, BM, P, B.
202 Miṣr T, P.
203 Miṣr, al-ʿIrāq T, BM, P.
204 Miṣr, al-ʿIrāq T, BM, P.
205 Miṣr T.
206 Miṣr T.
209 Miṣr T, BM, B.
210 Miṣr T, BM, P.
212 Madīnat al-Salām T, BM.
214 Miṣr P, B.
215 Miṣr, Madāʾin (?) BM, P.
218 Madīnat al-Salām P.
219 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām BM, B.
220 Miṣr B.
221 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām, Ṣanʿa BM, P.
223 Miṣr, Ṣanʿā. BM, P, I.
224 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām BM, P, B, I.
225 Dimishq B, I.
226 Madīnat al-Salām T, BM.
227 Miṣr, Marw, Madīnat al-Salām, Dimishq T, BM, P, I.
228 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām BM, P.
229 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām BM, P, B.
230 Madīnat al-Salām T, I.
231 Miṣr, Dimishq T, BM, B.
232 Miṣr, Madīnat al-Salām, Ṣanʿā P, B.
233 Miṣr, Marw T, BM, I.
234 Miṣr, al-Muḥammdīyah, Sarra-man-rāʾa T, BM, I.

Between 234 and 280, fourteen other mints begin to issue dīnārs. The specimens of these mints are much rarer than those of the large mints, or shall we say that the towns which follow are today less accessible, for the most part, than the preceding, and hence so many specimens have not found their way to Europe ? Thus we cannot be at all sure that some of these towns did not begin to mint dīnārs several years before the earliest recorded here. Only the first issue of each town is given.

Year Mint Museums
237 Al-Baṣrah P.
247 Al-Mutawakkilīyah B, I.
250 Samarqand T, P.
250 Al-Shāsh I.
258 Wāsiṭ P.
263 Al-Mawṣil I.
266 Al-Kūfah BM, P.
268 Qazwīn P.
270 Al-Ahwāz BM, P, B.
270 Hamadhān B.
271 Al-Rāfiqah I.
272 Adharbayjān P.
275 āba BM.
276 āh al-Baṣrah P.

123. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 237.

(Not described, but undoubtedy as follows:)

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو عبد الله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع وثلثين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 56, pg. 137; Sale of Prof, von Karabaczek Collection, Schulman, Amsterdam, Nov., 1907, pg. 63 (not described, date 237/9).

Abu-ʿAbdullāh (later the Caliph al-Muʿtazz), whose name is inscribed beneath the obverse area, is mentioned on the coinage for the first time in 236, Madīnat al-Salām (B. M. i, no. 331; Ties., no. 1890; Berlin, no. 1485; Paris, no. 961. The entries in B.M. Add. i for Madīnat al-Salām, 233, Sarra-man-rāʾa, 233, al-Baṣrah,235, and Fārs, 235, have descriptions that would lead one to believe that these coins also bore the name abu-ʿAbdullāh (B. M. Add. i, no. 329 x, no. 322 z, and no. 322 g, and 329d, pg. 63). But this is surely due to the abbrevatted descriptions which employ cross-references to entries in the first volume of the B.M. catalogue, with the result that a coin is occasionally described as bearing inscrptionss similar to a previously described coin when the inscriptions are not exactly identical1. Elsewhere I find no specimen of a coin bearing abu-ʿAbdullāh before the year 236. Cf. for example: Tiesenhausen, Berlin, and Paris, where the first is 236, and Istanbul, where the first is 239).

In dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 235, according to the account in Ṭabari (III, 1394ff.), the Caliph al-Mutawakkil designated his successors. The first of the three sons, Muḥammad al-Muntaṣir, was chosen by his father as heir to the throne; before that he was to receive the governorship and revenues of most of the West and the South-East (Ṭab. III, 1395, ll. 6–15). Al-Muʿtazz, the second, received the provinces of Khurāsān and its adjoining dependencies, Ṭabaristān, Rayy, Armenia, Adharbayjān and Fārs (Ṭab. III, 1395, ll.15–17). To Ibrāhīm al-Muʾayyad, the third, went the junds of Damascus, Ḥimṣ, Jordan and Palestine (Ṭab. III, 1395, l.18–1396, l.1). In the year 240, Ṭabari reports, al-Mutawakkil added to the lot of al-Muʿtazz the supervision of all the state treasuries and the administationn of the coinage, allowing him to place his name on the dirhams. ثم ضم اليه فى سنة اربعين خزن بيوت الاموال فى جميع الافاق ودور الضرب وامر بضرب اسمه على الدرهم (Ṭab. III, 1395, ll. 17–18). It is clear, however, from the numismatic evidence that al-Muʿtazz (abu-ʿAbdullāh) already had the control of the mint in 236 and 237. Although al-Mutawakkil later favoured al-Muʿtazz to al-Muntaṣir as his successor, the historical tradition is that at first, as stated above, the Caliph designated his elder son, al-Muntaṣir as heir. To judge by the precedent of placing the name of the Wali ʿAhd on the coinage one would assume that from the year 236 on abu-ʿAbdullāh al-Muʿtazz was the chosen one; but again the account preserved in Ṭabari allows us to presume that there had been a change in the convention of allowing the heir apparent the right of inscribing his name on the coinage. In any case, Ṭabari is wrong in giving the year 240. Cf. no. 127 below, year 242, where the title appears instead of the name abu-ʿAbdullāh.

124. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 238.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو عبد الله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وثلثين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 31, pg. 81; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 60, pg. 138; Berlin, unpubiished, 294/1885.

For abu-ʿAbdullāh, cf. no. 123 above.

125. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 239.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو عبد الله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع وثلثين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 68, pg.139; cf. the ref. to the von Karabaczek specimen, year 237/9, under no. 123 above.

For abu-ʿAbdullāh cf. no. 123 above.

126. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 240.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو عبد الله

Rev.

.....

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Berlin, unpublished, no. 294/1885.

For abu-ʿAbdullāh, cf. no.123 above.

127. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 242.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الوعتز بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, nos. 34, 35, pp. 81–82; Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. 6, a, pg.36; Soret à Fraehn, no. 36, pg.16 (no. 242 of the collection); Tornberg, Cl. VI, no.77, pg.140; Berlin, unpublished, no. 294/1885.

This issue of the year 242 is the first of the Muḥammadīyah series that bears the title al-Muʿtazz bi-allāh in place of the name abu-ʿAbdullāh (cf. no. 123 above). The change from abu-ʿAbdullāh to al-Muʿtazz seems to have taken place in the year 240: e.g., issues of Miṣr, al-Baṣrah and Samarqand of the year 240 bear abu-ʿAbdullāh (B.M.i, no. 316, Add. i, no. 320g, pg. 62, no. 325t, pg. 63); while another issue of al-Baṣrah in the same year has al-Muʿtazz (B.M.Add. i, no. 322m, pg. 63); and in 241, al-Muʿtazz at Marw (B.M. Add. i, no. 331 x, pg. 64), that is, after the year 240, abu-ʿAbdullāh does not occur. If Ṭabari, in the passage quoted under no. 123 above, means by saying that in 240 al-Muʿtazz was recognized as Wali ʿAhd when al-Mutawakkil authorized him to put his name on the coins, then he would seem to be partly right, i. e. 240 is correct as far as the title al-Muʿtazz (i. e. Wali ʿAhd) is concerned, but abu-ʿAbdullāh (simply as a son of the Caliph) administered the coinage from the time when al-Mutawakkil divided the responsibilities of the Empire.

128. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 243.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المعتز بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 36, pg.82; Fraehn, Recensio, no. 7, pg. 17***; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 81, pg. 141; Sale of Prof, von Karabaczek Collection, Schulman, Amsterdam, Nov., 1907, pg. 63 (not described); Berlin, unpublished, no. 294/1885.

For al-Muʿtazz, cf. no. 127 above.

129. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 244.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المعتزبالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 87, pg.141.

For al-Muʿtazz, cf. no. 127 above.

130A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 245.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المعتزبالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة خمس واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Casanova, no. 593, pg. 25 (not described); Berlin, unpublished, no. 362/1894.

130B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 245.

Obverse as no. 130 A.

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Small size.

ANS.

130C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 245.

Obverse as no. 130 A, but الدرهم.

Reverse as no. 130 A.

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no.860, pg. 35 (not described); Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, VII, N. C, 1892. pg.161 (not described); Tornberg, Cl. VT, no. 90, pg.141 (the reverse obliterated); Berlin. unpublished, no. 294/1885.

For al-Muʿtazz, see no. 127 above.

130D. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 245.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 12a, pg. 882.

131A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 246.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المعتز بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست و اربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. 8, a, pg. 36; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 96, pg. 142; Berlin, unpublished, no. 294/1885.

Cf. no. 127 above for al-Muʿtazz.

131B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 246.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, Supplement, no.13a, pg. 882.

132. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 247.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المعتز بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتوكل على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 102, pg. 143.

This coin was struck sometime within the first nine months of the year, as al-Mutawakkil was murdered and al-Muntaṣir succeeded to the Caliphate the 3rd or 4th of Shawwāl, 247 (Ṭab. III, 1471, ll.5–6).

133A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 248.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المستعين بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Casanova, no. 600, pg. 25 (not described); Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 40, pg. 82; Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. aa, 9, pg. 36; Paris, no. 977; Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 106, pg. 143; Berlin. unpublished (two specimens), no. 294/1885.

133B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 248.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, no. 15, pg.103.

Al-Muntaṣir who had succeeded to the Caliphate the year before (cf. no. 132 above) died on the 4th or 5th of īʿ II, 248 (Ṭab. III, 1495, ll.13–16); he was succeeded, by abu-al-ʿAbbās al-Mustaʿīn on the 6th of Rabīʿ II (Ṭab. III, 1501, l.17–1502, 1.2). Since the above issue bears the name of al-Mustaʿīn in the position on the reverse area now commonly employed for the mention of the Caliph, we must conclude that the die was engraved sometime after the first three months of the year.

134A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 249.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

الوستعين بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة تسع واربعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Dorn, Cl. XIII, no. 42, pg. 82; Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. c, 9, pg. 36; Tornberg, Die jüngsten, etc., no.11, pg. 290; Berlin, unpublished, no. 294/1885 (digit of date effaced, but probably of this date).

134B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 249.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, Supplement, no.18a, pg. 882.

134C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 249.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 18b, pg. 882.

There is not, so far as I know, any record of the proclamation of al-Mustaʿīn's son al-ʿAbbās as heir to the Caliphate other than the appearance of his name on the coins; and no coin of any mint that I have seen described, earlier than 249, bears the name.

In this year Rayy was visited by a severe earthquake. (Ṭab. III, 1515, ll.3ff.).

135. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 250.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

العباس بن [sic] ابو

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

المستعين

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمسين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VI, no. 111, pg. 144.

I suspect that the description of the coin is faulty in two respects: a) that it is العباس and not ابو العباس (cf. no. 134 above); and b) that there is لله above the reverse area as is common on the coins of the period.

In this year, 250, Rayy became the battle ground of the Ṭāhirids and the ʿAlids of Ṭabaristān. Muḥammad b. Jaʿfar b. al-Ḥasan revolted at Rayy in favour of Zayd, prince of Ṭabaristān. His adversaries were the Khorāsānians. He was captured and turned over to Muḥammdd b. Ṭāhir b. ʿAbdullāh. Another ʿAlid pretender arose in favour of al-Riḍa, to wit, ḥmad b. ʿIsa b. ʿAli b. Ḥusayn al-Ṣaghīr b. ʿAli b. Ḥusayn b. ʿAli b. abi-Ṭālib, who defeated Muḥammad b. ʿAli b. Ṭāhir, then prefect at Rayy, so that the latter took flight to Qazwīn and Baghdād (Ṭab. III, 1523, l.13–1533, 1.3; Masʿūdi, VII, 344–345: ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 88, ll.8–10). Muḥammad b. Ṭāhir b. ʿAbdullāh was at this time governor of the East, including Rayy. عامل المستعين على خراسان وطبرستان والرىّ والمشرق كله (Ṭab. III, 1526. ll.15–16). After the ʿAlid success, al-Ḥasan b. Zayd united Ṭabaristān and the province of Rayy as far as the boundary of Hamadhān (Ṭab. III, 1531, ll.5–10).

136A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 251.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المستعين

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وخمسين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. i, no. 339; Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. IV, no. 9, a, pg. 37.

136B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 251.

Obverse as no. 136 A, but the arrangement of the words on the last two lines, thus:

العباس بن

المؤمنين

Tornberg, Die jüngsten, etc., no. 12, pg.290.

Reverse as no. 136 A.

The ʿAlid-Ṭāhirid difference at Rayy continued (Ṭab. III, 1585, ll.9ff.), and this entire year is marked by the interminable rupture and disorder within the Caliphate, ending with the abdication of al-Mustaʿīn and the official succession of al-Muʿtazz on the 4th of Muḥarram, 252, according to Ṭabari's account (Ṭab. III, 1645, ll.12–16), or in dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 251 (cf. Zambaur, Manuel, pg. 4, foot-note 9).

There follows a lacuna of seven years in the preserved specimens of the Rayy mint. During these years the city was in a constant state of turmoil. We need here only to record the names of a few of the personalities who took part in the confused events. In 252. ʿAbd-al-ʿAzīz b. abi-Dulaf (second of the Dulafid "dynasty") was appointed governor of al-Jabal, of which he was already in a sense the master (Ṭab. III, 1685, ll.13–141)1. Under the year 252, Ṭabari reports that when the Ṭāhirids at Rayy fled from the ʿAlids, they were forced to pay 2,000,000 dirhams to the latter (Ṭab. III, 1686, ll.1–4; cf. Schwarz, pg. 758, where the year 253 for the event is an error). In 253, the Caliph's famous general, Mūsa b. Bugha al-Kabīr, was given the administration of al-Jabal (Ṭab. III, 1686, ll.12–13). Ibn-Isfandiyār (ed. Browne, pg. 178) reports the occupation of Rayy territoiess by Ḥasan b. Zayd's followers after Rabīʿ I, in 254. The ʿAlid again took possession of the city of Rayy in Ramaḍān, 256 (Ṭab. III, 1840, ll.3–4). The following month, the 11th of Shawwāl, Mūsa b. Bugha set out from Samarra for Rayy, having taken leave of the Caliph al-Muʿ-tamid (Ṭab. III, 1840, ll.5–6), who had succeeded to the Caiphatee in Rajab of this year. In the year 260, Yaʿqūb b. al-Layth (cf. no. 137 below) retired from Ṭabaristān to the confines of Rayy by way of Qūmis (Ṭab. III, 1885, ll.14–17; cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pg. 182, — in the month of Urdī-Bihisht). The general Mūsa b. Bugha had appointed al-Ṣalāni (or al-Ṣalābi) to the prefecture of Rayy in 259 (Ṭab. III, 1880, ll.8–9); this individual treated with Yaʿqūb when he arrived in 260 (Ṭab. III, 1885, l.17–1886, l.2; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 185, l.7), and, while still prefect of Rayy, died in 262 (Ṭab. III, 1907, l.9; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 211, ll.18–19).

136X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 258.

Not described, but listed as Abu-Dulafid.

Markoff, no. 23, pg. 103.

137. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 262.

Not described in full, but probably as follows:

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

يعقوب

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المعتمد على الله

مر

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين وستين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Cl. VII, no. 8, pg. 148.

Tornberg transcribes "حعقوب (Jaʾqub)", but this is surely a misreading for يعقوب Yaʿqūb. His specimen of al-Shāsh, 261, is transcribed يعقوب (Tornberg, Cl. VII, no. 6, pg. 148).

The Caliph al-Muʿtamid had succeeded on the 17th of Rajab, 256 (Ṭab. III, 1839, ll. 6–7). In 262, he offered the governorship of Khurāsān, Ṭabaristān, Jurjān, Rayy and Fārs, and the generalship of the guard of Baghdād to Yaʿqūb b. al-Layth, whose name appears on the obverse area of the present issue (Ṭab. III, 1892, 113–4). Yaʿqūb's rise (Sijistān, 253; Kirmān shortly afterwards; Balkh, Kābul, etc., 256; attempt on Fārs and governorship of Balkh, Ṭukharistān and Sind, 257; Nīsābūr and Khurāsān, 259; and cf. note under no. 136 above; death in 265) is summarized in the E. of I., s. v. Ṣaffārids, cf. the references there. The present coin is the only Ṣaffārid issue of Rayy.

On the death of al-Ṣalāni (or al-Ṣalābi, cf. no. 136 above), Kaighaligh (?) (كيغلغ) became the Rayy prefect (Ṭab. III, 1907, 1.9; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 211, ll.18–19).

138. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 265.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الموفق بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المعتمد على الله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وستين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Double struck.

B. M. i, no. 373.

Al-Muwaffaq bi-allāh (beneath the obverse) is abu-Aḥmad b. al-Mutawakkil, brother of al-Muʿtamid, heir to the throne, but he never succeeded to the Caliphate. I have not been able to find the date of his proclamation as Wali ʿAhd. The earliest numismatic evidence is 262, a dirham struck in that year at Madīnat al-Salām (Ties., no.2011) with الموفق بالله, and this is supported by a passage in ibn-Khallikān, S. V. Yaʿqūb b. al-Layth (III, 363, ll.6–26), where it is mentioned that al-Muwaffaq was heir apparent in 262, when he was sent against Yaʿqūb.

Ten years elapse before the next specimen of the Rayy mint. Meanwhile, in Ṣafar, 266, the Turkish general Asātekīn took Rayy forcing out the prefect Ṭalmajūr (صطلححور,طلحجون,حظلخجور,خطلنجور,طلمجور); he, Asātekīn, and his son, Adhkūtekīn, pushed on to Qazwīn (where Abrūn, the brother of Kaighaligh (cf. no. 137 above) was in control), took that city, and then returned to Rayy and occupied it (Ṭab. III, 1936, ll.10–14). Later, in Jumāda I, 272, Adhkūtekīn, leaving Qazwīn, defeated Muḥammad b. Zayd, the ʿAlid, in a terrible battle near Rayy, the Turk then entering Rayy, where he took 100,000,000 dīnārs(!) from the people (ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 293, ll.8–16; cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 189–190).

139. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 275.

Unfortunately undescribed. As it is listed simply under al-Muʿtamid, it probably bears the usual inscriptions.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N. C., 1886, pg. 228.

In 275 Rāfiʿ b. Harthamah occupied Jurjān and then came down to Rayy which he took over till Rajab, 276, when al-Muwaffaq died (ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 303, ll.5–22; but cf. no.140 below, al-Muwaffaq's death not in 276, but 278). Yāqūt reports that it was about this time that the Shīʿite sect began to make serious inroads on the population of Rayy. Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan al-Māridāni, formerly in the service of Adhkūtekīn, was the strong arm behind the propaganda, and had, according to Yāqūt, taken Rayy in the year 275.

وكان اهل الرى اهل سنةو جماعة الى ان تغلب احمد بن الحسن الماردانى عليها فاظهر التشيع واكرم اهله وقربهم اليه الناس بتصنيف الكتب فى ذلك ...وكان ذلك فى ايام المعتمد وتغلب عليها فى سنة ٢٧٥ وكان قبل ذلك فى خدمة كوتكين بن سايكين النركىو تغلب على الرى و ظهر التشير بها واستمر الى الان1

(Yāqūt, II, 901, ll.2–7). I have not been able to find any reference to this Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan in the chronicles of Ṭabari and ibn-al-Athīr.

140. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 276.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الناصر لدين

الموفق بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد

القوة رسول جميعا

الله

المعتمد على الله

احمد بن الموفق بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ست و سبعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 64, pp. 358–359 (illustr., Pl. XIV, fig. 11) (Ties., no. 2085).

Bartholomae's transcription of the phrase ranged at the sides of, and above, the reverse area (القوة لله جميعا) is faulty, although the illustration and translation, "la puissance est à Dieu entièrement", are correct. He has القوة لله جميعا. The editor called attention to two quite similar dirhams: these are, –a) image, Madīnat-al-Salām, year 274, with the words القوة جميعا right and left on the obverse, and القوة جميعا, right and left on the reverse; and b) image, Wāsiṭ, year 277, with القوة لله جميعا, right, top and left on both obverse and reverse. (Tornberg, Cl. II, no. 422, pg.100 and no. 430, pg.102). Another is al-Baṣrah, 276 (B.M. i, no. 357).

Al-Nāṣir li-dīn (beneath the obverse) is another of al-Muwaffaq's titles. His son Aḥmad's name first begins to appear on the coinage along with the names of al-Muʿtamid and al-Muwaffaq in 272 (Rāfiqah, B. M. Add. i, no. 352n). During the last two years of al-Muwaffaq's life (al-Muwafaqq virtually controlled the Caliphate during the weak al-Muʿtamid's reign), Aḥmad, later al-Muʾtaḍid, was in turn the real ruler (cf. Zetterstéen. E. of I., s. v. al-Muʾtaḍid). Al-Muwaffaq died the 22nd of Ṣafar, 278 (Ṭab. III, 2123, ll.3–5), and the Caliph was then forced to recognize Aḥmad as heir apparent, in fact as co-regent.

In the year 278, Rāfiʿ b. Harthamah (cf. no. 139 above) rebuilt al-Mahdi's mosque. originally constructed in 158. The building had at an earlier date been converted into a prison and then fallen into disrepair. After Rāfiʿ's departure from the city, the people of Rayy destroyed the restored building (Yāqūt, II, 895, ll.13–22). He is also reported to have restored the fortress of Farrukhān at Rayy (Hamadhāni, 269, ll.8–12), but this may be a confusion with the mosque. Rāfiʿ had had his troubles with Muḥammad b. Zayd (cf. no. 138 above) in the same year (cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 191–192), and in 279, he was removed from the government of Khurāsān by the Caliph al-Muʾtaḍid (succeeded 20th of Rajab, 279), and forced to flee from Rayy, whence he went eastward and was eventually assassinated in Khwārizm in 283 (Ṭab. III, 2135, ll.3–6; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 317, l.16–319, l.17).

In 281, al-Muʾtaḍid appointed his son ʿAli to the government of Rayy, Qazwīn, Zanjān, Abhar, Qumm, Hamadhān and Dīnawar, with Aḥmad b. abi-al-Aṣbagh as his secretary and al-Ḥusayn b. ʿAmr al-Naṣrāni over the administration of the military expendituess and the crown lands of Rayy (Ṭab. III, 2140, ll.15–17).

141. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 284.

Not described.

Casanova, no. 669, pg. 28.

142. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 288.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتعضد بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان و ثمنين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 1057.

143. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 289.

Not described.

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 861, pg. 35.

When the year 289 began, Rayy was in the hands of the Turkish general, Ūgurtmish (Ṭab.: اوكرتمش; ibn-al-Athīr: الدتمش; اوكرمش; Zambau: Iltutmysh). In Rajab he and his sons were driven out by Muḥammad b. Hārūn, the rebellious general of Ismāʿīl the Sāmānid, who proceeded to occupy Rayy for himself (Ṭab. III, 2208, l.14–2209, l.2; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 357, ll.8–16). Somewhat later in the same year Ismāʿīl b. Aḥmad himself entered the city, putting Muḥammad b. Hārūn to flight (Ṭab. III, 2220, l.16–2221, 1.3; ibn-al-Athīr, VII, 361, ll.9–11). — On the 22nd of RabiʿII, al-Muktafi, who had been honorary governor of Rayy and the middle east (cf. no. 140 above, mentioned by his personal name ʿAli), succeeded to the Caliphate (Ṭab. III, 2207, ll.12ff.; the 8th of Jumāda I is also given as the date). At the end of dhu-al-Qaʿdah of the same year Khāqān al-Muflihi was assigned the office of chief of police at Rayy with 5000 men under his command (Ṭab. III, 2217, ll.1–2).

144A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 292.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المكتفى بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين وتسعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no. 394e, pg. 73.

144B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 292.

Obverse probably as no. 144 A, but الدرهم.

Reverse probably as no.144 A.

Not described.

Da Cunha, Pt. 1, no. 862, pg. 35; Porter, N. C., 1921, pg.325 (cf. Zambaur, N.Z., Wien, 1922, pg.9).

Rayy was now ruled by a Sāmānid governor. In Muḥarram of the year 290, al-Muktafi had sent a messenger to Ismāʿīl b. Aḥmad announcing to him his investiture as governor of Rayy (Ṭab. III, 2221, ll.10–12).

145. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 294.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المكتفى بالله

10 Miles

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع وتسعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

The one specimen of the coin which I have seen (ANS) is characterized by decadent Kufic letters.

Da Cunha, Pt. l, no. 863, pg. 35 (not described); Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N. C., 1886, pg. 229; ANS.

146A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 295.

Not described.

Leggett.

146B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 295.

Not described, but most probably as no. 145 above.

Porter, N. C., 1921, pg. 325 (cf. Zambaur, N. Z., Wien, 1922, pg.9).

In this year occurred the death of Ismāʿīl b. Aḥmad the Sāmānid (cf. no. 144 above). on the 14th of Ṣafar (Ṭab. III, 2279, ll.6–7). The 12th of dhū-al-Qaʿdah, in the same year, al-Muktafi died and the Caliphate passed to al-Muqtadir bi-allāh (Ṭab. III, 2280, ll.11ff.).

147. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 296.

Not described. Al-Muqtadir.

Da Cunha, Pt. l, no. 864, pg. 35.

148. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 298.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شرك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الردهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وتسعين ومائتين

Obv. outer margin: Qurʾān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurʾān, IX, 33.

J. Allan, N.C., 1919, pg. 5 of the reprint (not described); da Cunha, Pt. l, no. 865, pg. 35 (not described); B.M., unpubiished(?) 1905/10/12, no. 38 (probably the coin listed by Mr. Allan ?).

Abu-al-ʿAbbās b. Amīr al-Muʾminīn is Aḥmad al-Rāḍi b. al-Muqtadir, the heir apparent, who later succeeded to the throne in 322. He was only one year of age in this year 298, having been born in Rabīʿ II, 297 (cf. E. of I., s. v. al-Rāḍī). I find no mention of al-Rābīʿs birth in Ṭabari or ibn-al-Athīr, but it is to be noted that in 301 his age is given as four years when he was invested with a robe of honour and given the province of Egypt to govern (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 57, ll.4–7).

End Notes

1
Perhaps spelled Malik instead of Mālik.
1
Firāḍ?
1
I find that another specimen of the remarkable coin under discussion was described by B. Dorn in Forschungen in der Pehlewy-Münzkunde, in Mélanges asiatiques tirés du Bulletin de l'Académie impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, Tome IV, 1860—1863, pp. 22—24. Professor Dorn hoped for "eine besser erhaltene Münze", and I gather therefore that Bartolomäi's specimen was poorly preserved, which may explain his and Dorn's unwillingness to read بالرىّ on the coin. Also Dorn read Omar in Pahlevi in place of Sa'd in Kufic as I have read it. But I believe that the Berlin and Istanbul specimens leave no doubt whatsoever as to the validity of the reading بالرىّ, and although one might conceivably read 'Umar in Pahlevi on the obverse, I am fairly well convinced that Sa'd is the correct reading. It would be difficult to explain 'Umar (b. al-'Alā')'s striking coins in Rayy.
1
Note the use of al-Rayy here, in the sense of the province (i.e., al-Jibāl), not exclusively the city.
1
Zambaur (Contrib. I, no. 56, pg. 69) has described a fals "sans nom de ville ni date", the obverse not described, but the reverse reading: محمد رسول الله||مما امربه الامير||يحيى الحرشى ||بخ|| ∴; margin: des traces indistinctes, peut-être la formule d'émission. The editor identifies Yaḥya, giving dates differing in several instances from those mentioned above, and proposes to attribute the coin to al-Muḥammadīyah between the years 170 and 180, "en considérant le style, la série des fels connus de cette ville, et enfin l'endroit où elle a été trouvée". I have not given the coin a regular entry, feeling that more definite evidence is needed to assign it to the Rayy mint.
1
Similar inscriptions had already appeared on the coinage of some of the cities of eastern Khurāsān. Cf. image, Ma'din al-Shāsh, 180 (Ties., no.1281); image, Balkh, 181, 185, 186 (Ties., nos.1304, 1382, 1399); image, Marw, 186 (Ties. no. 1404); image, Balkh, 187, 188 (Ties., nos.1418, 1437); image, Kirmān, 188 (Ties., no.1442). Cf. also the other issues of 189: image, Balkh (Ties., nos.1454–5), Ma'din al-Shāsh (Ties., no. 1462); and, of the year 190, image, Ma'din al-Shāsh (Ties., no.1478).
1
R. Strothmann (Die Zwölfer-Schīʿa, Zwei Religionsgeschichtliche Charakterbilder aus der Mongolenzeit, Leipzig, 1926, pp. 170–171) gives 203, with two specific dates, I, 17 and IX, 24. The circumstances of the death would naturally contribute to obscurity in the tradition.
1
A typical case of the unjustifiable attribution of all coins that fall within the Ṭāhirid geographical-time limit to princes of that "dynasty" is presented by Otto Blau, Nachlese orientalischer Münzen, N. Z., Wien, VIII, 1876, pg. 53. For al-Muḥammadīyah he has the following "Ṭāhirid issues: 206–210 inclusive, 218, 221–223 inclusive, 226–229 inclusive, 233, 234, 238–240 inclusive, 242–251 inclusive, — in other words all the coins which he knew to have been struck at al-Muḥammadīyah during this period. Since there are no descriptions of these coins, I have entered them only when I have found no other reference to an issue of the given year.
1
Mr. Walker of the British Museum has informed me that my presumption is correct: the references in B. M. Add. i are misleading.
1
The chronicles give us poor support for the "Abu-Dulafd" issues of Rayy in the years 231, 245, 246, 248, 249 and 258 (nos. 120 X, 130 D, 131 B, 133 B, 134 B, C, above, and no. 136 X, below), all of which are listed in Markoff's Inventory but none of which are described. There is no evidence in Ṭabari that ʿAbd-al-ʿAzīz, the abu-Dulafid, was in a position to issue these coins during the years in question. If they are genuinely abu-Dulafid there is a complex history involving Rayy which seems to be preserved only in these unique specimens at the Hermitage. My suspicion is that they are not abu-Dulafid.
1
Variant of اذكوتكين بن اساتكين.

V. THE SĀMĀNID PERIOD

The year 298 is the first in which I find any reference to Muḥammd b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, vassal of the Sāmānid prince Aḥmad at Rayy. He was, I gather, already at Rayy in this year and was made governor of Ṭabaristān as well by the Sāmānid (ibn-Isfandiyār, pg. 199). For the further history of Muḥammad b. 'Ali, see nos.150 and following below1.

149. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 301.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

Obv. inner margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة احدى وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, unpublished, no.1206/1912.

For abu-al-'Abbās, the Wali 'Ahd, cf. no. 148 above.

In this year, 'Ali, another son of al-Muqtadir, was honoured by being given the (nominal) governorship of Rayy, along with Damāwand (Dīnāwand, sic.), Qazwīn, Zanjān and Abhar (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 57, ll.7-8). The Sāmānid, Aḥmad b. Ismā'il b. Ahmad, lord of Khurāsān and Transoxiana, was killed in Jumāda II, and was succeeded by his son Naṣr b. Aḥmad (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 58, 11.1–16).

150. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 302.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

محمد بن على

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M. i, no. 416.

For abu-al-'Abbās, cf. no. 148 above. The personage named beneath the mention of the Caliph on the reverse area is Muḥammad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, governor of Rayy for Naṣr b. Aḥmad the Sāmānid. He had occupied Rayy "during the days of the Vizierate of 'Ali b.'Isa" (301–304) وكان صعلوك قد تغلب على الرى وما يليها ايام وزارة على بن عيسى (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 74, ll.2ff.), or perhaps as early as 298 (cf. the note and authority quoted under no. 148 above). He was at Rayy, with interruptions, till 314 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII. 121, ll.18–20). In this year, 302, Muḥammad b. 'Ali marched with his army from Rayy against al-Ḥasan b. 'Ali al-Utrūsh. the'Alid rebel from Ṭabaristān, but was defeated and forced to return to Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 64, ll.10ff.; Ṭab., III, 2292, ll.1–5; but cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pg. 200, where the same event is reported as of the year 301, in the month of Jumāda II. The rebel was also known as Nāṣir-i-Kabīr. Muḥammad b. 'Ali returned to Rayy from Jālūs,— ibn-al-Athīr: سالوس for شالوس, today Chālūs —, by way of Amul, Mālika Dasht, Sāri and Gūrgān). Zambaur (Contrib. I, no. 35, pp. 59–61), in a careful note on the coins of this period, points out that in the issue of the year 302 Muḥammad b. 'Ali does not appear as a Sāmānid governor but rather as a prefect of the Caliph; this may be so, but I question whether the omission of the Sāmānids's name need imply this state of affairs. There is plenty of historical evidence of the extension of the Sāmānid power toward the West in the last quarter of the 3rd Century, but it is not till 293 that the Sāmānid overlords began to strike coins with their names at any cities west of Samarqand, al-Shāsh and Balkh, and then only sporadically at Nīsābūr and Andarābah. Genuine Sāmānid coinage is not minted at al-Muḥammadīyah before 314 (or perhaps 313, cf. no. 157 B), although Sāmānid power had been operative there more than a decade before.

151. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 303.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العياس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. i, no. 417.

Note the omission of the name of Muḥammad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, the Sāmānid governor. There is no record in the chronicles of Rayy having been reoccupied by the central 'Abbāsid authorities, but this would seem to have been the case, if we are to judge by the numismatic evidence. For abu-al-'Abbās, cf. no. 148 above.

Most unfortunate is the lacuna of four years which now follows till the next known issue of the Rayy mint. At this point the semi-independntt Sājids of Adharbayjān actively enter on the Rayy stage. (Cf. the article Sādjids in the E. of I. with the sources quoted there, and especially the monograph by Defrémery in the J. A., Sér. 4, Tome IX, pp. 409ff., and Tome X, pp.396ff.: "Mémoire sur la famille des Sadjides", in which the Armenian as well as the Arabic sources are drawn upon.) I do not intend here to go into the history of this interesting family of warriors, but shall record the events which have some bearing on the Rayy coinage. No Rayy coins of the years 304, 305, 306, or 307 having come to light, numismatic evidence is lacking for these several events and offices:

In the year 304, abu-al-Qāsim Ja'far b. al-Nāṣir, the'Alid of Ṭabaristān, was estranged from his brother 'Ali b. al-Nāṣir (for reasons which do not concern us here), and sought the aid of Muḥammad b. 'Ali at Rayy, promising to adopt the black colour of the 'Abbāsids, to coin money in the name of the Sāmānid rulers of Khurāsān and to insert the Sāmānid lord's name in the khuṭbah (ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 204–205). There was a brief occupation of Rayy in the same year by Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj while Ṣa'lūk was governor of the city (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 74, ll.8–9). In 305 or 306 Rayy was again entered by Yūsuf, who defeated the 'Abbāsid government troops led by the general Khāqān al-Mufliḥi (cf. note under no. 143 above) (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 74, ll.19–23). The Caliph then sent his general Mūnis against Yūsuf, who was forced to leave Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 75, ll.9–10), and after his departure the Caliph appointed Waṣīf al-Begtimuri governor of Rayy, Qazwīn and Abhar (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 75, ll.10–11). The following year, in 307, Rayy was occupied by Aḥmad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, brother of Muḥammad (cf. no. 150 above and no. 152 below), marching from the neighbouring Qumm; against him were sent Naḥrīr al-Ṣaghīr (prefect of Hamadhān) and Waṣīf, who were defeated before the gates of Rayy by Aḥmad who then took over the government of the city (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 76, 1.21–77, 1.8). The picture is further complicated by the official (but probably honorary) appointment of 'Ali b. Wahsudhān to the governorship of Rayy, along with Damāwand, Qazwīn, Abhar and Zanjān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 76, ll.6–8; this was after Muḥarram, 307, ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 76, 1.1).

152. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 308.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

احمد بن على

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدبة سنة ثمان وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 35, pp.59–61; Berlin, unpublished, no. 240/18821; Paris, unpublished.

For abu-al-'Abbās, cf. no. 148 above. Aḥmad b. 'Ali (Ṣa'lūk), whose name appears beneath the reverse, has already been mentioned in the note under no. 151 above, recording how he took Rayy in 307. It is satisfying to have numismatic testimony to this event in the year 308.

153. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 309.

Obv.

لا اله الا>

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

احمد بن على

Obv. inner margin: يسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة تسع و ثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no.632 and two unnumbered; B.M., unpublished, 1915/1/8, no. 136; Paris, unpublished.

For abu-al-'Abbās, cf. no. 148 above. Aḥmad b. 'Ali (Ṣa'lūk) was still in control of Rayy, cf. no. 152 and the note under no. 151 above. Ismā'īl Ghālib appended to the specimen published in the Istanbul catalogue a note in which he correctly idenified Aḥmad and Muḥammad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk. His reference to B.M.Add.i should be pg. 180 and not pg.18.

154A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 310.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لاشريك له

ابو العباس له

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

احمد بن على

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة وعشر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

(My notes fail to show whether رسول الله is written on one or two lines. This and other inedited coins in the Bibliothèque Nationale will be officially and technically published by M. Cotteveille-Giraudet. May I again acknowledge here my indebtedness to him for allowing me to make advance use of the information which the unpublished coins at Paris provides. My notes on these coins were taken solely for the historical matter contained in their inscriptions, and the numismatic details may not always be exact.)

154B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 310.

Obverse as no. 154 A, but الدرهم.

Rev.

.....

.....

.....

المقت]دربالله]

احمدبن]على]

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Fragmentary coin (Tornberg).

Dorn. Nova Supplementa, Cl. VI, no. 212, b, pg. 239 (not described, but with Aḥmad b. 'Ali); Tornberg, Cl. II, no. 481, pg.110.

No. 154 B is most probably the coin to which Zambaur refers with a note that he had misplaced the Citation (Zambaur, Contrib. I, pg. 60).

For abu-al-'Abbās, cf. no. 148; Aḥmad b. 'Ali, no. 152, and the note under no. 151 above. In this year Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj was released from prison in Baghdād and the Caliph invested him with the government of Rayy, Qazwīn, Abhar, Zanjān and Adharbayjān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 99, 1.23–100, 1.3). Yuūsuf set out for Adharbayjān in Jumāda II, 310 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 100, 1.7).

155A.. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 311.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس له

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

احمد بن على

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة عسر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

155B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 311.

Obverse as no.155 A, but الدرهم.

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

احمد بن على

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Codrington, N. C., 1902, pg. 272 (illustr. Pl. XII, no. 10).

155C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 311.

The coin unfortunately is not fully described, but beneath the obverse area is inscribed ابو الحسن [sic] الوائق, and beneath the reverse area, يوسف بن ديوداد. It is not mentioned whether the Caliph's name is present or absent.

Porter, N. C., 1921, pg. 326 (cf. Zambaur, N. Z., Wien, 1922, pp. 11–12).

Disturbing events are reflected in the three issues of Rayy in this year 311. Nos. 155 A and 155 B were struck by Aḥmad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk (cf. nos. 152–154 and the note under no. 151 above) before he lost the city and his own head; no. 155 C, after his adversary, Yūsuf b. Dīwdād, abi-al-Sāj (cf. the note under no. 151 above), had again become the master of Rayy. The coins are testimony to the accuracy of the chronicles, where we learn that at the end of dhu-al-Qa'dah, 311, Yūsuf attacked Rayy, defeated and killed Aḥmad b. 'Ali, and sent his head to Baghdād. The victor entered the city in dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 311 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 105, 1.14–106, 1.4); hence the dirham, no.155 C, must have been minted during the last month of the year.

Al-Wāthiq abu-al-Ḥasan (beneath the obverse area of no. 155 C) is surely a misreading for al-Wazīr abu-al-Ḥasan. This is abu-al-Ḥasan 'Ali b. Muḥammad b. al-Furāt, discussed below under no.156. He took up the duties of the Vizierate in Rabī' II of this year (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 101, ll.9 ff.).

156A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 312.

Yūsuf b. Dīwdād.

Markoff, no. 7, pg. 303 (not described, but simply listed under Yūsuf b. Dīwdād; no. S on the same page is, according to Markoff, the same as no. 7, but has د beneath the reverse area, which causes me to suspect strongly that it is not the same, but like no. 156 D, i. e. an official coin of the Caliphate).

156B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 312.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس

الوزير ابو الحسن

Rev.

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

يوسف بن ديوداد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنى عشر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3—4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

156C. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 312.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس له

امير الؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اثنى عشر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, no. 1132; Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn; Istanbul, two unnumbered.

156D. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 312.

Obverse as no. 156 C.

Reverse as no. 156 C, but with د (Naskhi) beneath the area.

B. M. Add. i no. 418a, pg. 76; Berlin, no. 1651; Berlin, unpublished, no.135/1935, Gotha; Cairo, no.651; Casanova, no. 719, pg. 29 (not described); Istanbul, unnumbered and misassigned to year 311; ANS.

156E. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 312.

Obverse as no. 156 C, but the و is omitted before ثلثمائة in the marginal legend.

Reverse as no. 156 D.

B. M. i, no.418.

156F. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 31X.

Obverse as no. 156 C, but الدرهم.

Reverse as no.156 C.

Double-struck.

The digit is effaced, but I believe 312 is the only year in which this dirham could have been struck.

ANS.

Nos. 156 A and B are critical coins in the numismatic history of Rayy at this period. The fact that the Hermitage coins were not described but only listed in Markoff's inventory. caused Zambaur to consider them more probably issues of the Caliph than of the Sājid (Zambaur, Contrib. II, pp. 151–2, footnote 71), and hence to record in his Manuel, pg. 45, 'Abbāsid domination at Rayy in 312, which is only partly correct. The Paris specimen establishes the fact that Yūsuf's name actually does appear (Yūsuf b. Dīwdād beneath the reverse area of no. 156 B), and furthermore the presence of the name of the Wazīr abu-al-Ḥasan (cf. no. 155 C and note above) beneath that of the Wali 'Ahd abu-al-'Abbās , proves that Yūsuf's issue can be dated within the first three months of the year 312. Abu-al-Ḥasan 'Ali b. Muḥammad b. al-Furāt, indubitably the Wazīr abu-al-Ḥasan on the coin, was named vizier for the third time (he had held the Vizierate twice before, 296–299, 304–306, cf. Mas'ūdi, VIII, pp. 272–3) in Rabī II, 311 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 101, ll.9ff.) and was imprisoned the 8th of Rabī' I, 1312 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 109, ll.10ff.), his successor abu-al-Qāsim al-Khāqāni taking over on the 9th (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 110, 1.18). Thus, if we allow three weeks to elapse between the event and the news of it reaching Rayy, we can be fairly certain that the coin in question was not minted later than say the end of Rabī I.

Nos. 156 C, D, E and F are conventional 'Abbāsid coins with the names of the Caliph al-Muqtadir and the Wali 'Ahd abu-a-'Abās, and as such, I believe, disclose a small error in ibn-al-Athīr. He writes that Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj left Rayy and went to Hamadhān at the beginning of the year 313, leaving in his place his "ghulām", Mufliḥ. After he left, Mufliḥ seems to have antagonized the people he was empowered to govern. with the result that he abandoned the post and joined Yūsuf, who then came back to Rayy in Jumāda, II 313 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 105, 1.14–106, 1.4). It is not likely that if Yūsuf were still in the city he would omit his own name from the later issues of the year 312, when he had already minted, before Rabī' II, a dīnār with his name. The probability is that Yūsuf left for Hamadhān in 312 (not in 313 as ibn-al-Athīr has it), soon after the minting of nos. 156 A and B; and that during the ensuing eight or nine months the dissatisfaction of the population with the lieutenant left over them resulted either in the flight of this lieutenant Mufliḥ, or the disregard of the Sājid sovereignty on the part of the director of the mint.

157A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 313.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدربالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث عشر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, II, N. C., 1885, pg. 230; ANS.

157B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 313.

Not described but listed as Sāmānid.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 486a, pg. 923.

Either no. 157 A was struck before Jumāda II, when, according to ibn-al-Athīr, Yūsuf came back to Rayy (cf. the note under no. 156 above), or else, — which is most likely — he never really reestablished his authority at Rayy. No. 157 B is a problem-coin. If the date is correctly read and the name of the Sāmānid ruler is present, the Sāmānid occupation of Rayy is to be placed some time in the course of the year 313, although 'Abbāsid confirmation may not have taken place until 314 as ibn-al-Athīr has it (cf. the note under no. 158 below).

158. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 314.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

نصر بن احمد

بخ بخ

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اربع عشر وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX. 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, no. 802; Paris, two unpublished.

This issue is in agreement with the historians who relate that Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj went to Wāsiṭ and Baghdād in this year (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 118, ll.9ff.); in the following year he was assassinated. Naṣr b. Aḥmad, the Sāmānid, whose name appears on the above coin, was confirmed by al-Muqtadir in the government of Rayy, which he took over in Jumāda II, 314 (no. 157 B suggests that he may have occupied the city the year before); Naṣr at first put Sīmjūr al-Dawāti over the city as his prefect, then Muḥammad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk (cf. the note under no.150 above), and he himself went back to Bukhāra (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 121, ll. 10–20). Muḥammad b. 'Ali remained until 316 (see below). I do not know what Zambaur's authority is for his entry in the Manuel (pg. 45) stating that Muḥammad b. 'Ali (i.) Ṣa'lūk, was Naṣr b. Aḥmad's governor at Rayy in 314, and that he "rend la ville aux Alides". In support he cites the B.M. coin (cf. no. 159 A below) and coins in the Hermitage (cf. the note after no. 159 C below); but these are all dated 315. I believe the date as given in the Manuel is a slip.

159A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 315.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

محمد بن على

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

نصربن احمد (Naskhi ?)

Obv. inner margin: وثلثمائة [sic] بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة خمسة عشر

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no. 293p, pg. 180.

159B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 315.

Obverse as no. 159 A, but no. ⁘ above the area; beneath محمد بن على, the word جر.

Reverse as no. 159 A.

Stickel, ZDMG, 1856, pg. 297 (Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, no. 5, pg. 196); Paris, unpublished.

Stickel interpreted حر as جيز for جائز "current", or خير "good"; on the Paris specimen I noted حرب.

159C. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 315.

Obverse as no.159A, but without ⁘, beneath محمد, a pellet.

Reverse as no. 159 A, but first line: دلله.

Istanbul, unnumbered.

There are in addition the following published specimens of the year 315 of which the descriptions are not sufficiently detailed to enable me to assign them to one or other of the above variations, but in any case bearing Naṣr b. Aḥmad and Muḥammad b. 'Ali as above: Yacoub Artin Bey, no. 201; Markoff, pg. 176, no.l and no. 2. Also Berlin, unpublished. no. 241/1882, my notes on which fail to show the presence or absence of points or auxiliary letters.

For Muḥammad b. 'Ali (Ṣa'lūk), see the note under no.150 and no.158 above. For Naṣr b. Aḥmad, the Sāmānid, cf. no.158.

160A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 316.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

محمد بن على

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

نصر بن احمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينر بالمحمدية سنة ست عشرة وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qurān, IX, 33.

Casanova, no. 1039, pg. 44; Markoff, no. 3, no. 4 (another die), pg. 176; Paris, unpubished.

160B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 316.

Obverse as no. 160 A, but الدرهم.

Reverse as no.160 A.

Markoff, no. 5, pg. 176; Berlin, unpubished, "Guthrie 1876".

160C. Ꜹ Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 316.

Obv.

الموفق

اشهد ان لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شيرك له

لطاعة الله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ابو طاهر بن محمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ست عشرة وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

For Naṣr b. Aḥmad (nos. 160 A and B), the Sāmānid, cf. no. 158 above. This is the last year in which Muḥammad b. 'Ali's name appears on the coinage, and the last year of his life. He fell ill in the first part of Sha'bān, sent for al-Ḥasan (b. al-Qāsim) al-Da'i, the 'Alid of Ṭabarstān, and Mākān b. Kāli (Kāki) his lieutenant, to come and take over Rayy 1; then went on to Dāmghān where he died (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 121, l.20–122, l.2). Meanwhile Asfār b. Shīrwayh the Dailamite occupied Ṭabaristān and shortly came to blows with al-Ḥasan al-Dā'i in a battle in which the 'Alid was routed and killed (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 138, ll.12ff.). Then Asfār took Rayy and administered the city along with Ṭabaristān, Jurjān, Qazwīn, Zanjān, Abhar, Qumm and Karaj, declaring his allegiance to the Sāmānid (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 139, ll.14–16). Asfār's stay was brief, however, for, still in the same year, he was defeated and killed by Mardāvīch b. Ziyār the Dailamite, who then proceeded to Rayy which he occupied and adminstered together with Hamadhān, Qazwīn, Kankuwar (Kanguvār), al-Dīnawar, Burūjird, Qumm, Qashān, Iṣbahān and Jurbādhaqān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 142, l. 11–144, l.20). Mas'ūdi places these events in 317 (Mas'ūdi, IX, 6, ll. 1 ff.); and ibn-Isfandiyār (pp. 210–217) says 319. The latter author also declares that the Dā'i and Mākān expelled Muḥammad b. 'Ali from Rayy.

The curious dīnār, no. 160 C, must have been struck after the death of Muḥammad, b. 'Ali. For the time being I must leave unsettled the identity of the abu-Ṭāhir b. Muḥammad whose name is found on the reverse of this coin. Could he possibly be a son of Muḥammad b. 'Ali? If so, why is the name of the Sāmānid omitted? Remarkable in themselves are the inscriptions on the obverse. اشهد ان لا اله الا لله is of course the orthodox formula but most exceptional in Muslim numismatics, and unique, I believe, in the coinage of the 'Abbāsid period1. الموفق لطاعة الله "successful through obedience to God", is not, I believe, a title, but rather a pious expression. Whether it refers to abu-Ṭāhir b. Muḥammad (reverse), I do not know, but this seems most likely. I have not been able to find anyone who was known to have employed this phrase as a title.

161. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 317.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدربالله

نصر بن احمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة سبع عشرة وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

(There are several dies of this issue, with ornamental variations, and as my notes are deficient in several details, I have grouped them all together under one head.)

Casanova, no. 1027, pg. 43 (no ornament described, but the descriptions throughout this inventory are abbreviated); da Cunha, Pt. 2, no. 1167, pg. 3 (no ornament described, but here also descriptions are always very brief); Fraehn, Recensio, no. 223, pg. 88 (with * beneath the obverse); Istanbul, no. 803 (like the Istanbul specimen of the 314 issue but without بخ بخ; this die would therefore have • above and below the obverse area); Markoff, no. 540, pg. 134 (image above obverse area); Markoff, no. 541, pg. 134 (variation of no 540); Markoff, no. 542, pg. 134 (* above obverse area); Markoff, no. 543, pg. 134 (variation of no. 542); B. M., unpublished, 1915/1/8, no. 140 (ornaments ?); Paris, unpublished (three specimens, with three variations in star and crescent ornaments; Paris, unpublished (with باليمن bi-al-yumn, "auspicious").

In this year occurred the abdication of al-Muqtadir and his prompt return to the throne (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 147, l.4–149, ll.15ff.). It is interesting to note that in spite of the frequent political upheavals which Rayy was experiencing, the Sāmānid supremacy (Naṣr b. Aḥmad) continues to be recognized on the coinage of the city.

162A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 318.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

نصر بن احمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة ثمان عشرة وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Blau u. Stickel, Zur muhammedanischen Numismatik und Epigraphik, ZDMG, 1857, no. 20, pg. 452 (with a word or symbol, unintelligible in transcription, over the obverse area, and a pellet beneath) (Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, no. 6, pg. 196); Paris, unpublished.

162B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 318.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

ابو العباس بن

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المقتدر بالله

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثمان عشرة وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Symbol. III, no. 41, inaccessible to me (cited by Zambaur, Contrib. II, pg. 152, not described); ANS.

For Naṣr b. Aḥmad (no. 162 A), cf. the preceding issues. With no. 162 B, Rayy appears to have returned to 'Abbāsid allegiance. Or should perhaps no. 162 B precede no. 162 A ? The chronicles do not enlighten us, but it is clear that for a short while the Sāmānid was out.

163A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 320.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المقتدر بالله

نصر بن احمد

fleuron

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة عشرين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Large size, 29.5 mm.

ANS.

163B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 320.

Not described in full, but bears the name: عميد الدولة.

Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, no. 7, pg. 196 (ref. to Mscr.-Fraehn, Vol. XXXV).

Again, as in the year 318, the coins indicate an unsettled state in respect to Sāmānid vs. 'Abbāsid supremacy at Rayy. No. 163 A is Sāmānid; no. 163 B is 'Abbāsid. Which should precede the other is not clear.

Other coins bearing the inscription 'Amīd al-Dawlah are: Ꜹ, Miṣr, 320 (Ties., no. 2357; B. M. Add. i, no. 424g, pg. 77); image Madīnat al-Salām, 320 (Ties., no. 2358); Ꜹ, al-Ahwāz, 320 (ANS, 2 specimens); image, Tustar min al-Ahwāz, 320 (Ties., no. 2361), —all with the name of abu-al-'Abbās b. Amīr al-Mu'minīn as well (cf. no. 148 above). A passage in ibn-al-Athīr provides us with the information necessary for the identification of the personage who bore the title 'Amīd al-Dawlah. This was al-Ḥusayn b. al-Qāsim (b. 'Abdullāh b. Sulaymān b. Wahab), appointed vizier in the year 319 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 169, ll.15ff.); he held office till Rabī' II, 320, when he was removed (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 176, ll. 3–13). The Caliph al-Muqtadir had given him the title of honour 'Amīd al-Dawlah, and had authorized him to engrave his name (this title) on the coins. فاقبه عميد الدولة وضرب اسمه على الدينار والدرهم (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 175, ll.14–15). (Cf. Weil, II, 567). Lane-Poole (B.M. Add. i, pg. 77, foot-note) suggested that 'Amīd al-Dawlah was "probably the surname of Moḥammad ibn Taghj” (Muḥammad b. Ṭughj, al-Ikhshīd); but he was probably misled by the fact that the only coin he had to deal with was the dīnār of Miṣr.

In 320 al-Muqtadir was assassinated; he was succeeded on the 27th of Shawwāl by al-Qāhir bi-allāh (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 178–182). During the change of power, al-Qāhir did away with 'Ali, son of al-Muqtadir (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 182, 1.1), who had been honorary governor of Rayy since 301 (cf. the note under no. 149 above).

Although the name of Mardāvīch b. Ziyār apparently does not occur on the coin, I assume that he had certain authority at Rayy at this time (cf. ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 167, ll. 13–14, year 319).

164. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 323.

Obv.

عبد الله

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

امير المؤمنين

Rev.

الامام

محمد

رسول

الله

الراضى بالله

Obv. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33, as far as كله.

Rev. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وعشرين وثلثمائة

Tornberg, Cl. II, no. 508, pg. 115.

Al-Rāḍi had succeeded to the Caliphate the 6th of Jumāda I, 322 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 211, ll.3–4). 'Abdullāh, above the obverse area, is in the sense of "The Servant of God" (religious title of all of the Caliphs), coupled with "Commander of the Faithful" below the area. (Cf. 'Abdullāh 'Abdullāh al-Ma'mūn, no. 96 G, H, etc. above). Note also the reappearance of the title al-Imām.

Mardāvīch b. Ziyār was (in 321) still resident at Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 195, l.21; 196, 1.12), but in 323 was killed (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 222, ll.10ff.), and the affairs of the Ziyārid kingdom were taken over by his brother Washmgīr with his headquarters at Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 227, ll.8ff.). This year marks the beginning of the spread of the power of the Buyids who were soon to occupy Rayy for so many years; 'Imād al-Dawlah (who had already taken Shīrāz and minted coins there) and Rukn al-Dawlah were now struggling with Washmgīr for al-Jibāl (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 233, ll.6–11).

165A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 324.

Not described in full, but the reverse area bears the names of al-Rāḍi, the Caliph, and Naṣr b. Aḥmad, the Sāmānid.

Markoff, no. 629, pg. 137; Tornberg, Cl. IX, no. 451, pg. 219 (date and mint questioned).

165B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 324.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

ك

ح

Rev.

محمد

رسول الله الراضى بالله

نصر بن احمد

كح

("Das Wort لله steht zwischen zwei Blumen".) [?].

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع وعشرين وثلثمائة.

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Die jüngsten, etc., ZDMG, 1868, no.14, pg.291.

Note the recurrence of the name of the Sāmānid, after a four year interval.

166. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 325.

This coin is unfortunately not described, but appears to bear only the name of the Caliph al-Rāḍi. It is listed as "Ziyārid ?", but I doubt if this classification has any docu­mentary justification.

Yacoub Artin Bey, no. 208, bis.

167. Ꜹ Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 326.

Not described, but bears the name of the Sāmānid, Naṣr b. Aḥmad.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, IV, N.C., 1886, pg. 229.

Washmgīr (cf. no. 164 above) was still resident at Rayy in this year (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 258, l.24; 262, l.19).

168. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 327.

Sāmānid. Bears the name of Naṣr b. Aḥmad.

Markoff, Supplement no. 658a, pg. 923 (not described except for mention of religious inscription, Qur'ān, LXIV, 1, on the obverse); another specimen in the possession of an antique dealer in Teheran in 1936. I saw and read the coin but have no record of the inscription, except for the name of Naṣr b. Aḥmad.

Qur'ān LXIV, 1, which apparently appears on the outer margin of the obverse of this dīnār, reads: يسبح لله ما فى السموات وما فى الارض له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شىء قدير

In 327 Washmgīr, the Ziyārid, marched out of Rayy against Rukn al-Dawlah, the Buyid, at Iṣbahān, where the former won a victory (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 267, ll.18ff.). In the following year, however, Rukn al-Dawlah returned to Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 270).

169. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 329.

Obv.

نصر من الله (minuscue)

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

الراضى بالله

نصر بن احمد

وفتح قريب (minuscue)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة تسع عشرين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. ii, no. 295; Berlin, unpublished, no. 236/1882; GCM.

This dīnār must have been struck early in the year, for al-Rāḍi died in the middle of Rabī' I, to be succeeded by al-Muttaqi li-allāh (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 273, l.23–274, l.3; 275, ll.14ff.). During this year Washmgīr was forced to abandon Rayy to the Sāmānid general abu-'Ali Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. al-Muẓaffar b. al-Muḥtāj (صاحب جيوش خراسان للسامانية, ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 291, ll.14–15, who defeated Washmgīr, forcing him to take refuge in Ṭabaristān. From Rayy as headquarters abu-'Ali consolidated under his power the neigh­bouring provinces (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 269, ll.10–17; 291, ll.12ff.). Washmgīr had had, probably during the first month of the year, or perhaps late in 328, an encounter with Rukn al-Dawlah whose intentions against Rayy were already evident (ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 218–219).

نصر من الله وفتح قريب: "Aid is from God, and a speedy victory" (Qur'ān, LXI, 13), inscribed partly on the obverse and partly on the reverse of this coin, is a common pious ejaculation used in inscriptions (cf. nos. 170, 171, and 181 below). In this case the verse may record the victory over Washmgīr.

170A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 330.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المتقى لله

نصر بن احمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلثين وثلثمائة.

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Descriptions of the published examples are abbreviated, and my notes on the Berlin unpublished specimen fail to show whether or not the coin bears the religious legend نصر من الله وفتح قريب (cf. no.169 above).

Fonrobert, no. 6347; Markoff, no. 677, pg.139; Berlin, unpublished, no. 232/1881.

170B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 330.

Not described in full, but bears the name of Naṣr b. Aḥmad, and has on the obverse, above: نصر من الله and beneath وفتح قريب.

Casanova, no. 1034, pg. 43; Ch. M. Fraehn, Über einige dem Asiatischen Museum von Hn. Dr. Hansen zum Geschenk dargebrachte Münzen, Bulletin de la Classe historico-philologique de l'Académie impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, Tome III, 1847, col. 248, no. 2 (Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. VI, no. 232, cc, pg. 240).

Abu-'Ali b. al-Muḥtāj (cf. note under no.169 above) and al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān, who had applied to the former at Rayy for help against Washmgīr, besieged the latter at Sāri in this year (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 292, ll.3ff.). Abu-'Ali himself returned to Khurāsān during the year 330, which gave Washmgīr the opportunity to return to and retake Rayy. There followed a reconciliation between him and al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 292, ll.18–24). These events are of course not reflected in the coinage, where Naṣr b. Aḥmad's name appears as usual.

The Buyids were closing in; during the present year they occupied Adharbayjān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 289ff.).

171A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 331.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

نصر من الله وفتح

قريب

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول

الله

المتقى لله

نصر بن احمد

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة احدو ثلثين وثلثمائة.

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Aḥmed Zia, Meskūkāt-i-Islāmiyyeh Taqvīmi, Istanbul, 1910, no.1821 (with the addition of الله الكافى); Markoff, Supplement no.735a, pg.883 (not described); Paris, unpublished.

171B. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 331.

Not described, but bears the name of Nūḥ b. Naṣr.

Markoff, no. 689, pg.140.

No. 171 A must have been struck during the first half of the year, since the Sāmānid Naṣr b. Aḥmad, whose name appears here for the last time, died in Rajab of this year (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 300, ll.3ff.). He was succeeded by Nūḥ b. Naṣr whom we find on no.171 B. After Naṣr's death, Rukn al-Dawlah, the Buyid, who had heard of Washmgīr's reoccupation of Rayy, advanced against the city and put Washmgīr to flight. His victory was made easier because of the desertion of many of Washmgīr's troops. The Buyid received the homage of al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān (cf. note under no. 170 above) (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 293, ll.1–11). The passage describing these events is under the year 330 in ibn-al-Athīr, but since Rukn al-Dawlah did not advance against Rayy till after the death of Naṣr in Rajab, 331, it seems to me that Rukn al-Dawlah's occupation of Rayy must have taken place in the latter part of 331 or early in 332. Cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pg. 220, where Rukn al-Dawlah's victory over Washmgīr is reported as of the end of Ramaḍān, 331. No. 171 B, with Nūḥ's name, must have been minted in the short interval between Naṣr's death in Rajab and Rukn al-Dawlah's occupation of Rayy (i. e. during the months of Sha'bān or early Ramaḍān, if we accept ibn-Isfandiyār's date. On the other hand, no. 172 below is the best sort of evidence that Rukn al-Dawlah's first occupation of Rayy was not permanent, for the issue of the year 333 is not Buyid but Sāmānid. At this stage the Buyid successes at Rayy were probably little more than advantages in raids and skirmishes, and it is evident that Rukn al-Dawlah had not yet gained control of the administration and the mint.

172. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 333.

Obv.

الله احد الله

الصمد لم يلد

ولم يولد ولم

يكن له كفوا احد

(Words thus distributed ?)

Rev.

محمد

رسول

الله

المستكفى بالله

نوح بن نصر

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث ثلثين وثلثمائة.

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Casanova, no. 1035, pg. 43 (not described, but listed under Nüḥ); Berlin, unpublished, "Guthrie, 1876'; Paris, unpublished.

Cf. the notes on the issues of the year 331 (no.171 above). According to the historical accounts, Rukn al-Dawlah was still in possession of Rayy during the first part of this year ibn-al-Athīr tells us (VIII, 333, ll.3–16) that Rayy was in the Buyid's hands and that Nüḥ sent abu-'Ali b. al-Muḥtāj against him. They met in a battle three farsakhs from Rayy; abu-'Ali was routed and retired to near Nīsābūr, whence he returned to Nüḥ at Marw, gathered reinforcements and marched again to Nīsābūr and once more to Rayy in Jumāda II. Rukn al-Dawlah retired when he heard of the size of abu-'Ali's army, so that the latter was able to take over the city and the surrounding regions (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII. 333, l.23–334, l.16). We know that Nūḥ himself was absent from Bukhāra for seven months — Ṣafar till Ramaḍān — of this year, during which time he was in Khurāsān (cf. Zambaur, Contrib. II, pg.151; Mīrkhwand, ed. Bombay, pg.15 quoted). As the name of the Caliph on the present coin is al-Mustakfi, who succeeded in Ṣafar 333 (ibn-al-Athīr. VIII, 312, l.22–315, l.16), it is clear that the dīnār was minted during the second six months of the year, i.e. Rajab to dhu-al-Ḥijjah.

Note the exceptional use on the obverse of the 112th Sūrah of the Qur'ān, very rarely used since Umayyad days when it was the common verse on the reverse. (Cf. the use of this chapter by the Kākwayhids in the first quarter of the 5th Century.)

End Notes

1
'Arīb. Ṭabari's continuator, says under the year 302 that ṣa'lūk governed Rayy in the days of Aḥmad b. Ismā'il, i. e. before 301. He calls the governor Aḥmad b. Ṣa'lūk, no doubt by mistake. ('Arīb b. Sa'd, Ṣillat Ta'rīkh al-Ṭabari, ed. de Goeje, Leyden, 1897, 51, ll.lff.).
1
Mentioned by A. Erman in Zeitschrift für Numismatik, Berlin, 1884, pg. 66.
1
Cf. V. Minorsky. La Domination des Dailamites (no. 3 of Publications de la Société des Études iraniennes et de l'Art persan), Paris, 1932, pg. 9.
1
Muḥammad b.Taghlaq, Sulṭān of Delhi (725—752), issued gold and silver coins with the inscrption: اشهد ان لا اله الا اللهو اشهد ان محمد عبده ورسوله Cf.B.M., Catalogue of Indian Coins, Stanley Lane-Poole, The Coins of the Sultáns of Dehlí, London, 1884, nos. 260—263.

VI. THE BUYID PERIOD

173. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 334.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع و ثلثين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tornberg, Die jüngsten, etc., no. 2, pg. 292.

Al-Mustakfi abdicated in Jumāda II, 334, and was succeeded by al-Muṭi'li-allāh (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 338, l.4–340, l.4). Misunderstandings between the Sāmānid NÜh b. Naṣr and his general abu-'Ali left Rayy vulnerable again to the Buydis, and 'Imād al-Dawlah ordered Rukn al-Dawlah to hurry to the city (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 344–349, l.10). This coin proves that Rukn al-Dawlah obeyed his instructions and that he was successful. ibn-al-Athīr is wrong in reporting that Rayy was not taken by the Buyids till 335 when, with Khurāsān in turmoil, abu-'Ali had left the city (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 351, ll.17–22). Zam-baur's Manuel should also be corrected, pg. 45, where the date is 336. On the basis of the presence of al-Muṭi's name on the dirham, we can date the final Buyid capture of Rayy between Rajab and dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 334.

174A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 335.

My notes lack the details, but the coin bears the names of both 'Imād al-Dawlah and Rukn al-Dawlah, the Buyids.

Casanova, Sceaux Arabes en Plomb, in Revue Numismatique, Paris, 1894, pg. 116 (mentioned only; I have seen this coin in the Cabinet des Médailles).

174B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 335.

A dirham in the Istanbul Museum, unnumbered; both the date and the mint are obscure.

Casanova (op. cit., no. 174 A) remarked that he knew of only two coins, that of al-Muḥammadīyah and a dīnār of Hamadhān of the same year, and the lead seal described in his article (pp. 115–116), on which the names of 'Imād al-Dawlah and Rukn al-Dawlah occur together, but cf. nos. 175, 175X, and 176 below.

On the taking of Rayy by Rukn al-Dawlah, cf. no. 173 above.

175A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 336.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

الدولة....

...كن الدو..

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست و ثلثين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Berlin, unpublished, no. 545/1897.

Historical reports are so strongly against a dirham of 336 listed (and not described) by Dorn, Nova Supplementa, Cl. VI, no. 231 c, pg. 40, with Nūh b. Naṣr the Sāamānid, that I have not accepted it as an issue of al-Muḥammadīyah, although it must be mentioned here.

In this year Muḥammad b. 'Abd-al-Razzāq was driven out of Nīsābūr by Manṣūr b. Qarātekīn and Washmgīr. He sought the protection of Rukn al-Dawlah who was at Rayy and who welcomed him to the city (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 353, ll.17–22; 354, ll.8–12). According to ibn-Isfandiyār (pg. 223), it was out of Jurjān, in 337, that Muḥammad was driven. Rukn al-Dawlah and al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān (cf. the note under no. 170 above) set out together for Ṭabaristān and Jurjān, which provinces they proceeded to take from Washmgīr (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 358, ll.8–14).

I take it that the two names on the reverse of no. 175 are 'Imād al-Dawlah and Rukn al-Dawlah.

175X. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 337.

Obv.

بخ

لا اله الا

الله وحده

حق الله وحده ء[?]

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

بخ لله ب

محمد رسول الله

عماد الدولة ابو الحسن

ركن الدولة ابو على

الملك

Obv. inner margin: وثلثمائة [sic] بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة سبع ثلثين

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Tiesenhausen, Hумиɜматичесκія новинки, no. 78, in ɜапнсκи восточи. отдѣл. имп. Pусск. Apxeолог. общ. Vol. VI, pp.229–264;; Markoff, Supplement, no. 17 b, pg. 982.

Rukn al-Dawlah was absent from Rayy a part of this year, campaigning against the Sāmānid army (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 360; cf. the note under no. 175 above). His absence gave al-Marzubān b. Muḥammad b. Musāfir (the Salārid of Adharbayjān) the opportunity to attempt occupation of Rayy. The essay was unsuccessful (Miskawayh, II, 115, ll.5–8; 131, ll.8ff.; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 360). It was in this year that 'Imād al-Dawlah, Rukn al-Dawlah and Mu'izz al-Dawlah had decided on the partition of the growing Buyid kingdom, and Rukn al-Dawlah had been formally invested with Khurāsān (Miskawayh, II, 117, l.20–118, l.1). Rukn al-Dawlah was so hard pressed on all sides that he was forced to send to Mu'izz al-Dawlah in al-Mawṣil for help (Mīrkhwand, Buyids, pg. 22; cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pg. 223).

176A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 338.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

[عماد الدولة ابو الح[سن

ركن الدولة ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وثلثين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX., 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B.M., unpublished, 1914/11/8, no.2.

176B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 338.

Not described, but listed under Rukn al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 1, pg. 323; Markoff, Topografiya, pg. 37, no. 210 (mint questioned, two references).

No. 176 A at least can be dated to the first half of the year by the death of 'Imād al-Dawlah in Jumāda II, 338 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 362, ll.22–23). Following his brother's death, Rukn al-Dawlah travelled to Shīrāz, leaving as his lieutenant in Rayy his nephew, 'Ali b. Kāmah, one of his generals (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 364, ll.6–7). This must have been after Rukn al-Dawlah had marched against Washmgīr in Ṭabaristān, the latter having fled without a battle (Miskawayh, II, 119, last line — 120, l.3).

177. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 339.

Not described, but bearing the name of the Sāmānid, Nūḥ b. Naṣr.

Markoff, no. 823, pg. 147.

Once more we have a Sāmānid coin struck at Rayy. The chronclles contain the information that explains this reversal in Buyid fortunes. During Rukn al-Dawlah's absence, first in Ṭabaristān or Jurjān, and then in Fārs after 'Imād al-Dawlah's death (cf. no. 176 above), while 'Ali b. Kāmah was left in charge at Rayy, Manṣūr b. Qarātekīn the Sāmānid general entered the city. This was in Ṣafar, 339. The latter thereupon took over all of the uplands as far as Qirmāsīn (Kirmānshāh). The Buyid general, 'Ali b. Kāmah, escaped to Hamadhān where Subuktekīn, one of the Baghdād generals, shortly arrived with reinforcements. Toward the end of the year Manṣūr b. Qarātekīn directed the Sāmānid army against Hamadhān, but before he arrived there he had trouble with his followers, many of whom returned to Rayy, and he himself came back to the city in Muḥarram, 340. (Miska-wayh, II, 123, ll.4–6; 137–138; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 365, 1.23–367, 120; according to another passage in Miskawayh, II, 129, ll.14–15, Manṣūr moved from Rayy to Iṣbahān when Rukn al-Dawlah, hearing of the trouble, came up from Fārs to Hamadhān.)

I cannot find evidence for Zambaur's note (Manuel, pg. 45) that Rukn al-Dawlah retook Rayy within the year 339. This would not agree with the report in ibn-al-Athīr.

178A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 340.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة اربعين وثلثمائة

outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, Supplement, no. la, pg.885 (not described); Paris, unpublished.

178B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 340.

Obverse as no.178 A, but الدرهم.

Reverse as no.178 A.

Markoff, no. 2, pg. 323 (not described); Tornberg, Cl. XIV, no. 17, pg. 254.

In Muḥarram, 340 (cf. the note under no. 177), Rukn al-Dawlah defeated Manṣūr b. Qarātekīn at Rūdhbār of Khānlanjān, thus regaining possession of his capital, Rayy. There were renewed engagements in the next two months, but in Rabī' II (according to ibn-al-Athīr, Rabī' I), Manṣūr died: Miskawayh says of drink, ibn-al-Athīr gives him the benefit of the doubt and writes, of drink, or of illness, God knows best (Miskawayh, II, 136, ll.16–18; 139, 1.16–142, last line; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 369, 124–370, 1.5). Abu-'Ali b. al-Muḥtāj (cf. notes under no. 169 above and following) returned to Khurāsān at the head of the Sāmānid army after ibn-Qarātekīn's death. He arrived in Nīsābūr in dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 340 (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 370, 1.14–371, 1.2).

179A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 341.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

سف[?]

Rev

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

(Annulets within the area in triplets.)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة احدى واربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

179B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 341.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

معز الدولة

ابو الحسين

بويه

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

صلى الله عليه وسلم

المطيع لله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى واربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, no. 3, pg. 323 (not described); Tornberg, Cl. XIV, no. 18, pg.254 (ركن mistranscribed).

In this year Rukn al-Dawlah made a campaign in Ṭabaristān and Jurjān; then returned to Rayy, leaving 'Ali b. Kāmah and al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān as his lieutenants in Jurjān (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 375, ll.5–9). This was the date of the birth of Fakhr al-Dawlah who was later to rule Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 375, ll.10–11). On this coin Mu'izz al-Dawlah is recognized as Amīr al-Umarā'.

180. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 343.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث اربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, unnumbered.

Several battles had taken place at the gates of Rayy in 342 between Rukn al-Dawlah and abu-'Ali b. al-Muḥtāj with whom Washmgīr was allied. At one point there was a three-months' siege of the city. Finally the Khurāsānians grew weary and retired fearful of the coming winter. Relieved of the siege, Rukn al-Dawlah attacked Washmgīr and drove him out of Ṭabaristān and Jurjān once more (Miskawayh, II, 154, 1.7–155, l.15; cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 223–224). In 343, abu-'Ali returned again to Rayy, this time in peace, and a treaty was negotiated. Abu-'Ali requested and received the authority over Khurāsān from the Caliph (Miskawayh, II, 156, ll.13–17; 157, ll.4–11). Nūn b. Naṣr, the Sāmānid overlord, died in Rabī' II of this year, and was succeeded by 'Abd-al-Malik, his son (lbn-al-Athīr, VIII, 381, ll.11–12; Miskawayh, II, 157, ll.4–11).

181. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 344.

Obv.

من الله

لا اله الا

[نصر الله وحده نصر [؟

لا شريك له

وفتح قريب

(The words at the top, sides and bottom are in minuscule.)

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المطيع لله

ركن الدولة ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة اربع و اربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. second margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Obv. outer margin: Four obscure words separated by four annulets (the cast is damaged).

Rev. inner margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rev. outer margin: ◯ وفتح قريب ◯[نصر[؟ ◯ من الله ◯ نصر

Paris, unpublished.

Once more an expedition was dispatched from Khūrāsān against Rayy, but a peace was ratified before any fighting occurred. Abu-'Ali b. al-Muḥtāj and his son died of the plague in Rayy (Miskawayh, II, 159, 1.7; 161, ll.13–14; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 383, ll.10ff.). According to von Kremer (Culturgeschichte des Orients unter den Chalifen, Wien, 1875–77, II, 492), there was in the same year an epidemic of typhus in Iṣbahān, Ahwāz and Baghdād.

182. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 346.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة ست و اربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Istanbul, unnumbered.

There were in this year severe earthquakes at Rayy, causing much loss of life (Miskawayh, II, 167, ll.18–19; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 390, ll.3–4; Schwarz, Iran im Mittelalter, pp. 762–3, is mistaken in reporting this catastrophe in 347).

183. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 348.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المطيع لله

ركن الدولة ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة ثمان و اربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

184A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 349.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

An ornament above the area.

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المطيع لله ركن *

الدواة ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة تسع و اربعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Wien (inventory number 7142).

184B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 349.

Not described but listed under Rukn al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 7, pg. 349.

In this year Rukn al-Dawlah went from Rayy to Jurjān and presented al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān and ibn-'Abd-al-Razzāq with rich gifts (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 396, ll.22–23; cf. notes under nos.175 and 179 above).

185. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 350.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده image

لا شريك له

Rev.

....

محمد

رسول الله

المطيع لله

ركن الدولة image

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمسين وثلثمائة

Obv. second margin: Qurān, XXX, 3–4.

Obv. outer margin: ∵ six or seven times repeated.

Rev. inner margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rev. outer margin: ∵ six (?) times repeated.

Berlin, unnumbered.

'Abd-al-Malik, the Sāmānid, was killed in a fall from his horse in this year, and was succeeded by his brother Manṣūr (Miskawayh, II, 189, ll.11–12; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 398, 11.6–10, the 12th of Shawwāl).

186A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 351.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة احدى وخمسين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin. Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, no. 8, pg. 323 (not described); Istanbul, unnumbered (coin itself removed from the tray, but so marked; I did not see the coin); Istanbul, unnumbered (35X; the digit appears to end in د ?); Paris, unpublished.

Rukn al-Dawlah made another campaign in Ṭabaristān and Jurjān in this year (Miskawayh, II, 190, ll.1–2; 191, 1.20).

186X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 354.

Not described. Name of ruler not given. (Rukn al-Dawlah.)

J. Iversen, Drei Funde mittelalterlicher Münzen in Rußland, Berliner Blätter für Münz-, Siegel- und Wappenkunde, VI, Berlin, 1871–1873, pg. 295, no. 78 (cf. Markoff, Topografiya, pg. 24, no. 134).

187. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 355.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة خمس وخمسين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 2b, pg. 599; Lindberg, no. 22, pg. 223 (المطيع لله omitted from the transcription by inadvertence, present in the translation); Markoff, no. 11, pg. 323 (not described); Markoff, Topografiya, pg. 38, no. 212 (with one reference).

In 355, Ibrāhīm al-Salār fled from Adharbayjān to Rukn al-Dawlah at Rayy, where he was received with great respect by the Buyid prince. Rukn al-Dawlah had formed an alliance with Ibrāhīm's father, Marzubān, whose daughter had borne Rukn al-Dawlah's son, abu-al-'Abbās. Miskawayh was himself present at the presentation of the gifts to Ibrāhīm, and we have in the passage a valuable description of the city and the luxuries of the age. (Miskawayh, II, 218, l.13–219, 1.8).

188. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 357.

Not described, but listed under Rukn al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 14, pg. 323.

(Another specimen of the year 357 or 359 is listed by Markoff, Topografiya, pg. 38. no. 212.)

189A. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 358.

Not described, but listed under Rukn al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 15, pg. 323.

There is listed in da Cunha, Pt. 2, no. 1249, pg. 8, a dīnār attributed to al-Muḥammadīyah, year 358, "as B.M. no. 654 with some differences". Since B.M. no. 654 is of 'Ammān (cf. Yāqūt, III, 719–721), year 367, a coin struck by 'Aḍud al-Dawlah during the reign of the Caliph al-Tā'ī', I conclude that the reading of the coin or else the referenee is mistaken, and I am compelled to omit the coin from consideration.

189X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 359.

Not described. Name of ruler not given. (Rukn al-Dawlah.)

Markoff, Topografiya, pg. 38, no. 212 (with one reference; cf. also the issue of 357 or 359 referred to under no. 188 above).

189Y. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 360.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

ركن الدولة ابو على بويه

Obv. inner margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة ستين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Aḥmed Ẕia, Meskūkāt-i-Islāmiyyeh Taqvīmi, Istanbul, 1910, no. 1739.

190. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 361.

Obv.

Ornament

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

العزلله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

المطيع لله

ركن الدولة ابو على

بويه

Ornament image. above رسول; ornaments right and left of لله.

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة احدى و ستين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Fraehn, Recensio, no. 2d, pg. 599 (date and mint effaced, but possibly this issue); Markoff, no.17, pg. 323 (not described); Soret à Fraehn, no. 47, pg. 21.

Al-'Izz li-allāh is a common pious exclamation, but rare on coins.

191. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 362.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة اثنتين [؟] وستين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Johnston Coll., pg.26 (no description); Paris, unpublished (the digit is probably correct).

192. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 363.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له ع

المطيع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

ركن الدولة

ابو على

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث ستين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, VII, N. C., 1892, pg. 170; Johnston Coll., pg.26 (no description); Paris, unpublished (auxiliary letters ?).

In the middle (or the 13th) of dhu-al-Qa'dah, 363, the Caliph al-Muṭī' abdicated and appointed his son al-Ṭā'i' as successor (Miskawayh, II, 327, 1.18–328, 1.2; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 468, 1.21–469, 1.4).

193. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 365.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الطائع لله

ركن الدولة ابو على

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

عضد الدولة

ابو شجاع

مؤيد الدولة

ابو منصور

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة خمس وستين وثلثمائة

Obv outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Double dirham.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 467, pg. 135.

This coin is excellent testimony to an event of importance in Buyid history that took place in this year. There had been an estrangement between Rukn-al-Dawlah and his son 'Aḍud al-Dawlah, which the latter felt it advisable to terminate now that his father was declining in strength and his death appeared to be approaching. A reconciliation was effected in a meeting at Iṣbahān in Jumāda I, in which Rukn al-Dawlah made public his choice of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah as his successor to the leadership of the Buyid house. Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah, another of Rukn al-Dawlah's sons, who was then governing Iṣbahān, agreed to this arrangement. The actual partition did not take place till the next year, after Rukn al-Dawlah's death, but the understanding was as follows: 'Aḍud al-Dawlah to be the over­lord, implying of course the exercise of the control of the disintegrating 'Abbāsid empire; Fakhr al-Dawlah to have Hamadhān and the provinces of al-Jabal; Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah to have Iṣbahān and its provinces (Miskawayh, II, 361, 1.14–364, 1.3; ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 492, ll. 2–21; cf. Mīrkhwand, Buyids, 20, ll.1–3). Actually it was Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah and not Fakhr al-Dawlah who ruled Rayy from 366 till 373 (cf. nos. 194, 195 and 197 below).

On the present coin, Rukn al-Dawlah appears on the obverse as the ruling prince; 'Aḍud al-Dawlah as the successor and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah as the next ruler of Rayy, on the reverse.

194A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 366.

Not described, but bears the names of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 25, pg.324.

194B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 366.

Obv.

Fleuron

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

مؤيد الدولة

ابو منصور

بويه

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

الطائع لله

عضد الدولة

ابو شجاع

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ست وستين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici, VII, N. C, 1892, pg.170; Johnston Coll., pg.26 (not described); Markoff, no. 26, pg. 324 (not described); Paris, unpublished.

On the partition of the Buyid lands, cf. the note under no. 193 above. Rukn al-Dawlah had returned to Rayy (or "near" it) in Rajab, 365, after the meeting at Iṣbahān mentioned above; his illness grew worse and in the first month (Muḥarram) of 366, he died (ibn-a-Athīr, VIII, 492, ll.2–4, 1.22. One might gather that there is a confusion of dates in the report of ibn-al-Athīr, but there is none. He opens the account with the year 366, returns to discuss the events of 365, and then takes up the story again at the point where Rukn al-Dawlah's illness became grave). The coin, which was minted after Muḥarram, 366, shows us that 'Aḍud al-Dawlah had, as arranged, succeeded his father as chief of the family (this time his name appears on the reverse with that of the Caliph); and that Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah, not Fakhr al-Dawlah, had the authority in Rayy. When ibn-al-Athir, in recounting the affair of the arrest and imprisonment of the Vizier, abu-al-Fatḥ b. abi-al-Faḍl b. al-'Umayd, at Rayy in 366, writes that 'Aḍud al-Dawlah instructed Fakhr al-Dawlah to execute the arrest (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 497, ll. 9–10: كتب الى اخيه فخر الدولة بالرى يامره بالقبض عليه وعلى اهله و اصحابه ففهل ذلك ), he is confused, perhaps because of having a page or two before recounted how the partition of the Buyid lands was to be, according to which plan Fakhr al-Dawlah should have received al-Jibāl. A few lines farther along (VIII, 497, ll.20–21), in giving the details of abu-al-Fatḥ's arrest, he has the right person carrying out the order, i. e. Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah. فلما كان السحر دعاه مؤيد الدولة فقبض عليه وارسل الى داره فخذ جميع ما فيها etc... (Cf. P. Casanova, Les Ispehbeds de Firīm, Browne Memorial Volume, Cambridge, 1922, pg. 126).

As a matter of fact, although Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah's agreement to the will of Rukn al-Dawlah before the latter's death was expressed at Iṣbahān, he had immediately quarreled with Fakhr al-Dawlah and had forced him out of the provinces which were by right his brother's, so that Fakhr al-Dawlah escaped to Jurjān and later to Khurāsān to seek help from the Sāmānids (Mīrkhwand, Buyids, pg. 30, 1.18–31, 1.8); and this state of affairs is authenticated by the coins of this and the following years (cf. especially no. 198).

195A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 367.

Not described, but bears the names of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah.

Markoff, no. 27, pg. 324.

195B. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 367.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

الطائع لله

الملك السيد

عضد الدولة

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

مؤيد الدولة

ابو منصور

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع ستين [sic] وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 27 A 1, 27 A 2, pg.983 (two variants, not described); Paris, unpublished.

For 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah, cf. nos. 193 and 194 above. Note the use of the new title "al-Malik al-Sayyid" for 'Aḍud al-Dawlah.

In this year 'Abd-al-Jabbār b. Aḥmad, Qāḍi at Rayy, was honoured and made Qāḍi al-Quḍāh (chief justice) of all the lands ruled by Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 510, 1.23–511, 1.3).

195X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 368.

Not described, but bears the name of Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah (alone ?).

Markoff, Supplement, no. 27 A 3, pg. 983.

195Y. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 369.

Not described, but bears the name of Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah (alone ?).

Markoff, Topografiya, pg.10, no. 50 (with reference to the description of a find in the Kazan district).

We are told in the year 369 of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah's expedition against Fakhr al-Dawlah, who, if one were to judge by the account in ibn-al-Athīr, actually controlled the government of Rayy and al-Jibāl at this time (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 519, 1.14–521, 1.3). But this was, I believe, no more true than it was in 366 (cf. no.194 above). Although ibn-al-Athīr says that 'Aḍud al-Dawlah conquered ما كان بيد فخر الدولة والرى وما بينهما من البلاد (Fakhr al-Dawlah's possessions, Hamadahān and Rayy and what lies between them) (VIII, 520, ll.16–17), and turned the lands over to his brother Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah, he also states that Fakhr al-Dawlah who fled to "Balād al-Daylam" and thence to Jurjān where he took refuge with Shāms al-Ma'āli Qābūs b. Washmgīr, fled, not from Rayy, but from Hamadhān (VIII, 520, ll.12–14). The coins are testimony to the fact that Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah was still in possession of Rayy and probably most of al-Jibāl. It is very likely that Fakhr al-Dawlah was only temporarily at Hamadhān (cf. ibn-Isfandiyār, pp. 225–226). 'Aḍud al-Dawlah turned over Rayy etc. to Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah as his representative, that is not unconditionally. وسلمهما (Hamadhān and Rayy and the country between them) الى اخيه مؤيد الدولة بو يه وجعله خليفته ونايبه فى تلك البلاد (ibn-al-Athīr, VIII, 520, ll.17–18). Probably the truth of it is that this trusteeship really amounted to little more than 'Aḍud al-Dawlah's confirmation of Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah's forceful occupation of the territories originally deeded to Fakhr al-Dawlah by the father, Rukn al-Dawlah.

195Z. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 370.

Not described, but bears the names of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah.

Markoff, Supplement, no. 28a, pg. 983.

Cf. the remarks under nos. 195 X and 195 Y above.

196. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah ? Year 371 ?

A dirham at Paris, unpublished, assigned to Fakhr al-Dawlah, al-Muḥammdīyah, this year; but I cannot convince myself of either the date or the mint which are very obscure.

In 371, 'Aḍud al-Dawlah occupied Jurjān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 8, ll.3–21). Fakhr al-Dawlah enlisted the aid of the Sāmānid Amīr Nūḥ, Ḥusām al-Dawlah, general of the Khurāsān army, and Qābūs (cf. note under no.195 Y above) against 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah who were occupying Rayy and Jurjān (Rūdhrāwari, 15, ll.7ff.; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 8, 1.22–10, 1.2; and cf. ibn-Isfandiyār citation under no.195 Y above).

197. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 372.

Not described, but bears the names of 'Aḍud al-Dawlah and Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah.

Da Cunha, Pt. 2, no.1259, pg.8; Markoff, no.33, pg.325.

As 'Aḍud al-Dawlah died in Shawwāl, 372 (Rūdhrāwari, 75; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 13. ll.15ff.), this coin was struck during the first nine months of the year. He was succeeded in the chief amirate by his son Ṣamṣām al-Dawlah abu-Kālījār.

198. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 374.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الطائع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شاهانشاه

فخر الدولة

وفلك الامة

بن ركن الدولة

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع و سبعين وثلثمائة.

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. II, no.104, pg.86.

Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah survived his brother 'Aḍud al-Dawlah by less than a year. He died in Sha'bān, 373 (Rūdhrāwari, 90ff.; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 18, ll.17ff); and Fakhr al-Dawlah at last came into his heritage at Rayy in Ramaḍān, 373 (Rūdhrāwari, 93ff.; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 19, ll.5–6; cf. Mīrkhwand, Buyids, pg.31, ll.17–18, and Wilken's introduction, pp. 8–9). Of the titles borne by Fakhr al-Dawlah in his inscription on the reverse of this coin, the first, al-Amīr al-Sayyid, has a parallel in al-Malik al-Sayyid (noted above. no.195B). Shāhānshāh, the early modern Persian from of the Achaemenian Khshāyathiya Khshāyathiyānām, and the Pahlevi ideogram malkān malkā = shāhān shāh , modern Persian and Ottoman Turkish, Shāhinshāh, "king of kings", occurs here, I think, for the first time on an Islāmic coin. (Cf. J. G. Covernton, Two Coins relating to the Buwayhid and 'Okaylid Dynasties, etc., N.C., 1903, pp.177–189; and H. F. Amedroz, The Assumption of the Title Shâhanshâh by the Buwayhid Rulers, N. C., 1905, pp. 393–399: articles discussing two dirhams of the year 428 A. H. One might be misled by these discussions that this was the first occurrence of the title in Muslim numismaics.)1 A second laqab now becomes common with the Buyid princes, and Falak al-Ummah, The Celestial Sphere of the People, was that adopted by Fakhr al-Dawlah. It is especially interesting to note in this connection that in this year, 374, the Caliph bestowed exceptional benefits on Fakhr al-Dawlah, including additional titles, a deed of investiture, and a robe of honour. وفيها شرف فخر الدولة من حضرة الطائع لله بالخلع السلطانية والعهد و اللواء وزيادة اللقب (Rūdhrāwari, 97 ll.17ff.). The inscriptions on the coin tally well enough with this report to be cause for con­siderable satisfaction to the numismatist.

199. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah ? Year 378.

A dirham in Paris, unpublished. The mint is very doubtful. The coin bears the name of Fakhr al-Dawlah.

200. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 380.

Hexagonal.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

فخر الدولة

وفلك الامة

Rev.

الله احد الله

الصمد لم يلد و

لم يولد ولم يكن

له كفوا احد

الطائع لله

Obv. margin: كافى الدولة ابو القسم بالمحمدية سنة ثمانين وثلثمائة [sic] بسم الله امر بضرب الدينار

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

This beautiful coin is extraordinary not only because of its shape but also because of its legends: Sūrah CXII on the reverse (cf. the Sāmānid issue, no.172, above), and the truly remarkable marginal legend: "In the name of God, Kāfi al-Dawlah abu-al-Qāsim ordered the striking of this dinar (sic) in al-Muḥammadīyah in the year 380". Kāfi al-Dawlah was undoubtedly the famous "Ṣāḥib" Ismā'īl b. 'Abbād, man-of-letters, statesman, and vizier under Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah and Fakhr al-Dawlah. He was Fakhr al-Dawlah's vizier and the strong man of the Rayy government until his death in 385 (Rūdhrāwari, 261, ll.3–4). His kunyah was abu-al-Qāsim, and Mīrkhwand (though not the earlier preserved sources) calls him Kāfi, صاحب كافى اسمعيل بن عباد (Buyids, 31, l.13; 32, l.10). Kāfi or al-Kāfi was a popular element of laqabs dụring this period and later. There were, for example: abu-al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad al-Kawkabi al-Mu'allim, called by the laqab al-Kāfi, year 379 (Rūdhrāwari, 153–154); abu-al-'Abbās Aḥmad b. Ibrāhīm al-Ḍabbi, year 385, called al-Kāfi al-Awḥad (Rūdhrāwari, 261, ll.3–4) or simply al-Kāfi (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 77, ll.5–11); when Majd al-Dawlah came to the throne in 387, the two viziers were abu-al-'Abbās al-Ḍabbi (al-Kāfi al-Awḥad) and abu-'Ali b. Ḥamūlah with the laqab Awḥad al-Kufāh (Rūdhrāwari, 297, ll.6–7). Still later (year 486), there is al-Kāfi b. Fakhr al-Dawlah b. Jahīr (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 149). It is most gratifying to have this epigraphical record of Ismā'īl b. 'Abbād who played such an important part in the politics of Rayy.

In 379 Fakhr al-Dawlah had made an unsuccessful expedition in Khūzistān and had returned to Rayy (Rūdhrāwari, 163, l.12–171, l.4; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 44, l.20—45, l.22).

201. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 381.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الطائع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شاهانشاه

فخر الدولة

وفلك الامير

بن ركن الدولة

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الديناربالمحمدية سنة احدى وثمنين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Aḥmed Zia, Meskūkāt-i-Islāmiyyeh Taqvīmi, Istanbul, 1910, no. 1741 (the editor transcribed السند instead of السيد, but this is obviously a misreading).

Fraehn (Über einige merkwürdige Inedita unter den von Hn. Obrist-Lieutenant Wosoboinikow in Persien angesammelten Münzen, Bulletin de la Classe historico-philologique de l'Académie impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, Tome IV, 1848, col. 44, no. 2) describes two dirhams of Fakhr al-Dawlah's struck in Al-Muḥammadīyah, dates effaced, with the name of al-Ṭā'i', and the reverse inscriptions: فخر الدولة وفلك الامة | بن ركن الدولة الامير السيد| شاهانشاه.

202A. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 38X.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الطائع

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

امير الامراء

السيد ابو طالب

بن فخر الدولة

بن ركن الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة....وثمنين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no.470, pp.135–136 (dated 381; with مجاهز or مجاهر above the obverse area; بن ركن الدولة بويه on one line, inadvertently?); ANS (date effaced); GCM (mint and date effaced), Rayy, 1934, RA 867 (mint effaced, and only . . . .سبع و... of the date preserved); Rayy, 1935, RH 5005 (38x, mint effaced), 6282 (mint and date effaced), 6453 (mint and date effaced).

202B. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah Date effaced.

Obverse as no.202 A.

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

امير الامراء

السيد ابو طالب

بن فخر الدولة

و]فلك الامة]

بويه

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 80, pg.426 (mint also effaced); Lane-Poole, Fasti Arabici VII, N. C., 1892, pp. 163–164 (mint also effaced; مخلد (?) above obverse area); Tiesenhausen, Mélanges, no. 89, pg. 335 (cf. F. Soret, Élémens de la Numismatique Musulmane, Bale, 1868, pg. 230); ANS (two specimens, both with date effaced, one with mint effaced; word above obverse, مخلصا; Rayy, 1934, RD 2161 (date and mint effaced, عدل Joe (?) above obverse area ?); Rayy, 1936, RGQ 8741 (* beneath obverse; date and mint effaced).

In order to present the chronological problem with which we are confronted in nos. 202 A and 202 B, it is essential to have certain facts well in mind. In 381 the Caliph al-Ṭā'i' was arrested and deposed, and in his place the Buyid Bahā' al-Dawlah set up al-Qādir bi-allāh. The latter entered the Dār al-Khilāfah on the 12th of Ramaḍān, 381, and the khuṭbah was read in his name on the 13th, or the 3rd according to Rūdhrāwari (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 55, l.5–57, l.17; Rūdhrāwari, 201, l.10–203, l.6). Abu-Ṭālib Rustam b. Fakhr al-Dawlah, whose name figures on the coins in questions, was born in 379 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 48, ll.20–21); or in 383–384 (he was four years old when he came to the throne at Rayy, al-Rūdhrāwari, 297, l.2; cf. abu-al-Fidā', ed. Cairo, 1325, II, 133, ll.13–15); or in 376 or 377 (according to Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 426, ll.7–8, who makes Majd al-Dawlah eleven years of age at the time of his accession). Fakhr al-Dawlah died in Sha'bān, 387 (Rūdhrāwari, 296, l.8–297, l.5; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 93, ll.4–16; abu-al-Fidā', ed. Istanbul, 1286, II, 140, l.12, ed. Cairo, 1325, II, 133, ll.13–15; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 426; Mīrkhwand, 34, l.18–35, l.6) and was succeeded by his son Majd al-Dawlah, abu-Ṭālib Rustam.

Thus, on the date of al-Ṭā'i' 's deposition, 381, and on the date of Majd al-Dawlah's accession to the throne of the Buyid house of al-Jibāl, 387, all are agreed; and there is disagreement only over the question of Majd al-Dawlah's age when his father died, i. e. the question of Majd al-Dawlah's birth date: between 376 and 384. In any case, Majd al-Dawlah was not younger than four and not older than eleven when he came to the throne under the regency of his energetic and courageous mother, called al-Sayyidah. Now, only one (Zambaur's) of the numerous specimens of the two variations of the coin under dis­cussion has the date 381, preserved. One example is enough to raise the first of two chrono­logical problems. The year 381 was seven years before abu-Ṭālib Rustam's accession, and. according to two authorities, about three years before he was born. This state of affairs obviously requires an explanation. Zambaur, in an attempt to account for his coin, gives 379 as Majd al-Dawlah's birth-date (without citing the other alternatives), calls attention to Fakhr al-Dawlah's expedition against Bahā' al-Dawlah in 379 (cf. note under no. 200 above), comments on the fact that Fakhr al-Dawlah seems to drop out of history till 384, and on the basis of these facts, suggests that between 379 and 384 there was a rebellion against Fakhr al-Dawlah, during which his infant son was raised to the throne. This coin would then commemorate the supposed temporary accession of Majd al-Dawlah in 381. The lack of Majd al-Dawlah's later regal titles would lend weight to the argument. Here he is simply called: Amīr al-Umarā' al-Sayyid abu-Ṭālib son of Fakhr al-Dawlah Buwayh. (But see below the citation from Rūdhrāwari under no.205, where the first occurrence of abu-Ṭālib's honorifics is justified by an historical passage.)

In my opinion an event of such relative importanee as that which Zambaur suggests would somehow find reflection in the accounts of the chroniclers. At all events, the argu­ment breaks down completely when the dīnār, no. 201, is taken into consideration. Here is a coin of Fakhr al-Dawlah's, year 381, struck at Rayy before the deposition of the Caliph al-Ṭā'i', i. e. before the 13th of Ramaḍān, 381. So Fakhr al-Dawlah was still in control of Rayy at this date, and it is exceedingly unlikely that the suggested revolution, the raising of the infant abu-Ṭālib (incidentally, if there had been a revolution, would the rebels have put the ejected prince's baby son on the throne ?), and the minting of a coin in his name all took place within the short compass of, let us say, eight months. — Did Zambaur misread the date ?

Next, let us consider the coins with the date 38X, the second chronological problem. The authorities make us accept the year 387 as the date of Majd al-Dawlah's accession; yet the name of the Caliph on the coins is al-Ṭā'i' who was deposed in 381. No matter what digit we hypothecate, from 381 till 389, we are faced with a glaring contradiction. The specimens with date entirely effaced present the same anomaly since we cannot escape the two important dates 381 and 387; Majd al-Dawlah and al-Ṭā'i' should not appear together in an inscription. When Lane-Poole published the piece with date and mint obliteraeed (no.202 B), he suggested that the date should be 379 and that the coin was struck to celebrate the birth of Majd al-Dawlah. But this hypothesis is eliminated (it is not probable in itself) by the knowledge of the specimens on which the date 38X is preserved.

The real explanation is to be found in the chronicles. When Bahā' al-Dawlah proclaimed al-Qādir as Caliph (see above), the Turks and Daylamites in the army at Baghdād at first mutinied and only complied in allowing the new Caliph's name to be read in the khuṭbah on the 3rd or 13th of Ramaḍān. In the East al-Qādir was accepted still less willingly. ibn-al-Athīr tells us that in all Khurāsān the khuṭbah continued to be read in the name of al-Ṭā'i'. وام يخطب له[القادر بالله]فى جميع خراسان كانت الخطبة فيها للطائع لله (IX, 57, ll.16–17). Later, in 383, al-Qādir held a reception for the Khurāsānian ḥājjis on their return from the pilgrimage and brought up with them the question of having the prayers offered in his name. They undertook to bear messages on the subject to Khurāsān (Rūdhrāwari, 250, ll.15–17). Actually the Khurāsānians did not comply till Jumāda I, 389 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 103, ll.7–8) when Maḥmūd of Ghazna became master of Khurāsān and compelled them to abandon the names of al-Ṭā'i' and the Sāmānid in the khuṭbah and to recognize al-Qādir and himself. فازال عنها اسم الساهانية وخطب فيها للقادر بالله وكان الى هذا الوقت لايخطب له فيها انها كان يخطب للطائع لله (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 103, ll.17–19). Cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 351, l.17–352, 1.1: اما در خراسان ....بنام طائع خطب ميخواندند .... تاجون سلطان محمود سبكتكين بر ان ملك مستولىشذ واو با قادر خليفة مصادق بوذ بنام قادر خطبه خواندند. Numismatic evidence exists for this statement in Sāmānid and Ghaznawid coins, e. g.: Nīsābūr, 383, Nūḥ b. Manṣūr (B. M. Add. i, no.417t); Farwān, 383, Subuktekīn (B. M. ii, no.452); Nīsābūr, 384, Nūḥ b. Manṣūr (B. M. ii, no.418); mint effaced, 384, Subuktekīn (B.M. Add. i, no.452 l, m); Nīsābūr, 385, Maḥmūd (B.M. ii, no. 458); mint effaced, 387, Subuktekīn (B. M. ii, no. 453); Nīsābūr, 389, Maḥmūd (B. M. Add. i, no. 458k)1. (Cf. Edw. Thomas, "On the Coins of the Kings of Ghazni", JRAS, 1848, pg. 272). Only two other Buyid mints betray this loyalty to al-Ṭā'i', Jurjān and Amul2; this is no doubt to be explained by the fact that no other Buyid mint cities came into such close contact with Khurāsān as did Rayy and the Jurjān capitals. Al-Ṭā'i' died in 393 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 124, ll.14–18).

On the grounds of the facts stated in the foregoing paragraph we now have no problem other than Zambaur's date 381, since it is clear that the coins could have been minted in 387 or 388, i. e. after the accession of Majd al-Dawlah, and still bear the name of al-Ṭā'i'. Any date after 388 is impossible, if we are to have confidence in an account of Rūdhrāwari's, quoted below under no. 205, to the effect that in 388 abu-Ṭālib Rustam received from al-Qādir his official deeds of investiture, proving that by this year Rayy had renounced al-Ṭā'i' and recognized the validity of al-Qādir's Caliphate. Zambaur did not question the date of his specimen, but in reference to the word above the obverse area, comparing it with Lane-Poole's, he wrote: "seul un exemplaire mieux conservé pourrait trancher cette question de detail" (loc. cit. pg.136). Perhaps the poor preservation applies to the date legend as well, but naturally one could not differ with the learned numismatist without examining the coin at first hand. I should not care to attribute the entire issue to the year 387 on the basis of the very poorly preserved specimen from the Rayy Excavations (RA 867, cited under no.202A), with... سبع و... legible in the mint-date formula. When I catalogued the coin and copied its inscriptions, I noted these two words as the only ones preserved in the margin, but the photograph does not reveal them. However, when one examines a coin with a fine glass in the right light, words are often legible which leave no trace whatsoever in the photograph; and I would not be at all surprised if the date in question for all of these coins were 387, and that they represent the first issue of abu-Ṭālib Rustam on his accession at Rayy, before he had been given the title of Majd al-Dawlah.

203. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 384.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الطائع لله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شاهانشاه

فخر الدولة

وفلك الامة

بن ركن الدولة

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع و ثمنين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. I, no. 105, pg. 87.

Zambaur did not transcribe the obverse area, but wrote "comme le précéd." The preceding coin is the Fakhr al-Dawlah dirham of 374, which of course bears the name of al-Ṭā'i'. No doubt the present issue has al-Ṭā'i' as well, but it is strange that the editor did not call attention to this sufficiently remarkable fact. For the presence of the name of al-Ṭā'i' on a coin minted after his deposition, cf. the discussion under no. 202 above.

It is interesting to note that the Daylamite army mutinied in the year 384 on account of the coinage, the high prices and the withholding of its pay. I am tempted to speculate whether the outrageous debasement of the silver in Buyid dirhams had anything to do with the mutiny. At this period the amount of alloy in the silver coinage is so great that one can hardly distinguish a fals from a dirham unless the word is preserved in the marginal legend. The soldiers were promised improvement of the coinage and payment of their wages. وتردد القول بينهم الى ان وعدوا بالاطلاق وتجويد النقد وسكنت الفتنة (Rūdhrāwari, 250, 1.18–251, 1.2).

204. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 387(?).

Cf. the conclusion of the discussion under no. 202 above.

205A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 389.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

-

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة ابو

طالب بن فخر الدولة

بن ركن الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة تسع وثمنين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

205B. Ꜹ. Muḥammadīyah. Year 389.

Obverse as no.205 A, but without the pellet in the area and without the outer margin

Reverse as no.205 A, but with the last three lines divided thus:

طالب بن فخر الدو

لة بن ركن الدولة

بويه

Collection of Mr. Philip Thorburn.

205C. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 389.

Not described except for the note "on the reverse, beneath, مجد" (for Majd al-Dawlah?).

Markoff, Supplement, no. 40c, pg. 984.

Note Majd al-Dawlah's protocol on nos.205 A and B: Al-Amīr al-Sayyid Majd al-Dawlah (The Glory of the State), Kahf al-Ummah (The Shelter of the People), abu-Ṭālib, son of Fakhr al-Dawlah, son of Rukn al-Dawlah, Buwayh. It was in the year 388 that the Caliph al-Qādir had given abu-Ṭālib a deed of investiture for Rayy and its dependencies, along with other insignia and regal robes of honour. وعهد لابى طالب على الرى واعمالها وعقد له لواء وحمل اليه الخلع السطانية الكاملة> (Rūdhrāwari, 311, ll.1–4). Cf. the discussion above, under no.202, for the importance of this passage in connection with the dating of the first coins of abu-Ṭālib Rustam1. This protocol is to be compared to that of the later issues of the same prince where, like his father, he employs Shāhānshāh in addition. It is to be remembered that during this period, when Majd al-Dawlah was only a child, and in fact throughout his troubled reign, the real ruler of al-Jibāl was his mother, al-Sayyidah.

Majd al-Dawlah had succeeded to the rule of Rayy in 387 (cf. the notes under no. 202 above). Fakhr al-Dawlah died in the castle of Ṭabarak. His treasury (I presume the money with which the troops should have been paid) was locked up, but it was impossible to get at the keys which were in the possession of his son abu-Ṭālib — strictly speaking, in the hands of his mother Sayyidah — and it was not found possible to get at the keys or even a winding-sheet for the corpse of Fakhr al-Dawlah because of serious rioting in the town itself which cut the people in Ṭabarak off from the rest of Rayy. Eventually the coffin and the money to pay the troops were lowered from the citadel with ropes. The description of these happenings is important in determining the relative positions of Ṭabarak and other parts of the city of Rayy (Rūdhrāwari, 296, 18–297, 1.5; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 93, ll. 4–16; Mīrkhwand, Buyids, 34, l. 17–35, 1.6).

In 388 Marzubān, the Ispahbad of Firīm, maternal uncle of Majd al-Dawlah, was commander of the Rayy troops (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 99, ll.20–21).

206A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 393.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثلث وتسعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

206B. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 39X.

Obverse as no. 206 A, but with an obscure ornament above the area; and الدرهم Outer margin effaced, تسعين only of date preserved.

Reverse as no. 206 A, margin effaced.

(I have entered this coin here because of the similarity of the legends to those of no. 206 A.)

GCM.

(A dirham of al-Muḥammadīyah, year 393, was cited by Zambaur, Contrib. III, pg. 136, foot-note 40, with the remark that the coin was in the Bibliothèque Nationale. As there is to my knowledge no dirham of this year there, I am inclined to believe that inadvertently Zambaur wrote dirham for dīnār and that the coin to which he refers is the one I have described as no. 206 A.)

In 392 or 393, abu-al-'Abbās al-Ḍabbi (cf. note under no. 200 above) fled from Rayy to seek protection from Badr b. Ḥasanwayh, ruler of Kurdistān, who had begun to exercise an influence over the affairs of the city. The vizierate was then taken over by abu-'Ali al-Khaṭīr who was unsuccessfully challenged by the more official abu-Sa'd Muḥammad b. Ismā'īl (Hilāl b. Muḥassin, 449, l.10–453, l.13; ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 126, ll.18–20).

In the year 390, the last Sāmānid ruler Ismā'īl b. Nūḥ al-Muntaṣir, hearing how internal disorder left Rayy unprotected, conducted a final Sāmānid campaign against the city, but retired without actually entering it (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 111, 1.24–112, 1.5).

207. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 395.

Obv.

شاه

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بوية

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله....محمدية سنة خ...وتسعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Traces of Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Traces of Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RG 2906.

208. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 397.

Obv.

[?] بها

لا اله الا

الله وحده

[?]شمس

الدولة

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

الدولة

Rev.

......

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شمس الدولة

شمس

ابوطاهر بن

الدولة

فخر الدولة

وفلك الامة

بن ركن الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة سبع؟]وتسعين وثلثمائة]

Obv. outer margin: Traces of Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Traces of Qur'ān, IX, 33.

The words at the sides of obverse and reverse are in minuscule.

Johnston Coll., pg. 26 (not described); Paris, unpubisheed (my notes on this specimen are not detailed); ANS (date effaced).

The digit seven in the date on the Paris specimen appeared to me a little doubtful (the coin is actually assigned to 399, I believe, in the Cabinet des Médailles), but all doubt is removed after a study of the political events of the year 397, affecting Rayy. Majd al-Dawlah's mother, al-Sayyidah, so dominated her son that she completely controlled the government at Rayy, but the time came when she realized that the feeling had grown so strong against her that unless she brought physical force to bear, her position would be endangered. Hence in 397 she left the city, sought help from Badr b. Ḥasanwayh, and returned to Rayy. Majd al-Dawlah was captured and imprisoned; and al-Sayyidah placed her other son, Shams al-Dawlah, at the head of the government of the city. The latter remained in power approximately one year, at the end of which time the queen's attitude toward Majd al-Dawlah was mollified and she restored him to his kingdom. Shams al-Dawlah went back to Hamadhān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 144, 1.6–145, 1.2; cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 427, ll.1 ff.). The present coin with the name of Shams al-Dawlah abu-Ṭāhir b. Fakhr al-Dawlah, the date almost certainly 397, is again valuable evidence testifying to the usual accuracy of ibn-al-Athīr and his sources.

209A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 398.

Obv. (within a hexagon)

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev. (within a hexagon)

لله

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بو يه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة ثمان وتسعين وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. M. Add. i, no.682f., pg.263 (probably the same as that published by Guy Le Strange, Notes on Some Inedited Coins, JRAS, 1880, pp.5–6 of the reprint) (Illustr., Pl. XIII).

Cf. no. 208 above. Majd al-Dawlah had been placed on the throne of Rayy again, "about a year" after his imprisonment. Here in 398 we find him once more minting coins in his name.

In 398 al-Sayyidah placed abu-Ja'far Dushmanzār Kākwayh (Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār) over Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 146, ll.10–12); he was later destined to play an important part in Rayy affairs and to occupy the city himself (cf. note under no.217 below).

209x. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 399.

Not described but listed under Shams al-Dawlah.

Johnston Coll., pg. 26.

210. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 400.

Obv.

خير

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

الملك بها الدوله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب ه.....بالمحمدية ....بع مائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 450 (date and mint effaced but fabric similar to rest of hoard of which this coin was one); Rayy, 1935, RH 5485 (date effaced); RH 5532 (date and mint effaced).

211. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year (40X, probably 401).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

الملك بها

الدولة

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بويه

(الملك بها الدولة is in minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ....مائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 446–449 (four) coins, date effaced, one of which with the obverse almost completely effaced).

(Cf. the note after no. 214 on the attribution of this issue).

212. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 402.

Obv.

مجد

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

الدولة

القادر بالله

الملك بها الدولة

(مجد الدولة and بها الدولة are in minuscule)

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين واربع وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 436–441 (six coins, four of which have the date preserved).

213. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 403.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

اقبال

القادر بالله

الملك بها الدولة

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بن ركن الدولة

بويه

(The words الملك بها الدولة and اقبال are in minuscule)

Obv. inner margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة ثلث واربع وثلثمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 429–435 (seven coins, four of which fragmentary, date preserved on two).

The word in minuscule at the left of the area is either اقبال or اقبال. The former would mean "equivalents", the latter "prosperity". Whatever the meaning, it is probably a "mark of genuineness". It is more probably اقبال, cf. no. 215 below.

Note that on nos. 210–213 inclusive Majd al-Dawlah recognized the suzerainty of his overlord and cousin, Bahā' al-Dawlah of Baghdād, but he has the latter's name inscribed in minuscule with no title save al-Malik. He himself appropriates six lines of an eight line reverse, giving his complete genealogy back to Rukn al-Dawlah and the forefather Buwayh (or Buyeh).

The year 403 is given by most authorities as the date of Bahā' al-Dawlah's death, but cf. no. 214 below (as well as Ꜹ, 404, Madīnat al-Salām, B.M. ll, no. 680, and ANS), which disproves this date. ibn-al-Athīr has the 5th (or 10th) of Jumāda II, 403 (IX, 169, ll. 16–24). Cf. abu-al-Fidā', (ed. Istanbul, 1286, II, 151, l.2; ed. Cairo, 1325, II, 143, l.23): 10th of Jumāda II, 403; Mīrkhwand (Buyids, 41, ll.19–22): year 403. Zambaur and the E. of I. accept 403 without question. Only Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi is right (see below).

214. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 404.

obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

شاها

نشاه

القادر بالله

الملك بها الدولة

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف المة

بن فخر الدولة

بويه

(The name الملك بها الدولة is in minuscule.)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اربع و اربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 442–445 (four coins, date preserved on three).

Note that on this issue Bahā' al-Dawlah as well as Majd al-Dawlah bears the title Shāhānshāh.1 Cf. the note on the death of Bahā' al-Dawlah under no. 213 above. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi gives us what we may assume to be the correct date in view of the present issue: Rabī' I, 404 (Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 430, ll.14–15). This issue therefore was minted within the first three months of the year.

(I must add a note on the attribution of the coins described under no. 211 above to the year 401: the date is effaced but in style, fabric and legends these specimens are similar to the issues of 400, 402, 403 and 404, and they were found in the same hoard. Since there are minor differences in the legends, these coins cannot be assigned to one or other of the entries nos. 210, 212, 213 or 214; but they must represent another die of one of these years or else an issue of the year 401. To assign them to the year 401 seems to me quite justifiable. Note especially that the die lacks Shāhānshāh on the obverse with Bahā' al-Dawlah, as do the issues of the years 400, 402 and 403. A different fabric is introduced in the year 405 (?) (cf. no. 215 below), and besides we cannot put the issue later than 404 if we accept this year as the date of Bahā' al-Dawlah's death).

215A. image Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 405(?).

Obv.

لا اله الا

لله وحده

لا شريك له

اقبال

القادر بالله

(اقبال at the right is in minuscule. It is more probably اقبال than امثال, as the second letter looks more like ف\ق than م.)

Obv.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

الامة .....

الدولة .....

بويه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة اخمس [sic?]واربع مائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

GCM.

In the year 405, after the provinces possessed by Badr b. Ḥasanwayh, who was killed in this year, had been appropriated by Shams al-Dawlah, the latter, acting on an impulse occasioned by his increased dignity, marched on Rayy and caused Majd al-Dawlah and his mother to flee to Damāwand. The Rayy army at first went over to Shams al-Dawlah and then revolted, and Shams al-Dawlah returned to Hamadhān, whence he sent a message to his brother and al-Sayyidah to go back to Rayy. This they did (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 175, ll.13–20). Shams al-Dawlah's occupation could not have been long, and the present coin, if the date 405 is correctly read, may have been struck at any time of the year.

215X. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 406.

Obv.

لا اله الا الله

محمد رسول الله

على ولى الله

حرسه هو الله

Rev.

قل هو

الله احد

الصمد لم يلد و

لم يولد ولم يكن

له كفوا احد

Obv. margin: بالمحمدية سنة ست واربعمائة [sic] بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

S. Lane Poole, Unpublished Arabic Coins from the Collection of the Rev. T. Calvert, N. C., New Ser., XIX, 1879, pp. 77–78, illustr. Pl. III, no. 2; Johnston Coll., pg. 27 (no description).

Lane-Poole pointed out that there were no traces of gilding to account for the use of the word dīnār, and also noted the peculiarity in the presence of the superfluous pronoun in حرسه هو الله. He listed the coin as being struck by an "'Alawi prince". The use of the Shī'ite formula at this time is extraordinary; of course it is well known that the Buyid princes had strong Shī'ite leanings, but they did not announce their heterodoxy on their coinage. Could the coin have anything to do with the brief revolt of Shawkat b. Fulādh which took place about this time (related under the year 407, ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 187–188) ?

216. image (billon). Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 407.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

شاها

نشاه

لا شريك له

القادر بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

....الامير ال

تشاهانشاه

مجد الدولة

وكهف الامة

بن فخر الدولة

بويه

Obv. inner margin: .....بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة سبع وار

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

GCM.

This is the last of the dated Buyid coins of al-Muḥammdīyah that has come to my attention. A coin from the Rayy Excavations, (RH 6454, image, billon, al-Muḥammdīyah) with date completely effaced, with the reverse inscriptions: لله || محمد رسول الله ||شاهانشاه|| مجد الدولة|| كهف الامة||بن فخر الدولة||...يه and with al-Qādir bi-allāh (but not Bahā' al-Dawlah) on the obverse, cannot be assigned to any of the above issues, but it is probably to be dated some time after 407.

End Notes

1
Minorsky (op. cit., pg. 145), pg. 18, likewise is in error when he states: "Déjà en 404 (1013) Baha al-daula avait obtenu du calife le titre de chāhinchāh que personne n avait porté depuis les Sasanides.
1
Cf. Zambaur, Contrib. III, pg.129, foot-note 26. M. Zambaur states that between 383 and 389 the Ghaznawid coins establish the fact that al-Ṭā'i' was recognized "dans tout l'Orient" as the legitimae Caliph. Another dīnār of Nīsābūr, 389 (Istanbul, IV, no.70, pg. 42) with the name of al-Qādir, is testimony to the change of allegiance in this year. It is, perhaps, a bit misleading to say "throughout tho East".
1
Markoff, Ο ΚладЪ ΚуфичесκихЪ МонетЪ, etc., pp.81–2, nos.3–4 (for full title see foot-note 2 on pg. 175) describes two issues of al-Muḥammadīyah, image, year 389 with inscriptions as on no. 202 B above (no. 4 with the addition of the letter ح beneath the obverse). The passage from Rūdhrāwari, quoted above, coupled with the titles as they appear on the dīnārs of 389, nos. 205A and B, persuades me that Markoff's 389 should read 387. Perhaps the same remark applies to no. 205 C above, but the abbreviated form of the description in the Inventory precludes a positive opinion.
1
Cf. the footnote under no. 198 above.
2
Jurjān, image, 387 or 388, and Amul, image, 388 (A. Markoff, Ο ΚладЪ ΚуфичесκихЪ МонетЪ, etc., in Записки, Нумизматичесκаго ОгдЪлеиия имп. Рус. Археол.Общества, Vol. I, fasc. II–III, St. Petersburg, 1909, pg. 81, no. 1 and no.2). No.1 has the caption "387", but the margin as transcribed has ثمان. It is therefore impossible to tell whether the date is 387 or 388. In any case the obverse has al-Ṭā'i' and the reverse inscriptions are exactly as on no. 202 B above. No.2 also has al-Ṭā'i' with reverse inscripiions again as no.202 B with the addition of the word عدل at the right and the same word at the left. These coins are strong arguments in favour of the attribution suggested for the Rayy Issues under consideration.

VII. THE GHAZNAWID PERIOD

271A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 420.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

يمينى

Rev.

لله ○ لله

محمد رسول الله

القادر بالله

وايمن

الملة

يمين الدولة

محمود

لله ○ لله and وامين الملة محمود are written in minuscule.)

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة عشرين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 455, pg.132.

217B. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 420.

Obv.

fleuron

عدل

لا اله الا

الله يمين الدو

لة وامين الملة

ابو القاسم

محمود

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

القادر بالله

مسعود

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة عشرين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

R. Cottevieille-Giraudet, Monnaies Musulmanes et Sassanides, in Demareteion, ed. J. Babelon, Paris, 1935, Vol. 1, no.l, pp.11–12 (illustr., fig. 2, pg. 13, almost entirely illegible); this is one of the two dīnārs, of two dies, in the Cabinet des Médailles.

217C. image. Al-Rayy. Year 420.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا الله

يمين الدولة

وامين الملة

ابو القاسم

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

القادر بالله

مسعود

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة تسع عشرين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 456, pg.132.

217D. image. Al-Rayy. Year 420 (?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا الله

يمين الدولة

وامين الملة

ابو القاسم محمود

Rev.

محمد رسول الله

القادر بالله

مسعود

Obv. margin: ....... هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة ع ...

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 75, pg.422 (illustr., Pl. XV, fig.16).

Abu-Ja'far Muḥammad b. Kākwayh, 'Alā' al-Dawlah (cf. note under no. 209 above) came to Rayy in 418, after fighting had taken place between Majd al-Dawlah and Minūchihr b. Qābūs (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 252, ll.3–24). Till now, Majd al-Dawlah's energetic mother al-Sayyidah, had somewhat preserved the integrity of Rayy, and, if we are to believe a popular and picturesque story of her correspondence with Sulṭān Maḥmūd of Ghazna, it was her diplomacy that fended off the Ghaznavid capture of Rayy till the year 420. (Mīrkhwand, Buyids, 42, l.18–43, l.12). But she died in 419 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 260; cf. Browne, Literary History, II, 160).1 In Rabī' II, 420, Rayy fell to Maḥmūd, Majd al-Dawlah was taken captive, scolded by Maḥmūd for his bookishness and his dalliance with women, and sent off as a prisoner to Khurāsān together with many of the Mu'tazīlites at Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 261, l.9–262, l.20; Mīrkhwand, Buyids, 43, l.12–44, l.19). Maḥmūd then returned to Khurāsān himself, leaving his son Mas'ūd to govern Rayy and most of its dependencies "as far as the borders of Armenia". Mas'ūd proceeded to take Iṣbahān from 'Alā' al-Dawlah and then returned to Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 362, ll.15–20).

Mas'ūd was also occupied with the curtailment of the activities of al-Salār Ibrāhīm b. al-Marzubān, who at the time had control of Qazwīn, Zanjān, Abhar and other places in western al-Jibāl (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 262, 1.21–263, 1.19).

No. 217 A was probably struck before Mas'ūd's appointment as governor of al-Jibāl. It bears the name of Maḥmūd alone, with his laqabs: Yamīn al-Dawlah and Amīn al-Millah, and the adjective yamīni. Nos. 217, B, C, and D are inscribed with the names of both father and son. To Maḥmūd's usual titles is now added his kunyah abu-al-Qāsim, while Mas'ūd is simply called Mas'ūd without any titles whatsoever.

It apparently needed a major upheaval like this of the fall of the city to the Ghaznawids to abolish for good and all the now long since meaningless name, al-Muḥammadīyah, from the coins of the Rayy mint. Henceforth, with the exception of the coins of 'Alā' al-Dawlah in 421, 424(?), 429 and 432 (cf. nos.218 B, 219, 221 A, and 222 A, below), the old name Rayy, which was always the name of the city in the mouths of the people and in the pages of the historians, was exclusively used by Ghaznawids, Seljūqs and the Ilkhānid Mongols. (Cf. nos. 50 and 51 above.)

218A. image. Al-Rayy. Year 421.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله يمين

الدولة

ابو القاسم

محمود

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

القادر بالله

مسعود

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة احدى و عشرين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 457, pg. 133.

218B. image. Al-Muhammadlyah. Year 421.

Obv.

العادل

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القادر بالله

محمد بن دشمنزار

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

عضد الدين

علاء الدولة

وفخر الملة

وتاج الامة

ابو جعر

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالمحمدية سنة احدى وعشرين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished. (Another is known but I have not seen the description of it: Siouffi. Tables, Janvier, 1880, referred to by Zambaur, Contrib. III, pg.145, footnote 66, "very doubtful" in Zambaur's opinion).

218c. image. Al-Rayy. Year 421(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القادر بالله (minuscule)

Rev.

لله ب

محمد

رسول الله

عليه السلم

مسعود

(Point beneath ب, first line.)

Obv. margin:.....[very indistinct] بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى

(Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4?)

Bartholomae à Soret, I, no. 76, pg. 423.

No. 218 A is comparable to the issues of the year 420 with the names of Maḥmūd as ruler and Mas'ūd as governor. Maḥmūd calls himself Yamīn al-Dawlah as well as by his own name Maḥmūd. Mas'ūd again bears no titles. Sulṭān Maḥmūd died on the 11th of Ṣafar or in Rabī' II, 421 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 281, ll.5–8; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 401, ll.11–12, no month; ibn-Khallikān, 11th of Ṣafar, cf. Zambaur, Manuel), so we can conclude that this issue was minted within the first four months of the year.

The following events explain the existence of a Kākwayhid coin struck at Rayy in 421 (no. 218 B): when Maḥmūd died, Mas'ūd was in Iṣbahān, where he had gone to take both that city and Hamadhān from 'Alā' al-Dawlah abu-Ja'far Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār (cf. also notes under nos. 209 and 217); at the news of his father's death he went out to Khurāsān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 279, ll.2–13; 281, ll.22–23). Mas'ūd's absence gave 'Alā' al-Dawlah the opportunity to return from Khuzistān whither he had fled, and to reoccupy Hamadhān and Iṣbahān. His next goal was Rayy which he captured presumably from Mas'ūd's lieutenant (cf. note under no. 222 below), then proceeding to invade a part of the lands belonging at the time to Anūshirwān, son of Minūchihr son of Qābūs, including Khwār-al-Rayy and Damāwand. Anūshirwān appealed to Ma'sūd for help; and Mas'ūd who had by this time returned to Iṣbahān to put down the rebellion, came back to Rayy. 'Alā' al-Dawlah was then driven out of Rayy with the aid of Tāsh-Farāsh, a general of Mas'ūd's (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 267, ll.13–15, 20–21); and the inhabitanss of the city as well as Anūshirwān's followers pronounced Mas'ūd's name in the khuṭbah (ibn-al-Athīr, IX. 281, l.21–282, l.7; 284, l.7–285, l.8). No. 218 B is evidence of 'Alā' al-Dawlah's brief lordship over Rayy. His titles on the coin are many: Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār, abu-Ja'far, the Support of The Religion, the Grandeur of the State, the Glory of the Nation, the Crown of the People (cf. also nos. 219 and 221 below).

Finally, no. 218 C, if it were authentically dated and the reading of the inscriptions reliable (which I doubt), would give us the necessary testimony to Mas'ūd's reestablishment at Rayy, after his father's death and after the Kākwayhid occupation. In the inscriptions as copied, Maḥmūd's name does not appear. On this account I have placed the coin at the end of the series of three issues of the year 421.

Sometime during this year, or perhaps in 422, Mas'ūd wrote to his brother Muḥammad telling him he did not himself desire to rule all the lands which their father had conquered, but that he would be content with what he had personally brought under his control, i. e. al-Jibāl, Ṭabaristān, Iṣbahān, etc. He asked only that Muḥammad allow his (Mas'ūd's) name to be read as the principal one in the khuṭbah (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 281, l.21–282, l.7). Rayy was exposed to another attack about this time, but succeeded in defending itself. The attacker was Shahriyūsh (?), lord of Sāwah and Qumm (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 292, ll.10–13).

219. image. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 424.

A reported dirham of the Kākwayhids was published in Siouffi, Tables, Janvier, 1880, according to Zambaur, Contrib. III, pg.145, foot-note 66. Zambaur considered it and the 421 Kākwayhid issue "très douteux", but he had not seen the Paris specimen, which vindicates the 421 entry in Siouffi. On purely historical grounds, — and having no numismatic knowledge of the supposed issue, I can only argue from the written historical sources, — there is some possible justification for accepting the authenticity of the Siouffi coin of 424 as well. See the argument below.

By the 8th of Jumāda II, 422, Mas'ūd was back in Ghazna where he received the homage of the assembled rulers of al-Hind, al-Sind, Sijistān, Kirmān, Makrān, Rayy, Iṣbahān, the mountain country (Bilād al-Jabal) and other lands (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 283, ll.6–11). In the same year Mas'ūd entrusted the government of Rayy, al-Jibāl and Hamadhān to Tāsh-Farāsh (cf. the note under no. 218 above), who proved to be a corrupt administrator (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 287, ll.10–13). Then we learn that in 424 Mas'ūd recognized the right of 'Alā' al-Dawlah (the Kākwayhid) to govern in Iṣbahān; and of Minūchihr b. Qābūs b. Washmgīr in Jurjān and Ṭabaristān. To Rayy he sent abu-Sahl al-Ḥamdūni as governor, replacing Tāsh-Farāsh who had made life miserable for the inhabitants. Rayy bloomed again, ibn-al-Athīr says, when abu-Sahl came to Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 291, l.19–292, l.7). At this point, — I gather that it was in the year 424, — there was an opening for 'Alā' al-Dawlah, for the Ghuzz tribes in their march westward, plundered Rayy, ejected abu-Sahl, and then abandoned the city, hurrying on to Adharbayjān. The Kākwayhid, hearing that the Ghuzz had left and that the city was exposed, again played free and easy with the suzerainty of Mas'ūd and went to Rayy where he had a rather stormy time of it with certain of the generals from Khurāsān and some of the Ghuzz whom he had enlisted. During this brief period 'Alā' al-Dawlah might have struck the 424 dirham of al-Muḥammadīyah. But when the trouble with the Ghuzz and the army became intolerable, he wrote to abu-Sahl with whom he agreed that Rayy should again be placed under the allegiance of Mas'ūd. The Kākwayhid stayed on in the city, but apparently as a Ghaznawid servant (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 269, ll.1–15).

220. image. Al-Rayy. Year 425.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

Rev.

*

محمد

رسول الله

القائم بامر الله

مسعود

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بالرى سنة خمس وعشرين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no.459, pg.133.

Al Qā'im bi-amr-allāh had succeeded al-Qādir in the Caliphate in 422 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 282, ll.20ff.). The fact that Mas'ūd had reasserted his authority over Rayy is attested by this coin. Again Mas'ūd's name is unaccompanied by any titles.

It is not surprising to find that, in this year 425, the irrepressible Kākwayhid 'Alā' al-Dawlah rebelled once more against Mas'ūd's authority, this time with the cooperation of Farhādh b. Mardāwīch. Both were defeated by the general abu-Sahl al-Ḥamdūni (cf. the note under no. 219 above), in a battle between Iṣbahān and Jurbādhaqān (Gulpaygān). 'Alā' al-Dawlah was driven out of Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 296, l.18–297, l.8). But we have not yet seen the last of 'Alā' al-Dawlah at Rayy.

221A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 429.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله القائم

بامر الله

مسعود

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

محمد بن

دشمنزار

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة تسع وعشرين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

S. Lane-Poole, Unpublished Coins of the Kākweyhis, N. C., 1875, no. 9 (Guthrie Collection), pp. 236–237; Berlin, unpublished, "Guthrie, 1876" (is this the same coin as that published by Lane-Poole ?).

221B. image. (Al-Muḥammadīyah?). Year 429(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

القائم بامر الله

مسعود

Rev.

قل هو (?) followed by the rest of Surah CXII in the area, and at the bottom: محمد بن دشنمزار

Obv margin: mostly effaced; the digit ends in ع, i. e. either تسع or سبع or اربع.

Paris, unpublished.

In these issues (no. 221 B may not be a coin of Rayy and may not be 429, but it probably is) we at last have Mas'ūd the Ghaznawid and 'Alā' al-Dawlah, Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār, the Kākwayhid, in harmony (cf. the preceding issues and notes). How and when the reconciliation took place I do not know, as the chronicles give us no clue. In 427 abu-Sahl al-Ḥamdūni (cf. the notes under nos. 219 and 220 above), with the Ghaznawid army, had been at war again with 'Alā' al-Dawlah over Iṣbahān. The Kākwayhid had been defeated and the last we hear of him before 429 is that he fled to Burūjird and thence to al-Ṭarum (probably al-Ṭarum of al-Jibāl, not of Fārs), where he was not welcomed by al-Salār who declared that he was not strong enough to face the army of Khurāsān, فتركه وسار عنه, but where did ibn-Dushmanzār go? (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 304, ll.1–10). In Zambaur's Manuel, pg. 45, 'Alā' al-Dawlah is listed as governor of Rayy in 427 with the indication that the source of the knowledge is a coin. In his Contributions III, pg.145, however, he lists the Lane-Poole dīnār as of the date 429. Is the coin referred to in the Manuel the dīnār published by Lane-Poole? If so, did Zambaur inadvertently copy 427 for 429? Or did he correct 429 to 427? If so, why? In the list of governors, the year 429 is not mentioned although he was familiar with Lane-Poole's monograph. Is there a published 427/429 coin other than that edited by Lane-Poole? I do not know of any. I am inclined to believe that in preparing the lists for the Manuel, Zambaur or the printer miscopied, and 427 should read 429.

222A. Ꜹ. Al-Muḥammadīyah. Year 432.

Obv.

شرف

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

شرف الملوك

ابو كاليجار

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

فخردين الله

بن مجد الدولة

بويه

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالمحمدية سنة اثنتين و ثلثين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

222B. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 432.

Obverse not described in full, but beneath the area:

القائم بامر الله

ابو طالب

Reverse also not described in full, but with the inscriptions:

الامير السيد طغرل بك محمد بن ميكائيل

Ch. M. Fraehn, Über einige merkwürdige Inedita unter den von Hn. Obrist-Lieutenant Wosoboinikow in Persien angesammelten Münzen, Bulletin de la Classe historico-philologique de l'Académie impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, Tome IV, 1848, col. 45, no.4.

No. 222 A is material for a monograph in itself. For the moment I can only suggest the identification of the personage who struck the issue. It was Majd al-Dawlah's son, abu-Kālījār Fanā-Khosraw, with the unrecorded titles, Sharaf al-Mulūk (the Dignity of the Kings), Fakhr Dīn-Allāh (the Glory of the Religion of Allāh), and King of Kings. He had, in 421, after Sulṭān Maḥmūd's death attempted to take Rayy from the lieutenant of Mas'ūd who had been left to guard the city, but was defeated and driven off.

لما مات محمود سبكتكين طمع فناخسرو بن مجد الدولة ابن بويه الرى وكان قد هرب منها لما ملكها عسكر يمين الدو لة محمود فقصد قصران و هى حصينة فامتنع بها فلما توفى يمين الدولة وعاد ابنه مسعود الى خراسان جمع هذا فنا خسرو جمعا من الديلم والاكراد وغير وقصدو الرى فخرج اليه نائب مسعود بها ومن معه من العسكر فقاتلره فانهزم منهم وعاد الى بلده وقتل جماعة من عسكره (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 284, ll.7–14). He was with the Ghuzz when they sacked Hamadhān in the year 430 (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 270–271, where he is simply called Fanā-Khosraw b. Majd al-Dawlah ). Finally, we hear of him in the year 439, when he seized Āmid from Ṭoghril Beg's guard: وفيها جمع الامير ابو كاليجار فنا خسروبن مجد الدولة بن بويه جمعا وسار الى امد فدخلها مساعده اهلها واوقع بمن كان فيها من اصحاب طغرلبك فقتل واسر وعرف طغرلبك ذلك فسار عن الرى قاصدا اليه ومتوجها الى قتاله (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 370, ll.8–11). I find no record of his having been ruler of Rayy in 432, but the coin is abundant testimony to the fact. Probably he struck the dīnār after the death of Qizil, the Amīr of the Ghuzz of al-'Irāq (فزل امير الغز العراقية), who was stationed at Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 338, ll.15–16). Abu-Kālījār was apparently in possession of the Qal'ah Ṭabarak at Rayy when Ṭoghril Beg arrived (cf. the note under no. 223 below).

As for no.222 B, a Seljūq dīnār, I find it difficult to believe that the date reading can be correct, in spite of the eminence of the authority. The year 433 would be possible, but to accept the reading 432 would require too drastic alterations in the accepted chronology of the Seljūq conquest, not only of Rayy but of the surrounding regions as well. It is curious to note that Dorn, usually meticulous, gave 433 as the date of this coin (Nova Supplementa, Cl. XII, no. aa, 1, pg. 265), referring to Fraehn's original publication, but not mentioning Fraehn's reading of 432. That Fraehn's 432 is not a typographical error is clear from a later reference of his to the same coin (Die Inedita einer neuen, der numismatischen Abtheilung des Asiatischen Museums aus Persien gewordenen Accession, Bulletin, etc., Tome IV, col. 252, no.31) where he again gives 432. I suggest the possibility that Dorn reread the coin and decided on 433, but it is surprising that he should not have noted that Fraehn read it 432.

End Notes

1
Cf. Minorsky, op. cit. (pg. 145), pg.15; 410 as the date of al-Sayyidah's death is an error.

VIII. THE SELJŪQ PERIOD

223. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 434.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

ابو طالب

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

طغرلبك

محمد بن ميكلئيل

(Ṭoghril Beg's personal name, Muḥammad. is written in Naskhi, but his father's name in Kufic as usual.)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدبنار بالرى سنة اربع وثلثين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

This rare dīnār is the first Seljūq issue of the Rayy mint which I can accept as authentic (cf. no. 222 B above). During the reigns of Ṭoghril Beg, Alp Arslān and Malikshāh, beautiful dīnārs were minted at Rayy and elsewhere; unfortunately, as the Empire began to decline, the art and quality of the coinage declined with it, and in the later Seljūq days there is almost nothing on which to base the numismatic history of the city. But during the flourishing of the great new rule, the Seljūqs of the East (Khurāsān) are well documented, though specimens of the coinage are rare. The symbols above the obverse and reverse areas have been taken to represent Ṭoghril's bow and arrow. H. Nützel (Embleme und Wappen auf muhammedanischen Münzen, in Festschrift.... der Numismatischen Gesellschaft zu Berlin, Berlin. 1893) called them arms (Wappen) or a sort of tamgha.

Before the Seljūq conquest of Rayy, abu-Kālījār Karshasf (Gershasp), after the death of his father, 'Alā' al-Dawlah in 433 (ibn-al-Athīr IX, 338, l.20–339, l.2), mastered Nihāwand and from there brought the other districts of al-Jibāl to his allegiance (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 339, ll.2–4). In the same year, however, the Seljūq Yannāl Ibrāhīm arrived at Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 339, ll.21–22; 347, ll.6–7); and in 434, the date of the present Seljūq issue, Ṭoghril Beg himself came to Rayy, after his conquests of Khwārizm, Jurjān and Ṭabaristān, and received the city from his brother (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 347, l.21–349. l.12). He also took the fortress of Ṭabarak from Majd al-Dawlah, according to the account in ibn-al-Athīr, but this is surely a mistake for "the son of Majd al-Dawlah", i. e. abu-Kālījār Fanā-Khosraw whose presence at Rayy in 432 is attested by the coin no. 222 A above, q. v. Ṭoghril then ordered the rebuilding of the city which had suffered so much in these troubled years (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 347, l.25–348, l.1). It was of course at Rayy that Ṭoghril made his residence.

224. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 435.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

ابو طالب

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

طغرلبك

محمد بن ميكائيل

(محمد, last line, is written in Naskhi.)

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة خمس وثلثين واربعين

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

Note the continuation of the use at Rayy of the simple title Al-Amīr al-Sayyid, although already in 434 Ṭoghril was being styled al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam at Iṣbahān.

In this year the Caliph al- Qā'im sent an emissary to Ṭoghril ordering peace between the latter and the Buyid Jalāl al-Dawlah (this was before the Amīr al-Umarā's death which occurred in the same year, ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 352, ll.19ff.). The emissary returned to the Caliph in 436 with the news of Ṭoghril's "obedience" (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 357, ll.13–19).

225. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 437.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

ابو طالب

(My notes do not show whether the kalimah is on two or three lines.)

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

الامير السيد

طغرلبك

[محمد بن ميكا[ئيل

(I failed to note whether محمد on the last line is in Naskhi or in Kufic.)

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة سبع وثلثين واربعين

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

In 436 abu-Kālījār Gershasp (cf. the note under no. 223 above) recaptured Hamadhān from the Seljūq garrison (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 359, ll.9–11). The following year Ṭoghril ordered Yannāl against Hamadhān, and Gershasp was forced to flee to the Kurds of al-Jūzaqān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 360, ll.10ff.). Also in the year 436, the khuṭbah was read in Baghdād in the name of abu-Kālījār al-Marzubān, the successor of the Buyid Jalāl al-Dawlah (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 358, ll.12ff.).

226. Ꜹ Al-Rayy. Year 438.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

ابو طالب

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة ثمان وثلثين واربعمائة

Rev. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Bartholomae à Soret, II, Rev. Num. Belge, 1861, no. 16, pp. 36–37; Markoff, Supplement, no. 00, pg. 931 (not described); GCM.

Note the change of Ṭoghril's titles to: Al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam Shāhānshāh Ṭoghril Beg abu-Ṭālib, and the dropping of his father's name Mīkā'il. Ṭoghril was busy this year among other things with the siege of Iṣbahān, where abu-Manṣūr Farāmarz b. 'Alā' al-Dawlah was holding out (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 365, ll.1–5).

227. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 439(?).

A dīnār in Paris, unnumbered, attributed to the year 439, with inscriptions as on no. 225, year 437, is, I think, more probably 437 also. It is very unlikely, in my opinion, that the new honorifics adopted at Rayy in 438 would be given up in the following year to return to the simplicity of the earlier issues.

In 439 peace was achieved between Ṭoghril Beg and the Kākwayhid abu-Kālījār Gershasp. Ṭoghril married the latter's daughter, and abu-Kālījār's son, abu-Manṣūr. married a daughter of Chaghri Beg Dāwūd, Ṭoghril's brother (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 439. l.19–440, l.2).

228. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 440.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله (minuscule)

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

ابو طالب (minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة اربعين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Casanova, no. 1154, pg. 50 (not described); Johnston Coll., pg.27 (2 specimens, notdescribed); Markoff, no. 1, pg.368 (not described); Sauvaire à Soret, no. 2, pp. 446–447 (Stickel ZDMG, 1864, pg.299); B. M., unpublished, 1906/12/4, no.322; Paris, unpublished; ANS (two specimens).

The last Buyid, al-Malik al-Raḥīm, succeeded to the rule in Baghdād in this year on the death of abu-Kālījār al-Marzubān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 373, ll.9ff.).

229. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 444.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

ابو طالب (minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة اربع و اربعين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, Supplement, no. la, pg. 931 (not described; Sauvaire à Soret, no. 9, pg. 450 (Stickel, ZDMG, 1864, pg. 299); Berlin, unpublished, "Guthrie, 1876"; ANS; GCM.

In Muḥarram, 443, Ṭoghril Beg made a final conquest of Iṣbahān and carried off its treasury to Rayy (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 384, l.18–385, l.15; 398, l.7). Ṭoghril sent gifts to the Caliph thanking him for the honours the latter had bestowed upon him (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 397, l.20–398, l.3). The addition of the title Rukn al-Dīn on the coins of Nīsābūr in the year 442 may have some bearing on this.

Abu-Kālījār Gershasp died in 443, and al-Ahwāz, where his death took place, then read the khuṭbah in the name of the Buyid al-Malik al-Raḥīm (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 398, ll.7–10).

230. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 445.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

ابو طالب

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة خمس اربعين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX. 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Markoff, Supplement, no. l b, pg. 931 (not described); Johnston Coll., pg. 27 (not described);

B. M., unpublished, 1906/12/4, no. 321; Paris, unpublished.

Ṭoghril Beg is reported to have been on good terms with the Buyid, al-Malik al-Raḥīm (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 407, ll.20–26).

231. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 447.

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

ركن

الدين

طغرلبك

ابو طالب

(ركن الدين is engraved in minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة سبع و اربعين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Aḥmed Zia, Meskūkāt-i-Islāmiyyeh Taqvīmi, Istanbul, 1910, no. 1845; B.M. iii, no. 56 (the hundred is written واربعماة), no. 57; Istanbul, iv (Aḥmed Tevhīd, Qusṭanṭīniyyah, 1321) no. 85 (illustr. Pl. II), and one unnumbered; Johnston Coll., pg. 27 (2 specimens, not described); Berlin, unpublished, no. 25/1873; Paris, two unpublished; Wien, unnumbered; ANS (clipped).

In the year 446 Ṭoghril Beg occupied Adharbayjān (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 410–411), returned to Rayy, and, in Muḥarram, 447, travelled to Hamadhān, and thence to Baghdād, where the khuṭbah was read in the pulpit in his name on Friday, the 22 nd of Ramaḍān, i. e. December 15, 1055 A.D. (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 418, l.6–419, l.23).

232. image. (Al-Rayy?) Year 450.

Obv.

نصر

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

.........

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

شاهانشاه

ركن

الدين

لاطغرلبك

Obv. margin: سنة خمس واربع مائة.......

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Zambaur, Contrib. III, no. 476, pg. 147 (illustr. pg. 147).

Actually, the mint is effaced. ButZambaur argued that the metal and execution were similar to those of the Ghaznawid dirhams of Rayy minted in 420 and 425 (cf. nos. 217 A, 217 C, and 220 above), and that this coin and the Ghaznawid dirhams were found near Teheran, and therefore the mint should be Rayy. Consequently he does not question the mint in the caption to the description of the coin, and writes, "On ne connaissait, jusqu'à présent, que des dīnārs seldjoucides de Rayy" (loc. cit.). Further, in a note on the revolt of al-Basāsīri at Baghdād, he writes of Ṭoghril's being at Rayy: "Un joli document épigraphique de la presence de Toghrilbek à Reyy en 450 est fourni par mon dirhem no. 476" (loc. cit. pg. 166). The dirham may well be of the Rayy mint, but in my opinion these reasons are hardly sufficient for definitey attributing the dirham to Rayy. In 1935 there were found in the Citadel (Ṭabarak) excavations at Rayy both Ghaznawid and Seljūq (Ṭoghril Beg) dirhams, in style very similar to the Seljūq dirham of Zambaur's. (To the similarity of the quality of the metal of course I cannot testify.) On two of these dirhams of Ṭoghril Beg's the mints were preserved: Nīsābūr and Jurjān. (The mints were effaced on all the Ghaznawid dirhams of the Citadel find, with the exception of one which was Balkh). (Cf. the description of the numismatics of the Rayy Expedition, 1935, field nos. RC i 3632–3647.)

In 450 the last Buyid al-Malik al-Raḥīm died in the fortress of Ṭabarak at Rayy where Ṭoghril Beg had imprisoned him (ibn-al-Athīr, IX, 448. ll.21–23; cf. Browne, Literary History, II, pp. 169–170).

233. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 452.

My notes on the coin are incomplete, but I believe the following is substantially correct:

Obv.

image

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

(ركن and الدولة at the sides?)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة اثنتين و خمسين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

Ṭoghril's wife died in this year in Zanjān; she was buried at Rayy. Ṭoghril mourned her greatly (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 8, ll.7–9).

234. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 453.

Obv.

image

لا اله لا

الله وحده

ابو

طالب

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

ركن

الدين

شاهانشاه

طغرلبك

*

The words right and left of the obverse and reverse are in minuscule.

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة ثلث و خمسين واربعمائة

(The first part of the mint formula is almost cryptically written.)

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Johnston Coll., pg. 27 (not described); B. M. unpublished, 1906/12/4, no. 320; ANS (without star).

235. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 455(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

ملك الاسلام

الب ارسلان

Obv. margin:[بسم الله ضر.... دينار بالرى سنة خمس[؟... اربعمائة

(Obv. outer margin?)

Fraehn, Recensio, Supp. Cl. XII, no. b, 1, pg. 605 (Fraehn himself questions the date, either 455 or 456, sic.).

Ṭoghril Beg had in 454 made a marriage pact at Baghdād with the Caliph's daughter. He left Baghdād in Rabī' I, 455, and returned to Rayy where the wedding celebrations were cut short by his death on the 8th of Ramaḍān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 12, l.14–14, l.15; 15, l.16–17, l.22; cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 439, ll.1–2; Rāwandi, l.12, ll.3–4, day of month not given; Bundāri, 26, l.14; Akhbār al-Dawlah, 21, l.18–22, l.2; Mīrkhwand, Seljūqs, 65). His successor, the second of the great Seljūqs, was Alp Arslān. Note his laqab Malik al-Islām, corresponding to Ṭoghril's Rukn al-Dīn. Otherwise, he uses the same titles which his uncle had used.

236. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 456(?).

A dīnār in the Cabinet des Médailles, Paris, unnumbered. The date 456 attributed to it is exceedingly doubtful. Cf. the inscriptions on no. 235 above.

Qutulmish, a cousin of Alp Arslān's and father of Sulaymān who is generally counted the founder of the Seljūq kingdom of al-Rūm (Anatolia), revolted and headed towards Rayy. Alp Arslān, who had been campaigning in the East, set out against him on the 1st of Muḥarram 456 from Nīsābūr. Qutulmish plundered the villages of Rayy but got no further, and Alp Arslān entered the city at the end of Muḥarram, leaving it again on the 1st of Rabī' I to pursue his campaign in Adharbayjān and al-Rūm (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 23, l.17–24, l.19; 25, ll.1 and ff.).

237A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 457.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

ملك الاسلام

الب ارسلان

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة سبع وخمسين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

237B. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 457.

I have recorded in my notes a dīnār of Alp Arslān's, al-Rayy, 457, with: شاهانشاه || عضد الدولة but I failed both to take notes on the detailed inscriptions and to write down the collection where the coin is to be found. Is it in Paris? Adud al-Dawlah is, in the histories, Alp Arslān's commonest title of honour.

In 457, Alp Arslān was in eastern Khurāsān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 83, ll.18–23).

238. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 461.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لاشريك له

القائم بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

ركن

الدين

ملك الاسلام

الب ارسلان

Obv. inner margin: [sic, no و] بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى[؟ ]سنة احدى ستين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33 (sic).

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

The mint is obscure, but I imagine it cannot be anything but al-Rayy. Note the addition of the title Rukn al-Dīn.

239. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 472(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

image

المقتدى بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

معز الدين

ركن الاسلام

ملك شاه

Obv. inner margin: .... بسم الله ضرب هذ....ينار [بالرى سنة اثنتين [؟

Obv. outer margin: (Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4, almost entirely off the flan).

Rev. margin: (Qur'ān, IX, 33, almost entirely obliterated and off the flan).

Rayy 1935, RH 5291.

(The date could, of course, as well be 482.)

The Caliph al-Muqtadi bi-amr-allāh, whose name is inscribed on the obverse, succeeded to the Caliphate on the death of al-Qā'im on the 13th of Sha'bān, 467 (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 64, l.20). On the 10th of Rabī' I, 465, Alp Arslān had been assassinated and was followed in the Seljūq line by Malik Shāh (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 50, l.15; 51, ll.22ff.; cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 442-443; Rāwandi, 120, ll.6–10; Bundāri, 45, ll.16ff; Akhbār al-Dawlah, 54, ll.11–12, Saturday, end of Rabī' I, i. e., the 24th). Malik Shāh's protocol reads: Al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam Shāhānshāh Mu'izz al-Dīn, Rukn al-Islām, Malik Shāh.

240. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 473(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المقتدى بامر الله

Rev.

image (ornament obscure)

محمد رسول الله

[ال[سلطا]ن[المعظم

شاهانشاه

[معز الد[ين

ملك]شاه]

Obv. inner margin: رب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة ثلث[؟ ]وسبعين واربعمائة ....

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1935, RH 5290.

In 473 Malik Shāh went to Rayy where he raised an army to march against his brother Takash who had revolted in Khurāsān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 76, ll.4–20).

241. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 475(?).

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المقتدى بامر الله

At left: floral ornament?

At right: word?

Rev.

......

[محمد رسول الله]

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

معز الدين

ركن الاسلام

[م]لك شا[ه]

Obv. inner margin:بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة خ...[؟]... واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qui'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy 1935, RH 5285.

This coin could as well be 485, but its similarity in style to the coins of the 470's makes the earlier alternative more likely.

242A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 477.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

• ◯ الله وحده

لا شريك له

المقتدى بامر الله

At right: obscure ornament.

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

معز الدين

ركن الاسلام

ملك شاه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة سبع وسبعين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1935, RH 5286, 5288, 5300.

242B. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 477.

Obverse as no. 242 A, but the ornament at the left consists in four unevenly bunched dots.

Reverse as no. 242 A.

Rayy 1935, RH 5293, 5301.

(Two other dīnārs from the Rayy Excavations, RH 5294 and RH 5295, in a poorer state of preservation than the rest, are probably of the Rayy mint, though the word الرى is obscure. The dates are effaced as well. But as the inscriptions are similar to those of the years 475 and 477, and there are only minor differences in ornament (•◯ at left and • at right of obverse; imageلله (?) above the reverse), they are to be assigned roughly to these years.

In the year 477 another rising of Takash against his brother took place. (Cf. note under no.240). If the rebellion had not been checked, Takash "would have plundered up to the gates of al-Rayy" (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 88, l.8–89, l.9).

243. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 480.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

image الله وحده image

لا شريك له

المقتدى [Naskhi]

بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

• شاهانشاه *

معز الدين

ركن الاسلام

ملك شاه (minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة ثمانين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

244A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 481.

Obv.

image

لا اله الامام الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

خليفة الله

امير المؤمنين

المقتدى

بامر الله

Rev.

image

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

معز الدين

جلال الدولة

وجمال الملة [minuscule]

ركن الاسلام

ابو الفتح

ملك شاه

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة احدى و ثمانين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4.

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

244B. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 481.

Obverse as no. 244 A

Rev.

لله

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

ركن الاسلام

محمد ... [minuscule]

ملك شاه

شاهانشاه

معز الدنياو الدين

(محمد in the next to the last line of the area is in Naskhi.)

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

These are interesting issues because of the fullness of their inscriptions. The Caliph receives more attention than he has for years: al-Imām al-Muqtadi bi-amr-allāh Khalīfat-allāh Amīr al-Mu'minīn; and to the titles commonly given to Malik Shāh so far on the coins, are added the historically well-known laqab Jalāl al-Dawlah, and the, I believe so far unknown complement, Jamāl al-Millah. (Cf. for example ibn-Khallikān, II, 586ff., where one reads Jalāl al-Dawlah among the titles but without the balancing Jamāl al-Millah.)

244X. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 484.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا الله

وحده لا شريك له

المقتدى بامر الله

خليفة بامر الله

المؤمنين

Rev.

Scroll

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاهانشاه

معز الدنيا و

الدين ابو الفتح

ملكشاه (minuscule)

Obv. inner margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة اربع و ثمنين واربعمائة

Obv. outer margin: Qur'ān, XXX, 3–4 (mostly effaced).

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

ANS.

245. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 485.

Malik Shāh. No description.

Casanova, no. 1158, pg. 50.

Malik Shāh died during the night of the 15th–16th of Shawwāl, 485 (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 142, ll.9ff.; cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 448, l.18; Bundāri, 81, ll.18–19). The assasination of Niẓām al-Mulk had taken place in this same year (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 137, ll.17ff.). Malik Shāh's son Maḥmūd, a child a little more than four years old, succeeded under the regency of his mother Turkān Khātūn (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 142, l.23; 145, ll.12ff.). When the young sulṭān and his mother approached Iṣbahān, Barkiyāruq, the brother who was soon to become the successor himself, left that city and went to Rayy where he took the citadel of Ṭabarak, and soon returned to the siege of Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 145, l.12–147, l.1; Bundāri, 82, ll.20ff.; cf. Mīrkhwand, Seljūqs, 150, ll.9ff.). Rayy therefore actually passed immediately under the rule of Barkiyāruq. He was only eleven years of age at the time (born in 474, ibn-Khaliikān, I, 154, ll.26–27).

246. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 487.

Obv.

لله (within ornament)

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شيك له

المقتدى

بامر الله

Rev.

ornament

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

ركن الدنيا و الدين

بركيارق

بن ملكشاه

ملك الاسلام

والمسلمين ابو

المظفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة سبع وثمنين واربعمائة>

Obv. outer margin?)

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

Note Barkiyāruq's protocol: Al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam Rukn al-Dunya wa-al-Dīn, Malik al-Islām wa-al-Muslimīn, abu-al-Muẓaffar Barkiyāruq b. Malik Shāh, and compare this with the titles as on other issues. Ibn-Khallikān (I, 154) gives: abu-al-Muẓaffar Rukn al-Dīn, Shihāb al-Dawlah, and Majd al-Mulk. (Cf. Rāwandi, 138, l.14, where the titles are as commonly on the coins: Al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam Rukn al-Dunya wa-al-Dīn, abu-al-Muẓaffar Barkiyāruq).

The Caliph al-Muqtadi died the 15th of Muḥarram, 487 (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 155, ll.2ff.; abu-al-Fidā', ed. Istanbul, II, 214, ll.16–20; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 360, ll.7–8, midde of Muḥarram), and was succeeded by al-Mustaẓhir bi-allāh (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 155, ll.18–19; 157, ll..1–9). On the 14th of Muḥarram the khuṭbah in Baghdād was read in the name of Barkiyāruq, and at the same time he was given the title Rukn al-Dīn (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 155 ll.12–18, 19–20), but we have noted above (under no. 245) that Rayy fell under Barkiyāruq's rule immediately after Malik Shāh's death in 485. The present dīnār must have been struck at the beginning of Muḥarram, 487; in any case, before the news of the Caliph's death had reached Rayy.

There are other coins of Barkiyāruq's struck before his official khuṭbah: e. g. dīnārs of Qumm and Iṣbahān, year 486, in the Collection of the American Numismatic Society.

247. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 488.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المستظهر بالله

Rev.

بركيارق

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

شاه

بن ملك

ركن الدنيا

والدين ابو المظفر

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة ثمان وثمانين واربعمائة

(Obv. outer margin: ?)

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

The titles are the same as on the issue of 487 (cf. no. 246 above), with the exception of the omission of Malik al-Islām wa-al-Muslimīn.

In the year 488 the rivalry between Barkiyāruq and his uncle Tutush, Atabeg of Damascus, came to a head; Tutush invaded Irān and finally entered Rayy 1, but when Barkiyāruq approached the city with a large army, Tutush's men fled and he himself was killed (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 166, ll.17ff.).

248A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 490.

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المستظهر

بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

ركن الدنيا

والدين

بركيارق

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة تسعين واربعمائة

Rev. margin: Qur'an, IX, 33, as far as الحق.

Bartholomae à Soret, II, Rev. Num. Belge, 1861, no.17, pg. 37.

248X. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (or Lār ?). Year 494.

Not fully described, but beneath the obverse المستظهر; and above عدل. Double margin. Reverse: Barkiyāruq, above, لله; at right, ornament. The reverse is said to be "à peu près composé comme" no. 86 in Bartholomae à Soret, Rev. Num. Belge, 1859, pg. 431, a dīnār of Adharbayjān dated 48X. This coin has:

[sic] محمد رسول الله|| السلطان المعظم||ركن الدنيا الدين||ابو المظفر بركيارق ||بن ملك شالا

If the coin is of the Rayy mint, the name is poorly written.

Sale of Th. Strauss Collection, Schulman, Amsterdam, Jan., 1913, pg. 67, no.1063.

249A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 495.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المستظهر بالله

Rev.

لله

محمد رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

ركن الدنياو

الدين ابو المظفر

بركارق

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى سنة خمس و تسعين واربعمائة

(Obv. outer margin: ?)

Rev. margin: Qur'ā n, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

There was in this year 495, a resumption of hostilities between Barkiyāruq and his brother Muḥammad. The latter occupied Rayy for eight days; on the 9th, Barkiyāruq expelled him from the city and Muḥammad fled to Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 227, ll.3–24; 228, ll.1ff.; cf. Akhbār al-Dawlah, 77, ll.14ff.; Mīrkhwand, Seljūqs, 160, ll.10ff.; abu-al-Fidā', ed. Istanbul, II, 225, l.24–226, l.6, under year 494. I believe Zambaur is mistaken in adopting this date in his Manuel, pg. 45).

249X. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 498.

Not fully described. Apparently like no. 248 X above. Barkiyāruq.

Sale of Th. Strauss Collection, Schulman, Amsterdam, Jan., 1913, pg. 67, no.1063.

On the second of Rabī' II, 498 (after the striking of the above coin), Barkiyāruq had died and had appointed as his successor his son, Malik Shāh, who, at the time, was only four years and eight months old (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 260, l.18–261, l.10; cf. Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 453, ll.18–19, where the date of Barkiyāruq's death is placed on the 12th of Jumāda II). The khuṭbah was read in the mosques of Baghdād in the name of Malik Shāh on the 23rd of Rabī' II, the boy having arrived there from Iṣbahān on the 17th of the month with his atabeg Ayāz. He was given the title of honour, Jalāl al-Dawlah along with other laqabs (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 262, ll.3–15). Meanwhile Muḥammad, hearing of his brother Barkiyāruq's death, set out from the siege of al-Mawṣil and made his way immediately to Baghdād, which he entered on the 23rd of Jumāda I. After his arrival the khuṭbah was read simultaneously in the west part of the city in the name of Muḥammad, and in the eastern wards of Baghdād in the name of the infant Malik Shāh. The anomalous situation did not last long, however, as Muḥammad thereupon succeeded to the leadership of the Seljūq dynasty (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 264, l.9–266, l.11). He stayed at Baghdād till Sha'bān. 498, then went to the Seljūq capital, Iṣbahān (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 266, ll.10–11).

Note the interesting coin, B.M. iii, no. 67, struck by Muḥammad at Lurdijān, in Khūzistān between Arrajān and Iṣbahān, in 496, before the death of Barkiyāruq. It has particular significance in view of the treaty between Barkiyāruq and Muḥammad signed in 497, according to which the former, who was then at Rayy, was to have the khuṭbah read to him in that city and in all "al-Jabal", Ṭabaristān, Khūzistān, Fārs, Diyārbakr, al-Jazīrah, and Ḥijāz; whereas Muḥammad, who was in Adharbayjān, was to receive homage there and in Arrān, Armenia, Iṣbahān and al-'Irāq (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 253, ll.9–17). The year before, in Ṣafar, 496, Yannāl b. Anūshtekīn had occupied Rayy in the name of Sulṭān Muḥammad, and the khuṭbah had temporarily been read in the latter's name there; but in the middle of Rabī' I, Yannāl was forced to flee, giving up the city again to Barsaq b. Barsaq, an officer of Barkiyāruq's (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 243, ll.7–15). It is apparent that in 496 Muḥammad was exercising authority over a considerable area which, in the treaty of 497, was conceded to Barkiyāruq.

250A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 499.

Obv.

ملك

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المستظهر بالله

Rev.

بو شجع

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان المعظم

غياث الدنيا

[sic] ولدين

Obv. margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بالرى[؟]سنة تسع و ستعين واربعمائة

(Obv. outer margin: ?)

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Paris, unpublished.

The first line of the reverse should of course read ابو شجاع, but it is engraved as transcribed. Rāwandi has: "Al-Sulṭān al-Mu'aẓẓam Ghiyāth al-Dunya wa-al-Dīn abu-Shujā'" (Rāwandi, 152). This is Muḥammad b. Malik Shāh (cf. the note under no. 249 X, above).

250X. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 525.

Obv.

عدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المسترشد بالله

محمود [sic] ابو الق

[sic] الطا العظم

Rev.

امن

محمد رسول الله

[sic] الطا العظم

معز الدنيا والدين

ابو الحرث

ملك

سليمان

Obv. margin: ... ... دينار بالرى خمس وعشرين وخمسماء .......

(Obv. outer margin, if any, off flan).

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33 (mostly off flan).

ANS.

The Caliph al-Mustarshid bi-allāh had succeeded in Rabī' II, 512. Sanjar, whose name appears on the reverse area of the above dīnār, had become overlord of the Seljūq house on the death of Muḥammad in 511 (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 367; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 457, ll.13 ff.), while Maḥmūd (on the obverse at the sides) was made ruler of the 'Irāq branch of the family in 512 (ibn-al-Athīr, X, 373; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, loc. cit.). I cannot explain Malik Sulaymān at the sides of the reverse area.

250Y. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 529.

Obv.

بن محمد

لا اله الا

الله وحده

السلطان لا شريك له الاعظم

بالله [sic] الرشيد

طغرل

Rev.

[الملك[؟

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان الاعظم

ابو الحارث

سنجر

شاه

سليمان

Obv. margin: ... ر بالرى [؟]سنة تسع وعشرين وخمس ........

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

B. Dorn, Über die vom wirkl. Staatsrath Chanykov dem asiatischen Museum zugekommenen Sendungen von morgenländischen Münzen und Handschriften, in Mélanges asiatiques tirés du Bulletin de l'Académie impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, Tome IV, 1860–1863, pg.31, no.19.

This is an issue of the 'Irāq Seljūqi Ṭoghril who had succeeded to the rule in 526 and the date of whose death is disputed (ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 10, ll.23ff., year 529; Rāwandi, 208, ll.11–12, and 224, ll.19ff., year 529; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 464, year 529; Bundāri, 172, ll.18ff., year 528; Akhbār al-Dawlah, 107, l.10, year 529; Mīrkhwand, Seljūqs, 197, ll.6–7, year 529; abu-al-Fidā', ed. Istanbul, III, 9, ll.3–5, year 528 or 529; ibn-Khallikān, II, 531, l.17 and 532, ll.12–13, khuṭbah after his uncle Sanjar's name in 527, Sulṭānate in 528). Since al-Rāshid's name is present (Caliph from dhu-al-Qa'dah, 529 till dhu-al-Qa'dah, 530, cf. ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 26–27), there can be little doubt but that the digit 9 has been read correctly on the coin (not 7), and thus the issue is important evidence pointing toward the correctness of the 529 date for the death of Ṭoghril and the succession of Mas'ūd. Sanjar's name appears as over-lord again; and once more the significance of the inscription al-Malik (?) Sulaymān Shāh escapes me (cf. no. 250 X).

250Z. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Date effaced (530 –547).

Obv.

.... لا اله ا

... الله وحده

لا شريك له

[sic] المقتفى لامر لله

At right, obscure, partially effaced word.

Rev.

مسعود

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان

... عظم ..

.......

مسعود is written in Naskhi.

At left, obscure letter or word.

Obv. margin: ..... ينار بالر[ى]؟ .....

Rev. margin: effaced.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 401.

251A. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy (?). Year 545 (?).

The mint is very obscure, but quite possibly al-Rayy. The digit is uncertian. The obverse bears the name of al-Muqtafi.

Rev.

مسعود

السلطان

الاعظم

سنجر

Berlin, unpublished, "Guthrie, 1876".

Al-Muqtafi had succeeded to the Caliphate in 530 (ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 27, ll.10ff.). Mas'ūd, whose name appears at the top of the reverse area of nos. 250 Z and 251 A, became lord of 'Irāq in 529 (cf. the remarks after no. 250 Y).

251X. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 549 (?).

Obv.

......

..... لا اله

[sic] الله حده

لا شريك له

[sic] القتفى لامر لله

Rev.

[د[؟....

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان

....الاعظ

.....

Obv. inner margin: . . ..رى سنة تسع[؟]وارب ......

Obv. outer margin: traces.

Rev. margin: effaced.

Rayy, 1934, RCh420 (date and mint effaced), 421 (digit somewhat doubtful, possibly 7, but probably 9).

In spite of its obscurity this issue is probably to be attributed to Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd, lord of 'Irāq from 548–554. Rayy had actually come under the control of the Atābeg Inānj (or Inānej), but all of al-Jibāl was still nominally ruled by the Seljūq house (cf. ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 121–122). Sanjar's name is effaced at the bottom.

251Y. Ꜹ. Al-Rayy. Year 551.

Obv.

العدل

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

[sic] المقتفى لامر له

فتح قريب

نصر من

Rev.

ح

محمد

رسول الله

..الاعظ [sic] اللا

[sic] سنجر السلطان

..المعظ

محمد

نصر من and فتح قريب are written in Naskhi.

Obv. margin: [sic] ض....بالرى سنة اح...مسماة [sic] بسله

Rev. margin: Qur'ān, IX, 33.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 402 (digit of date preserved, mint preserved), 403 (date 5xx, mint effaced).

On this specimen Muḥammad's name is preserved along with that of his overlord Sanjar (cf. no. 251 X above). At the sides of the obverse are words from the verse نصر من الله وفتح قريب which we have observed on Sāmānid coins.

251Z. Ꜹ. Rayy. Date effaced (555–556).

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله وحده

لا شريك له

المستنجد بالله

Rev.

سليمان

محمد

رسول الله

السلطان

ظم .....

.....

المستنجد بالله is obscurely written in Naskhi.

Obv. margin: .... س [sic] ذا دينار برى .......

Rev. margin: clipped.

Rayy, 1934, RCh 422.

The coin described above is one issued by the 'Irāq Seljūqi Sulaymān Shāh. The Caliph, al-Mustanjid, whose name appears on the obverse, had succeeded on the death of al-Muqtafi, the 2nd of Rabī' I, 555 (ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 169); while Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd (cf. nos. 251 X and Y) had died the previous year, leaving the Seljūq house of 'Irāq in considerable disorder. There followed an interregnum during which two parties were in conflict, one following Malik Shāh, Muḥammad's brother, and the other Sulaymān Shāh. Muḥammad b. Malik-Shāh's son (ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 166). Sulaymān Shāh was finally, but only briefly, successful: he entered Hamadhān and was declared Sulṭān on the 12th of Rabī' I, 555, and was killed the following year in Rabī' II (cf. ibn-al-Athīr, XI, 168. 175–6; Rāwandi, 275; Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 470–471).

These few miserable issues (nos. 250 X, Y, Z and 251 A, X, Y, and Z) are the only numismatic records of Rayy during the 6th Century and at this point we are only half way through the century1. Of the next century and a half of troubled history at Rayy there has not been preserved a single numismatic specimen. This phenomenon is doubtless in part due to the decentralization of the Seljūq Empire and the continually harassed state of the eastern lands; but perhaps even more to the degeneration of the coinage (for we are no better supplied with Seljūq issues of other Persian mints during this period). Between the last date entered here, 555–556, and the end of the 6th Century, Rayy was nominally in the hands of the Seljūqs of 'Irāq, and such specimens of their coinage as have been preserved are so miserably designed and struck that it is not at all surprising that there is this long lacuna in the history of the Rayy mint. The quantity as well as the quality of the output must have fallen off considerably, for relatively very few of the coins of the 'Irāq Seljūqs have come to light. This degeneration is to me remarkable in view of the superior quality of the artistic products, of pottery at least, at Rayy during this period. Very probably the old gold, the good gold of the earlier Seljūqs and perhaps even of earlier dynasties, continued in use even into the beginning of the Mongol period. Between 617, when the Mongols entered Rayy and 701, when the next known specimen of the Rayy mint was struck, there were in all probability no issues. During the first years of the Mongol rule, the conquerors were content to let the population go on using the coinage then current, as they had no coinage of their own; and Rayy, in any case, had received its death blow. The few issues that follow are of no great importance. They are the only vestige of an abortive attempt to restore the great city to something of its old grandeur.

End Notes

1
Just as the present work goes to press I discover in the collection of the American Numismatic Society a most interesting dīnār struck by 'Izz al-Dunya 'Aḍud al-Dīn abu-Sa'īd Tutush at Rayy in 487. I am forced to postpone the description and discussion of this valuable coin until a later date.
1
For the largest collection of coins known of the 'Irāqi Seljūqs, see the description of the Cheshmeh-i-'Ali hoard of dīnārs found by the Rayy Expedition, 1934, (to be published) – almost all of them unfortunately with dates and mints effaced or clipped. The very few on which the mint is preserved were issued at Rayy (see nos. 250 Z, 251 X, 251 Y and 251 Z), and it is a reasonable presumption that a large number of the other dīnārs in the hoard were also issues of the Rayy mint.

IX. THE MONGOL PERIOD

252. image. Rayy. Year 701.

Not completely described. In the segments of the obverse the date is written as follows: 4. ضرب (or فى)1 5. سنة. 1. احدى 2.سبعمائة 3. وسلم. In the center: ضرب رى. The reverse has at the right: احدى و ]سبعمائة] or [sic.]1 فى سنة سبعمائة.

W. Tiesenhausen, Hумиɜматичесκія Hовинки (for full title, see no. 175 X), no.35; Markoff. Supplement, no. 174a; Zambaur, Contrib. II, no. 343, pg. 172.

This is a coin of Ghāzān Maḥmūd, who succeeded to the Ilkhānid rule in dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 694 (Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 591, ll.14–16). It was he who introduced the Ilkhānid era on the 13th Rajab, 701.

253A. image. Rayy. Year 704.

Pentagonal type.

Obv.

Segments not clearly described.

In center: ضرب رى.

Rev.

السلطان الاعظم

غياث الدنيا والدين

خلد ابنه محمد

خلد الله ملكه

Segments: 1.fleuron 2.[sic.] image سنة اربع 3. وسبعمائة 4. ?

Zambaur, Contrib. II, no. 352, pg. 174.

Khodābendeh Muḥammad, Uljāītu, was crowned at Tabrīz in dhu-al-Ḥijjah, 703 (Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 595, ll.7–12).

253X. image. Rayy. Year 719.

Not described. Abu-Sa'īd.

Aḥmed Zia, Meskukāt-i-Islāmiyyeh Taqvīmi, Istanbul, 1910, no. 1416 (type of no.254 below: Johnston Coll., no.432, pg. 38.

254. image. Rayy. Year 7XX. (717–722.)

Looped square type (in use from 717–722).

Obv.

لا اله الا

الله محمد

رسول الله

Around sides: فيكفيكهم الله وهو

السميع العليم (Qur'ān, II, 131.)

Beneath: ابو بكر

عمر عثمان على

B. M. vi, no.188, pg.68.

Rev.(within looped square)

ضرب

فر ايام دولة السلطان

الاعظم ابو سعيد

خلد الله ملكه

نعم

الله

من

النصر

Margin: (In spaces between square and outer circle.)

ضرب ||رى || فى||...||...||...||سبع ||مائة

Abu-Sa'īd was crowned in Ṣafar, 717, at the age of twelve (Ḥamdullāh Mustawfi, 601, ll. 11–12; cf. Zambaur, Manuel, pg.244: his accession in Shawwāl, 716, his official julūs in Ṣafar, 717).

255. image. Rayy. Year 722.

Pentagonal type.

Obv.

الله

لا اله الا

image ضرب image

محمد

image رى image

رسول الله

Around sides: ابو بكر عمر عثمان على

Rev.

(within ornamental pentagon.)

فى ايا

ضرب

م دولة السلطان الاعظم

ابو سعيد بهادر خان

خلد الله ملكه

Margin: (in spaces between pentagon and outer circle)

سنة || اثنى||عشرين||وسبع||مائة

Berlin, unpublished, "Guthrie, 1876".

256. image. Rayy. Year 33, Ilkhāniyyah = 733.

Square Kufic bilingual type.

Obv.

Square Kufic block, reading:

لا اله الا الله محمد رسول الله صلى الله عليه

At the sides of the block:

ابوبكر عمر عثمان على

Rev.

ضرب فى

السلطان العالم العادل

image ضرب image

image

image الخلفة رى سنة ثلث image

وثلثين

(image in Mongol = Busaïda, i. e. abu-Sa'īd.)

O. Codrington, Some Rare and Unedited Arabic and Persian Coins, Hertford, 1889, pg. 3; Catalogue of .... Coins, the Property of Mr. Eugene Leggett, Karachi, no date; Markoff, no. 411, pg. 587 (not described); Berlin, unpublished, no. 1218/1912.

For the use of the Ilkhāniyyah date, cf. the note under no. 252 above.

A dirham listed by Markoff (Supplement, pg. 1037), 74X, struck by Nūshirwān, is probably wrongly attributed to Rayy.

End Notes

1
Tiesenhausen.

BACK

TABLE OF DATE EQUIVALENTS

Exact Christian equivalents of Hijrah dates are of course available to any one who has access to Wüstenfeld-Mahler's Vergleichungs-Tabellen or any other reliable conversion tables, but for the sake of convenience I append here a list of equivalents for the years in which there were issues of the Rayy mint. In a good many cases the approximate month in the year when a coin was minted has been determined in the discussion accompanying the description of a coin. In such cases a detailed comparative table should be consulted to find the exact Christian equivalent. I have, myself, made use of Wüstenfeld-Mahler's tables.

The first column contains the number of the entry in the monograph (without the letters which designate the different issues of one year, except where X, Y, and Z occur, indicating another year); the second, the year of the issue according to the Hijrah calendar; and the third column, the Christian equivalent.

1 21 641–2
2 26 646–7
3 29 649–50
4 30 650–51
5, A 32 652–3
5, X 35 655–6
6 37 657–8
7 60 679–80
8 61 680–81
9 62 681–2
10 63 682–3
11 67 686–7
12 68 687–8
13 74 693–4
14 81 700–01
15 82 701–2
16 84 703
17 90 708–9
18 91 709–10
19 92 710–11
20 93 711–12
21 94 712–13
22 95 713–14
23 96 714–15
24 97 715–16
25 98 716–17
26 101 719–20
27 104 722–3
28 110 728–9
29 115 733–4
30 116 734–5
31 120 737–8
32 121 738–9
33 122 739–40
34 124 741–2
35 127 744–5
36 129 746–7
37 130 747–8
38 131 748–9
39 before 132 before 749–50
40 137 754–5
41 138 755–6
42 139 756–7
43 141 758–9
44 143 760–61
45 144 761–2
46 143/4 760–62
47 145 762–3
48 146 763–4
49 147 764–5
50 148 765–6
51 149 766–7
52 150 767
53 151 768
54 152 769
55 153 770
56 154 770–71
57 156 771–2
58 158 774–5
59 159 775–6
60 160 776–7
61 161 777–8
62 162 778–9
63 163 779–80
64 164 780–81
65 165 781–2
66 166 782–3
67 167 783–4
68 168 784–5
69 169 785–6
70 170 786–7
71 171 787–8
72 172 788–9
73 173 789–90
74 174 790–91
75 175 791–2
76 176 792–3
77 177 793–4
78 ca. 177 ca. 793–4
79 178 794–5
80 179 795–6
81 180 796–7
82 181 797–8
83 182 798–9
84 183 799–800
85 184 800
86 186 801
87 186 802
88 187 802–03
89 188 803–04
90 189 804–05
91 190 805–06
92 191 806–07
93 191 806–07
94 192 807–08
95 193 808–09
96 194 809–10
97 196 811–12
98 197 812–13
99 198 813–14
100 199 814–15
101 200 815–16
102 201 816–17
103 202 817–18
104 203 818–19
105 204 819–20
106 205 820–21
107 ? ?
108 206 821–2
109 207 822–3
110 208 823–4
111 209 824–5
112 210 825–6
113 218 833
114 221 835–6
115 222 836–7
116 223 837–8
117 225 839–40
118, A 226 840–41
118, X 227 841–2
119 228 842–3
120, A 229 843–4
120, X 231 845–6
121 233 847–8
122 234 848–9
123 237 851–2
124 238 852–3
125 239 853–1
126 240 854–5
127 242 856–7
128 243 857–8
129 244 858–9
130 245 859–60
131 246 860–61
132 247 861–2
133 248 862–3
134 249 863–4
135 250 864–5
136, A,B 251 865
136, X 258 871–2
137 262 875–6
138 265 878–9
139 275 888–9
140 276 889–90
141 284 897
142 288 900–01
143 289 901–02
144 292 904–05
145 294 906–07
146 295 907–08
147 296 908–09
148 298 910–11
149 301 913–14
150 302 914–15
151 303 915–16
152 308 920–21
153 309 921–2
154 310 922–3
155 311 923–4
156 312 924–5
157 313 925–6
158 314 926–7
159 315 927–8
160 316 928–9
161 317 929–30
162 318 930
163 320 932
164 323 934–5
165 324 935–6
166 325 936–7
167 326 937–8
168 327 938–9
169 329 940–41
170 330 941–2
171 331 942–3
172 333 944–5
173 334 945–6
174 335 946–7
175, A 336 947–8
175, X 337 948-–9
176 338 949–50
177 339 950–51
178 340 951–2
179 341 952–3
180 343 954–5
181 344 955–6
182 346 957–8
183 348 959–60
184 349 960–61
185 350 961–2
186, A 351 962
186, X 354 965
187 355 965–6
188 357 967–8
189, A 358 968–9
189, X 359 969–70
189, Y 360 970–71
190 361 971–2
191 362 972–3
192 363 973–4
193 365 975–6
194 366 976–7
195, A, B 367 977–8
195, X 368 978–9
195, Y 369 979–80
195, Z 370 980–81
196 371 981–2
197 372 982–3
198 374 984–5
199 378 988–9
200 380 990–91
201 381 991–2
202 38X (387) 997
203 384 994–5
204 387 997
205 389 998–9
206 393 1002–03
207 395 1004–05
208 397 1006–07
209, A 398 1007–08
209, X 399 1008–09
210 400 1009–10
211 401 1010–11
212 402 1011–12
213 403 1012–13
214 404 1013–14
215, A 405 1014–15
215, X 406 1015–16
216 407 1016–17
217 420 1029
218 421 1030
219 424 1032–3
220 425 1033–4
221 429 1037–8
222 432 1040–41
223 434 1042–3
224 435 1043–4
225 437 1045–6
226 438 1046–7
227 439 1047–8
228 440 1048–9
229 444 1052–3
230 445 1053–4
231 447 1055–6
232 450 1058–9
233 452 1060
234 453 1061
235 455 1063
236 456 1063–4
237 457 1064–5
238 461 1068–9
239 472 1079–80
240 473 1080–81
241 475 1082–3
242 477 1084–5
243 480 1087–8
244, A, B 481 1088–9
244, X 484 1091–2
245 485 1092–3
246 487 1094
247 488 1095
248, A 490 1096–7
248, X 494 1100–01
249, A 495 1101–02
249, X 498 1102–03
250, A 499 1105–06
250, X 525 1130–31
250, Y 529 1134–5
250, Z 530–547 1135–1153
251, A 545 1150–51
251, X 549 1154–5
251, Y 551 1156–7
251, Z 555–556 1160–61
252 701 1301–02
253, A 704 1304–05
253, X 719 1319–20
254 7XX(717–722) 1317–1322
255 722 1322
256 733 1332–3

Index of Specimens Found in the Rayy Excavations, 1934, 1935, 1936.

Field Cat. No. Year
  1 9 3 4  
RCh 21 160
  106 150
  113 169
  401 530–547
  402 551
  403 551
  420 549
  421 549
  422 555–556
  427 186
  428 185
  429 403
  430 403
  431 403
  432 403
  433 403
  434 403
  435 403
  436 402
  437 402
  438 402
  439 402
  440 402
  441 402
  442 404
  443 404
  444 404
  445 404
  446 401
  447 401
  448 401
  449 401
  450 400
RA 867 387
RB 938 160
  939 116
  961 101
  995 116
  1001 146–148
  1007 150
  1008 146
  1010 116
RTA 1171 180
RCh 1972 146–148
RCh 1973 141
RGQ 1991 116
  1992 124
RGQ 2024 104
  2041 139
  2043 138
  2061 121
RD 2122 138
  2160 124
  2161 387
  2190 160
  2451 143–144
  2530 130
RTA 2618 207
RB 2621 150
  2622 121
  2624 150
RC 2625 144
  2626 121
RE 2666 148
RD 2862 150
  2863 150
RE 2865 156
  2869 116
  2870 166
  2872 166
  2873 156
RF 2880 160
  2883 177
  2885 179
  2889 166
  2890 141
RG 2899 170
  2906 395
RF 3253 150
  3255 150
RD–G 3501 138
  1 9 3 5  
RCi 3535 207
  3546 164
  3572 129
  4025 120
  4045 130
  4097 120
RH 4168 141
  4415 146
  4659 180
  4777 180
  5005 387
  5285 475
RH 5286 477
  5288 477
  5290 473
  5291 472
  5293 477
  5294 47x
  5295 4xx(47x)
  5300 477
  5301 477
  5485 400
  5532 400
  6282 387
  6357 164
  6453 387
  6454 4xx (after 407)
  6490 146–148
  6568 146
RCI 6763 146
  1 9 3 6  
RN 6903 184
  6959 148
RCH 7263 148
RCi 7340 101
  7349 138
RG 7752 149
  7799 207
  7955 170
  8201 116
  8214 141
  8215 170
  8216 177
  8405 144
  8517 163
  8519 166
  8548 129
  8549 160
  8554 170
RGQ 8567 131
  8576 169
  8581 170
  8605 148
  8658 130
  8741 387
CT 9 150
  31 160
  78 207
  118 115

Location of Specimens Illustrated in the Plates.

Plates I—V.

Number Location
7B. American Numismatic Society
10. Formerly in collection of Professor Ernst Herzfeld
19. American Numismatic Society
30. American Numismatic Society
31A. Author's collection
32. Rayy Excavations, RC 2626
37D. Author's collection
41. Rayy Excavations, RGQ 2043
44A. Author's collection
45. American Numismatic Society
48E. Author's collection
49.A American Numismatic Society
50D. Rayy Excavations, RE 2666
51A. Author's collection
51C. American Numismatic Society
55. American Numismatic Society
56C. American Numismatic Society
60A. American Numismatic Society
60F. Author's collection
67A. American Numismatic Society
68C. American Numismatic Society
68E. Münzkabinet, Berlin
70A. American Numismatic Society
70H. Author's collection
71B. American Numismatic Society
72B. American Numismatic Society
72D. American Numismatic Society
75B. American Numismatic Society
79A. American Numismatic Society
81A. American Numismatic Society
81C. American Numismatic Society
84D. American Numismatic Society
86E. Author's collection
87F. American Numismatic Society
94A. Author's collection
95D. Author's collection
96D. American Numismatic Society
97C. American Numismatic Society
98D. American Numismatic Society
102A. American Numismatic Society
103. American Numismatic Society
112A. American Numismatic Society
122A. American Numismatic Society
130B. American Numismatic Society
145. American Numismatic Society
156C. American Numismatic Society
157A. American Numismatic Society
162B. American Numismatic Society
163A. American Numismatic Society
169. Author's collection
185. Münzkabinet, Berlin
202A. Rayy Excavations, RA 867
205A. American Numismatic Society
207. Rayy Excavations, RG 2906
208. American Numismatic Society
210. Rayy Excavations, RCh 450
211. Rayy Excavations, RCh 448
212. Rayy Excavations, RCh 439
213. Rayy Excavations, RCh 434
214. Rayy Excavations, RCh 442
214. Rayy Excavations, RCh 445
216. Author's collection
223. American Numismatic Society
224. American Numismatic Society
226. Author's collection
228. American Numismatic Society
229. Author's collection
231. American Numismatic Society
237A. American Numismatic Society
238. American Numismatic Society
241. Rayy Excavations, RH 5285
242A. Rayy Excavations, RH 5286
243. American Numismatic Society
244A. American Numismatic Society
244B. American Numismatic Society
244X. American Numismatic Society
250X. American Numismatic Society
250Z. Rayy Excavations, RCh 401
251X. Rayy Excavations, RCh 421
251Y. Rayy Excavations, RCh 402
251Z. Rayy Excavations, RCh 422

Plate VI.

155A. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
156B. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
160 A. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
160C. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
171A. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
181. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
195B. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
200. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
217B. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
218B. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
222A. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
246. Cabinet des Médailles, Paris

احمد بن الحسن , 131

احمد بن على , 137–140

احمد بن الموفق بالله , 131

اذكوتكين بن اساتكين , 131

اسحق بن يحيى , 110

اسد , 70, 72

اسماعيل بن عباد

كافى اسمعيل بن عباد , 171

كافى الدولة ابو القاسم , 171

اصعد , 24

اصعربن عبد الرحمن , 24

الدتمش , see اوكرتمش

الب ارسلان

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه ملك الاسلام , 203, 204

الب ارسلان

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه ملك الاسلام, 204

ركن الدين الب ارسلان

شاهانشاه عضد الدولة , 204

ام جعفر , 82–85, 87, 88

الامين

الامين , 94

الامين محمد بن هرون الرشيد , 91

الامين ولى عهد المسلمين , 59, 75, 80

الامين ولى عهد المسلمين الامام محمد , 90

بن امير المءمنين

الامين ولى عهد المسلمين الامام محمد , 72, 81

بن امير المؤمنين

بن امير [sic] الامير الامين عبد الله, 81

المؤمنين

الامير الامين محمد بن امير المؤمنين, 63, 68, 70–76, 78–85, 88

الامير الامين ولى عهد المسلمين , 65, 70, 90

الامير ولى عهد المسلمين الامين محمد بن , 67, 75, 77

امير المؤمنين

محمد , 94

محمد بن امير المؤمنين , 54, 55, 57, 59, 92

محمد ولى عهد المسلمين , 58, 60, 62

الامير محمد ولى عهد المسلمين , 64–66, 68

الخليفة محمد امير المؤمنين , 92, 95

ولى عهد المسلمين محمد بن امير المؤمنين , 64, 69, 76, 78, 79

اوكرتمش , 132

اوكرمش , see اوكرتمش

بركيارق

السلطان المعظم ركن الدنيا والدين, 210

بركيارق

السلطان المعظم ركن الدنيا والدين , 211

ابو المظفر بركيارق

السلطان المعظم ركن الدنيا والدين , 210, 211

ابو المظفر يركيارق بن ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم ركن الدنيا والدين , 209

ملك الاسلام والمسلمين ابو المظفر

بركيارق بن ملكشاه

بهاء الدولة

بها الدولة , 180

الملك بها الدولة , 181–183

شاهانشاه الملك بها الدولة , 184

يهرام , 4

بهلول , 55, 56

جعفر بن يحيى

جعفر , 24, 67, 68, 70–74, 76–81, 85, 90

جعفر بن يحيى , 60, 83

جعفر بن يحيى البرمكى , 61

جهور بن المرار

جهور بن المرار , 22

الامير جهور بن المرار , 22

حبيب بن بديل , 19–21

الحرب مولى امير المؤمنين , 76–79

الحسن[بن قحطبة ] , 21

الوزير ابو الحسن , 140, 141

الحسين بن عى المأمونى , 94

الامير حمزة بن ملك[بن يحيى ] , 40

[خدا بنة محمد [اولجايتو

السلطان الاعظم غياث الدنيا والدين , 218

خدا بندة محمد

خاف , 43, 45

داود , 51, 53–57, 63, 64, 72–75, 80–83, 89, 95, 97

داود بن يزيد بن حاتم , 52

ذوالرئاستين , 94, 98–104, 106, 109

ذو اليمينين , 96, 98, 109, 110

الراضى

الراضى بالله , 150, 151

الامام الراضى بالله , 149

عبد الله امير المؤمنين , 149

الرسهى , 94

الرشيد , see هرون الرشيد

for الرشيد بالله [ الراشد ], 213

الرضى

الرضى , 104

الامير الرضا ولى عهد المسلمين , 106

الامير الرضا ولى عهج المسلمين على بن, 103, 104, 106

موسى بن على بن ابى طالب

على بن موسى بن جعفر بن محمد بن على , 104

بن حسين بن على بن ابى طالب

ركن الدولة

ركن الدولة , 156

ركن الدولة ابو على , 156, 166

ركن الدولة ابو على بويه , 155, 157–166

روح , 62

روح بن حاتم, 52

سعد , 47

ابو سعيد

السلطان الاعظم ابو سعيد , 219

السلطان الاعظم ابو سعيد بهادر خان , 219

اسلطان العالم العادل , 220

سلم بن عبد الله , 43

سلم بن قتيبة , 27

سليمان [شاه] , 216

ملك سليمان, 213

الملك سليمان شاه, 213

سنجر

السلطان الاعظم سنجر , 214, 215, 216 (?)

السلطان الاعظم ابو الحارث سنجر , 213

السلطان العظم معز الدنيا وتالدين ابو, 213

الحرث سنجر

شرف الملوك , see فناخسروين

مجد الدولة

شمس الدولة

شمس الدولة , 180

الامير السيد شمس الدولة ابو طاهر , 180

بن فخر الدولة وفلك الامة بن

ركن الدولة بويه

صاحب الرى , 94

صالح , 25

صالح , 25

طاهر بن الحسين

طاهر , 95, 97, 112

طاهر بن الحسين مولى المأمون , 96–98

ابو طاهر بن محمد , 145

الطاهرى , 111

الطائع لله , 166–168, 170–172, 175, 176

كغربك

طغرلبك, 194

الامير السيد ابو طالب طغرل بك , 194, 196, 197

محمد بن ميكائيل

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه ابو طالب, 198–200, 202

طغرلبك

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه ركن الدين ابو, 200, 202

طالب طغرلبك

شاهانشاه ركن الدين طغرلبك , 201

طغرل بن محمد

السلطان الاعظم طغرل بن محمد , 213

طلحة , 112–114

طلمجور , 130

العباس , 93

العباس بن امير المؤمنين , 126–128

العباس بن عبد الله بن ملك , 94

العباس ابن الفصل بن الربيع , 91

العباس بن محمد

العباس بن محمد , 64

الامير العباس بن محمد , 63

العباس بن موسى , 94

ابو العباس , 141

ابو العباس بن امير المؤمنين , 127, 134–142, 147

عبد الحميد بن [جعفر؟] , 23, 24

عبد الله امير المؤمنين , see الرضى

عبد الله عبد الله امير المؤمنين , see المنصور

عبد الله [بن طاهر] , 112

الامير عبد الله بن معوية , 15, 17, 18

ابو عبد الله , see المعتز

عبيد, 76, 82–85, 95

عبيد الله , 85–88

عثمان بن زفر

عثمن , 65, 66

عثمن بن زفر , 66

عضد الدولة

عضد الدولة ابو شجاع , 166, 167

الملك السيد عضد الدولة , 168

على بن عيسى , 136

عماد الدولة

عماد الدولة , 156

عماد الدولة ابو الحسن , 156, 157

عمران [غفران او ] بن صلح, 25, 26

عميد الدولة , 148

فخر الدولة

فخر الدولة , 168, 169, 171

الامير السيد شاهانشاه فخر الدولة وفلك , 170, 172, 176

الامة بن ركن الدولة

شاهانشاه فخر الدولة وفلك الامة , 171

فخر دين الله , see فناخسرو بن

مجد الدولة

فضل , 55

الفضل , 55, 66

الفضل [بن سهل] , 93, 95–98

فنا خسروبن مجد الدولة

فنا خسروبن مجد الدولة , 194

الامير ابو كاليجار فنا خسروبن مجد الدولة , 194

شرف الملك ابو كاليجار , 193

شاهانشاه فخر دين الله بن مجد الدولة بويه , 193

القادر بالله , 175, 177–190

القائم بالله , 192–194, 196–204

قحطبة , 21

قزل , 194

كافى الدولة ابو القسم, see اسماعيل

عباد

ابو كاليجار , see فناخسروبن

مجد الدولة

كرسى ابرويز , 4

كلثوم بن حفص

كلثوم بن حفص, 42

كلثوم بن حفص الموصلى , 43

كيغلغ , 130

المأمون

المأمون , 94, 104, 112, 113

المأمون خليفة الله , 103, 104, 106

الامام المأمون , 109

الامام المأمون عبد الله امير الؤمنين , 105

الامام المأمون ولى عهد المسلمين عبد , 93, 95

الله بن امير المؤمنين

الامير المأمون ولى عهد المسلمين , 97

الامير المأمون ولى عهد المسلمين عبد , 96

الله بن امير المؤمنين

الامير المامون عبد الله بن امير المؤمنين , 86, 89

ولى ولى عهد المسلمين;

الخليفة المأمون , 107

عبد الله المأمون بن امير المؤمنين , 98

عبد الله عبد الله المأمون امير المؤمنين , 96–98

المتقى , 151, 152

المتوكل على الله , 118, 120–125

مجد الدولة

مجد الدولة , 182

ابو طالب , 178

امير الامراء السيد ابو طالب بن فخر , 173

الدولة وفلك الامة بو يه;

امير الامراء السيد ابو طالب بن فخر , 172

الدولة بن ركن الدولة بويه

الامير السيد مجد الدولة وكهف الامة , 178, 179

بن فخر الدولة بويه

الامير السيد مجد الدولة وكهف الامة , 177

ابو طالب بن فخر الدولة بن

ركن الدولة بويه

الامير السيد شاهانشاه مجد الدولة وكهف , 179, 181, 186

الامة بن فخر الدولة بويه

شاهانشاه مجد الدولة ركهف الامة بن , 182

فخر الدولة

شاهانشاه مجد الدولة وكهف الامة بن, 181, 182, 184,

فخر الدولة بويه , 185, 186

شاهانشاه مجد الدولة وكهف الامة بن , 183

فخر الدولةبن ركن الدولة بويه

محمد , 76

محمد , see المهدى, الامين

محمد بن حميد الطاهرى , 109, 110

محمد بن دشمنزار

محمد بن دشمنزار , 189, 192, 193

عضد الدين علاء الدولة وفخر الملة وتاج , 189

الامة ابو جعفر محمد بن دشمنزار

محمد بن على , 135, 144, 145

محمد [بن محمود], 215

محمد بن ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم غياث الدنيا والدين بو , 212

شجع

محمد بن يحيى , 67, 68, 110

محمد بن محمود

السلطان المعظم محمد , 215

محمود بن سبكتكين

محمود سبكتكين , 175, 194

يمين الدولة ابو القاسم محمود , 189

يمين الدولة محمود , 194

يمين الدولة وامين الملة ابو القاسم , 188

يمين الدولة وامين الملة ابو القاسم محمود , 187, 188

تمين الدولة وامين الملة محمود , 187

محود بن محمد

السلطان المعظم ابو القسم محمود , 213

المسترشد بالله , 213

المستظهر بالله , 210–212

المستعين بالله , 126–128

المستكفى بالله , 153

المستنجدبالله , 216

مسعود , Ghaznawid, 187–190, 192–194

مسعود , 'Irāq Seljūqi, 214

ابو مسلم

ابو المسلم , 21

ابو مسلم امير ال محمد , 20

المطيع بالله , 155–166

المعتز بالله

المعتز بالله , 122–125

ابو عبد الله , 120–122

المعتصم بالله , 115, 116

المعتضد بالله , 132

المعتمد على الله , 129–131

معز الدولة ابو الحسين بو يه , 159

معوية , 56

المقتدر بالله , 134–148

المقتدى بامر الله

المقتدى امر الله , 205–207, 209

المقتدى بامر الله خليفة الله امير المؤمنين , 208

الامام المقتدى بامر الله خليفة الله امير , 207, 208

المؤمنين

المقتفى لامر الله , 214, 215

المكتفى بالله , 133

ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه معز الدين , 205

ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه معز الدين, 205–207

ركن الاسلام ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه معز الدنيا , 208

والدين ركن الاسلم ...محمد

ملك شاه

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه معز الدنيا , 208

والدين ابو الفتح ملكشاه

السلطان المعظم شاهانشاه معز الدين , 207

ركن الاسلام جلال الدولة وجمال

الملة ابو الفتح ملك شاه المنصور

ابو جعفر المنصور , 24

عبد الله عبد الله امير المؤنين , 23

المهدى

المهدى , 42

المهدى محمد امير المؤمنين , 39

المهدى محمد بن امير المؤمنين , 26–38

الخليفة المهدى , 38–41, 44–47,

49

محمد , 24

الامير محمد بن امير المؤمنين , 24–27, 37

موسى , see الهادى

الموفق بالله

الموفق بالله , 130, 131

الناصر لدين الموفق بالله , 131

الموفق لطاعة الله , 145, 146

موئد الدولة

موئد الدولة , 168, 169

موئد الدولة ابو منصور بويه , 166–168

نصر بن احمد , 143–148, 150–152

نوح بن نصر , 153

الهادى

موسى , 44

موسى ولى عهد المسلمين , 46, 47

الخليفة موسى , 49

الخليفة الهادى , 49, 50

ولى عهد المسلمين الامير موسى ين , 43

امير المؤمنين

هرمز , 4

هرون الرشيد

الرشيد , 83

الخليفة الرشيد , 50, 51, 53–58, 60, 62, 67, 89

هرون امير المؤمنين , 51, 60

هرون الرشيد , 61

امير المؤمنين هرون الرشيد , 61

الوائق , 117

يحيى , 55, 56

الامير يحيى الحرشى , 77

يزيد , 58

الامير يزيد ين عمر , 18, 19

يعقوب , 129

يمين الدولة سبكتكين , see محمود

يوسف بن ديوداد , 140, 141


INDEX OF GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES

  • Abhar, 132, 135, 137, 139, 146, 189.
  • Abrashahr, 14, 111
  • Adharbayjān, 23, 59, 61, 115, 120, 121, 137, 139, 152, 157, 164, 191, 201, 203, 211, 212.
  • Africa, see Afrīqīyah
  • Afrīqīyah, 32, 52, 64.
  • al-Ahwāz, 41, 45, 101, 120, 148, 161, 200
  • Aleppo, see Ḥalab
  • Āmid, 194
  • Amīnābād, ix
  • 'Ammān, 164
  • Amul, 136, 175
  • Anatolia, see al-Rūm
  • Andarābah, 136
  • Armenia, see Armīnīyah
  • Armīnīyah, 52, 59, 61, 70, 77, 121, 188, 212.
  • Arrajān, 212
  • Arrān, 59, 77, 212.
  • Arsakia, 1
  • Baghdād, (cf. Madīnat al-Salām) 38, 54, 61, 103, 104, 109, 115, 127, 129, 139, 140, 143, 158, 161, 174, 183, 198, 199, 201, 203, 210, 212
  • al-Baḥrayn, 41, 45
  • Balkh, 2, 14, 16, 32, 87, 129, 130, 136
  • Barda'ah, 59
  • al-Baṣrah, 6, 8–12, 22–25, 28–30, 32, 34–38, 41, 42, 44–46, 50, 53, 101, 120, 123
  • Bēth Rāzīqāyē, 1
  • Bihqubādh, 50
  • Bukhāra, 16, 32, 143, 154
  • Burūjird, 146, 193
  • Chāl Ṭarkhān, ix
  • Chālūs, 136
  • Cheshmeh-i-'Ali, ix, 216
  • Damascus, see Dimishq
  • Damāwand, 61, 88, 112, 135, 137, 185, 190
  • Dāmghān, 145
  • (Balād)al-Daylam, 169
  • Dehli, 146
  • (Kūrat) Dijlah, 41, 45
  • Dimishq, 61, 111, 119, 121, 210
  • Dīnāwand, see Damāwand
  • Dīnawar, 15, 77, 132, 146
  • Diyārbakr, 212
  • Dunbāwand, see Damāwand
  • Egypt, see Miṣr
  • Er Ran, 2
  • Europos, 1
  • Fārs, 2, 18, 41, 101, 105, 120, 121, 129, 158, 193, 212
  • Farwān, 175
  • Firāḍ, 42
  • Firīm, 178
  • Ghazna, 175, 191
  • Gulpaygān, see Jurbādhaqān
  • Gūrgān, see Turjān
  • Ḥalab, 66
  • Hamadhān 15, 16, 23, 77, 88, 115, 120, 127, 132, 137, 142, 146, 155, 158, 167, 169, 180, 185, 190, 191, 194, 198, 201, 216
  • Harāt, 14
  • al-Hārūnīyah, 59
  • Hekatompylos, 1, 2
  • al-Ḥijāz, 101, 212
  • Ḥimṣ, 121
  • al-Hind, 191
  • Ḥulwān, 18
  • Hyrkania, 2
  • Irān, 2, 12, 41, 210
  • al-'Irāq, 6–11, 13–15, 17, 18, 20–22, 77, 104, 105, 119, 212–217
  • Iṣbahān, 6, 15, 16, 18, 50, 77, 103, 105, 108, 115, 146, 150, 158, 161, 167, 168, 181, 188, 190–193, 197–199, 209–212
  • Iṣṭakhr, viii, xi, 15, 16, 18
  • al-Jabal, (cf. al-Jibāl) 77, 115, 128, 167, 191, 212
  • Jālūs, see Chālūs
  • Jannāba, 120
  • Jayy, 16
  • al-Jazīrah, 40, 66, 109, 212
  • al-Jibāl, (cf. al-Jabal) 15, 18, 61, 67, 77, 101, 108, 115, 117, 149, 168, 169, 174, 178, 189, 191, 193, 196, 215
  • Jordan, 121
  • Jurbādhaqān, 146, 192
  • Jurjān, 16, 52, 59, 77, 108, 129, 131, 136, 146, 156, 158–160, 162, 163, 168–170, 175, 191, 196, 201
  • Jūzaqān, 198
  • Kābul, 129
  • Kankuwar (Kanguvār), 146
  • Karaj, 146
  • Karbalā', 20
  • Kaskar, 45
  • Khilāṭ, 52
  • Khurāsān, 3, 7–18, 20, 22–24, 27, 28, 34, 35, 38, 40–42, 44, 46, 52–54, 57–59, 61, 62, 64, 66, 67, 69, 74, 87, 103, 108, 109, 111, 112, 118, 121, 129, 130, 132, 135, 137, 152, 154, 155, 157, 158, 160, 161, 168, 175, 188, 190, 191, 193, 196, 204, 205
  • Khūzistān, 1, 16, 172, 190, 212
  • Khwār-al-Rayy, 190
  • Khwārizm, 14, 132, 196
  • Kirmān, 87, 118, 129, 191
  • Kirmānshāh, see Qirmīsīn
  • al-Kūfah, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 15–17, 23–25, 30, 34–38, 41, 42, 44–46, 50, 53, 101, 120, 131
  • Kurdistān, 179
  • Ledan, 1
  • Lurdijān, 212
  • al-Madā'in, 15, 119
  • Ma'din Bājunais, 52
  • Ma'din al-Shāsh, 87
  • Madīnat al-Salām, (cf. Baghdād) 32, 34, 61, 119, 120, 131, 183
  • Māh al-Baṣrah, 120
  • al-Māhayn, 15
  • Māhi, 16
  • Makrān, 191
  • Mālika Dasht, 136
  • Marw, 2, 16, 87, 103, 104, 119, 123, 154
  • Marw al-Rūdh, 14
  • al-Mawṣil, 2, 120, 157, 212
  • Mecca, 64, 66, 83
  • Media, (cf. al-Jibāl) 2, 44, 77
  • Miṣr, 32, 61, 63, 77, 115, 119, 123, 134, 148, 149
  • Mōṣul, see al-Mawṣil
  • al-Muḥammadīyah, passim
  • al-Mutawakkilīyah, 120
  • al-Nahrawān, 108
  • Naqāreh Khāneh, ix
  • Neça, 2
  • Nihāwand, 15, 16, 196
  • Nīsābūr, 94, 111, 118, 130, 136, 154, 156, 159, 175, 199, 201, 203
  • Palestine, 121
  • Parthia, 2
  • Qashān, 146
  • Qazwīn, 2, 77, 120, 127, 130, 132, 135, 137, 139, 146, 189
  • Qirmīsīn (Qirmāsīn), 77, 158
  • Qūmis, 15, 18, 23, 61, 88, 129
  • Qumm, 115, 132, 137, 146, 191, 210
  • al-Rāfiqah, 32, 120
  • Ragā, Ragāyā, 1, 3
  • Raγa, Raγam, Raγaǰōit, 1
  • 'Pàγαι, 1
  • Raγ(i), Raγ, 1
  • Rai-Ardeshir, 2
  • Rajan, Ragan, Raj, Rag, 2
  • Rām, 2
  • Ram Hurmuz, 16
  • al-Raqqah, 38
  • Rasht, 2
  • Rayy, al-Rayy, passim
  • Rêw Ardaśîr, Rēw-Ardašīr, 2
  • Rūdbār, 1
  • Rūdhbār of Khānlanjān, 158
  • al-Rūm, 58, 115, 203
  • al-Rūyān, 67, 77, 88, 112
  • Sābūr, 16
  • Samarqand, 103, 105, 111, 120, 123, 136
  • Samarra, see Sarra-man-ra'ā
  • Ṣan'ā, 119
  • Sar Mashhad, 3
  • Sarakhs, 108
  • Sāri, 136, 152
  • Sarra-man-ra'ā 32, 119, 120, 129
  • Sāwah, 21, 191
  • Shāh 'Abdu'l-'Aẓīm, ix
  • Shāhrūd, 2
  • al-Shāsh, 120, 129, 136
  • Shīrāz, 149, 157
  • Šūš, see Susa
  • Sijistān, 40, 52, 64, 129. 191
  • al-Sind, 52, 111, 130, 191
  • Sughd, 14
  • Susa, 11
  • Syria, 64
  • Ṭabarak, ix, 31, 178, 194, 196, 201, 209
  • Ṭabaristān, 2, 23, 47, 48, 61, 67, 77, 88, 112, 118, 121, 127, 129, 135–137, 145, 146, 151, 156–160, 163, 191, 196, 212
  • Tabrīz, 218
  • al-Ṭarum, 193
  • al-Taymarah, 16
  • Teheran, 201
  • Transoxiana, 135
  • Ṭuknaristān, 130
  • Ṭūs, 105, 108
  • Tustar min al-Ahwāz, 148
  • 'Umān, 41, 45
  • Wāsiṭ, 120, 131, 143
  • al-Yamāmah, 32
  • al-Yaman, 101
  • Zadracarta, 1, 2
  • Zanjān, 77, 132, 135, 137, 139, 146, 189. 202
  • Zaranj, 52, 61

INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES

  • Abān Jādhwiyyah, 5
  • al-'Abbās b. 'Abdullāh b. Mālik, 94
  • al-'Abbās b. al-Faḍl b. al-Rabī', 91, 92
  • al-'Abbās b. Ja'far b. Muḥammad, 57, 59
  • al-'Abbās b. Muḥammad, 64
  • 'Abbās b. Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm b. 'Ali, 64
  • 'Abbās b. Muḥammad b. al-Musayyab, 64
  • al-'Abbās b. al-Musta'īn, 127
  • abu-al-'Abbās (al-Saffāḥ), 16
  • abu-al-'Abbās b. Amīr al-Mu'minīn (al-Rāḍi), 134–139, 142, 148
  • 'Abdullāh b. 'Āmir, 6
  • 'Abdullāh b. Mālik, 88
  • 'Abdullāh b. Mu'āwiyah, 15–18
  • 'Abdullāh b. Ṭāhir, 111, 112, 115, 116, 118
  • 'Abdullāh b. 'Umar b. 'Abd-al-Azīz b. Marwān, 17
  • abu-'Abdullāh (al-Mu'tazz), 120–123
  • 'Abd-al-'Azīz b. abi-Dulaf, 128
  • 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd (or Ḥumayd) b. (Ja'far ?), 23
  • 'Abd-al-Ḥamīd b. Ja'far b. 'Abdullāh al-Anṣāri, 23, 24
  • 'Abd-al-Jabbār b. Aḥmad, 169
  • 'Abd-al-Malik (Caliph), 8
  • 'Abd-al-Malik b. Ayyūb b. Ẓābyān, 36–38
  • 'Abd-al-Malik b. Nūḥ, 160, 163
  • abu-'Aun 'Abd-al-Malik b. Yazīd, 38
  • 'Abd al-Raḥmān b. Nu'aym, 10
  • Abrūn, 130
  • Adhkūtekīn, 130, 131
  • 'Aḍud al-Dawlah, 164, 166–170
  • al-Afshīn Ḥaydar b. Ka'ūs, 117
  • Aḥmad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, 135, 137–140
  • Aḥmad b. abi-al-Aṣbagh, 132
  • Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan al-Māridāni, 131
  • abu-al-'Abbās Aḥmad b. Ibrāhīm al-Ḍabbi, 171, 179
  • Aḥmad b. 'Īsa b. 'Ali b. Ḥusayn al-Ṣaghīr, 127
  • Aḥmad b. Ismā'īl, 135
  • Aḥmad b. al-Muwaffaq, 131, 132
  • Aḥmad b. Ṣa'lūk, see Aḥmad b. 'Ali
  • abu-Aḥmad b. al-Mutawakkil, 130
  • Aḥmed III (Ottoman), 63
  • 'Alā' al-Dawlah, see Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār
  • 'Ali al-Riḍa, see al-Riḍa
  • 'Ali b. Hishām, 115
  • 'Ali b. 'Īsa, 74, 94, 97, 136
  • 'Ali b. Kāmah, 157–159
  • abu-al-Ḥasan 'Ali b. Muḥammad b. al-Furāt, 140, 142
  • 'Ali b. al-Muqtadir, 135, 149
  • 'Ali b. al-Mu'taḍid (al-Muktafi), see al-Muktafi
  • 'Ali b. al-Nāṣir, 137
  • 'Ali (b. abi-Ṭālib), 6, 103
  • 'Ali b. Wahsudhān, 137
  • abu-'Ali Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. al-Muẓaffar b. al-Muḥtāj, 151–155, 158, 160, 161
  • abu-'Ali b. Hamūlah Awḥad al-Kufāh, 171, 172
  • abu- Ali al-Khaṭir, 179
  • Alp Arslān, 196, 203–205
  • 'Amīd al-Dawlah, 148
  • al-Amīn, 54, 58, 64, 65, 70, 83, 91, 94, 97, 99, 100, 111
  • Anūshirwān b. Minūchihr, 190
  • Asad, 70, 73, 74
  • Asad b. 'Abdullāh, 14
  • Asad b. Yazīd b. Mazīd, 70
  • Asātekīn, 130
  • Asfār b. Shīrwayh, 145, 146
  • Aṣghar b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān, 25
  • Ashras b. 'Abdullāh, 11
  • 'Āṣim b. 'Abdullāh b. Yazīd al-Hilāli, 13
  • 'Āṣim b. Mūsa al-Khurāsāni, 44
  • Aslam b. Zur'ah al-Kilābi, 7
  • Awḥad al-Kufāh, see abu-'Ali b. Ḥamūlah
  • Ayāz, 212
  • Bābak, 111, 117
  • Badr b. Ḥasanwayh, 179, 180, 185
  • Bahā' al-Dawlah, 170, 173, 174, 183, 184, 186
  • Bahrām V, 1, 3
  • Bahrām Chōbīn, 3, 4
  • Barkiyāruq b. Mālik Shāh, 209–212
  • Barsaq b. Barsaq, 212
  • al-Basāsīri, 201
  • Bishr b. Marwān b. al-Ḥakam, 7
  • Bisṭām, 1–3
  • Chaghri Beg Dāwūd, 198
  • Dāwūd, 52–54, 77
  • Dāwūd b. Yazīd b. Ḥātim, 52–53
  • Dhu-al-Ri'āsatayn, 94, 99, 101–105, 108
  • Dhu-al-Yamīnayn, 93, 97, 99, 111
  • Ezlem bin Sufah, 7
  • al-Faḍl b. Sahl, 94, 97, 99, 101, 108
  • al-Faḍl b. Sulaymān al-Ṭūsi, 46, 53, 54
  • al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, 61, 64, 66–68
  • Fakhr al-Dawlah, 159, 167–174, 176–178
  • Fakhr Dīn-Allāh, see abu-Kālījār Fanā-Khosraw
  • abu-Kālījār Fanā-Khosraw b. Majd al-Dawlah, 194, 197
  • abu-Manṣūr Farāmarz b. 'Alā' al-Dawlah, 198
  • Farhādh b. Mardāwīch, 192
  • al-Farrukhān, 31, 132
  • abu-al-Fatḥ b. abi-al-Faḍl b. al-'Umayd, 168
  • Gershasp, see abu-Kālījār Karshasf
  • Ghafrān (b. Ṣāliḥ), see 'Imrān
  • Ghaṭrīf b. 'Atā, 52
  • Ghāzān Maḥmūd, 218
  • Ghuzz, 191, 194
  • Ḥabīb b. Budayl al-Nahshali, 20, 21
  • al-Hādi, (cf. Mūsa), 48, 50, 52, 53
  • al-Ḥajjāj, 8, 9
  • al-Ḥakam b. al-Ṣalt, 15
  • al-Hamadhāni, 77
  • Ḥamzah b. Mālik b. al-Haytham al-Khuzā'i, 40, 41, 62, 64
  • Ḥamzah b. Yaḥya, see Ḥamzah b. Mālik
  • al-Ḥarib, 77, 79
  • Ḥarib b. Qays abu-Ḥanīfah, 77
  • al-Ḥārith (al-Ḥarith), 77, 79
  • Hārūn al-Rashīd, 40, 48, 52, 53, 58, 59, 61, 64, 67, 69, 70, 74, 83, 84, 87, 91, 93, 97, 105
  • al-Ḥasan b. 'Ali al-Utrūsh, 136
  • al-Ḥasan b. al-Fīruzān, 152, 153, 156, 159, 162
  • al-Ḥasan b. Qaḥṭabah, 21
  • al-Ḥasan b. al-Qāsim al-Dā'i, 145, 146
  • al-Ḥasan b. Sahl, 100, 101
  • al-Ḥasan b. Zayd, 127, 129
  • al-Wazīr abu-al-Ḥasan, see abu-al-Ḥasan 'Ali b. Muḥammad b. al-Furāt
  • abu-al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad al-Kawkabi al-Mu'allim, 171
  • Ḥawshab b. Yazīd b. Ruwaym, 7
  • al-Haytham b. Mu'āwiyah al-'Ataki, 37
  • Hishām (Caliph), 13, 15, 27
  • Hishām b. Sa'īd b. Manṣūr, 44
  • Hormizd IV, 3
  • ibn-Hubayrah, see Yazīd b. 'Umar b. Hubayrah
  • Ḥumayd b. Qaḥṭabah, 35, 38
  • Ḥusām al-Dawlah, 169
  • Ḥusayn (b. 'Ali b. abi-Ṭālib), 20
  • al-Ḥusayn b. 'Amr al-Naṣrāni, 132
  • al-Ḥusayn b. al-Qāsim b. 'Abdullāh b. Sulaymān b. Wahab, 148
  • Ibrāhīm al-Mu'ayyad, 121
  • Ibrāhīm b. al-Mahdi, 103–105
  • Ibrāhīm b. al-Marzubān al-Salār, 164, 189, 193
  • Iltutmysh, see Ūgurtmish
  • 'Imād al-Dawlah, 149, 155–158
  • 'Imrān (b. Ṣāliḥ), 25
  • Inānj (Inānej), 215
  • 'Īsa, mawla of Ja'far, 44
  • 'Īsa b. Ja'far, 69
  • 'Īsa b. Mūsa, 23, 28
  • Isḥāq b. Ibrāhīm b. Mus'ab, 115
  • Isḥāq b. al-Ṣabbāḥ, 41
  • Isḥāq b. Yaḥya b. Mu'ādh, 111
  • Ismā'īl b. 'Abbād, 171, 172
  • Ismā'īl b. Aḥmad, 133, 134
  • Ismā'īl b. Nūḥ, 179
  • Ithna- 'Asharīyah, 103
  • al-Jabali, 77
  • Jābir b. Tawbah al-Kilābi, 35
  • Ja'far b. Hanzalah al-Bahrāni, 14
  • Ja'far b. al-Manṣūr, 83
  • Ja'far b. Muḥammad b. al-Ash'ath, 57
  • abu-al-Qāsim Ja'far b. al-Nāṣir, 137
  • Ja'far b. Sulaymān, 28
  • Ja'far b. Yaḥya, 53, 60, 61, 64, 67, 69, 83, 84, 91
  • Jahwar b. (al)-Marrār, 22, 23
  • Jalāl al-Dawlah, 197, 198
  • al-Jarraḥ b. 'Abdullāh, 9
  • Juday' b. 'Ali al-Karmāni, 14
  • al-Junayd b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān al-Mazani, 12, 13
  • Kāfi, al-Kāfi, see Aḥmad b. Ibrāhīm, abu-al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad, and Ismā'īl b. 'Abbād
  • al-Kāfi al-Awḥad, see Aḥmād b. Ibrāhīm
  • Kāfi al-Dawlah, see Ismā'īl b. 'Abbād
  • al-Kāfi b. Fakhr al-Dawlah b. Jahīr, 172
  • Kaighaligh, 130
  • abu-Kālījār Karshasf (Gershasp), 196, 198, 200
  • Kawāt I, 3
  • Khalaf b. 'Abdullāh, 43–45
  • Khālid b. 'Abdullāh, 11–13
  • abu-Dāwūd Khālid b. Ibrāhīm, 22, 23
  • Khāqān al-Mufliḥi, 133, 137
  • Khawārij, Khārijite, 7, 17
  • Khodābendeh Muḥammad (Uljāītu), 218
  • Khosraw II, 1–3, 5–7
  • Khosraw Parvīz, see Khosraw II
  • Khurrāmiyyah, 115
  • abu-al-'Abbās Khusraw Fīrūz b. Rukn al-Dawlah, 164
  • Kulthūm b. Ḥafṣ, 42–44
  • al-Mahdi, 24, 25, 27, 31, 33, 35, 36, 38, 44, 45, 50, 65, 132
  • Maḥmūd of Ghazna, 175, 188–191, 194
  • Maḥmūd b. Malik Shāh, 209
  • Maḥmūd b. Muḥammad b. Malik Shāh, 213
  • Majd al-Dawlah, (cf. abu-Ṭālib Rustam) 171, 173–178, 180, 181, 183–185, 188, 194, 196, 197
  • Mākān b. Kāli (Kāki), 145, 146
  • Makhlad b. Yazīd b. al-Muhallab, 10
  • al-Malik al-Raḥīm, 199–201
  • Malik Shāh b. Alp Arslān, 196, 205, 207–210
  • Malik Shāh b. Barkiyāruq, 211, 212
  • Malik Shāh b. Maḥmūd, 216
  • al-Ma'mūn, 48, 64, 70, 87, 90–94, 97, 99, 100, 103–105, 107–109, 111, 115, 149
  • al-Manṣūr, 23, 24, 28, 35, 65
  • Manṣūr b. Jamhūr (Jumhūr), 17
  • Manṣūr b. Nūḥ, 163
  • Manṣūr b. Qarātekīn, 156, 158, 159
  • Manṣūr b. Yazīd b. Manṣūr al-Ḥimyari, 67
  • abu-Manṣūr b. abi-Kālījār b. 'Alā' al-Dawlah, 198
  • Mardāvīch b. Ziyār, 146, 149
  • Marzubān (Ispahbad),178
  • abu-Kālījār al-Marzubān, 198, 199
  • al-Marzubān b. Muḥammad b. Musāfir (Salārid), 157, 164
  • Mas'ūd b. Maḥmūd, 188–194
  • Mas'ūd b. Muḥammad, 214
  • Minūchihr b. Qābūs, 188, 191
  • Mu'ādh b. Muslim, 41, 42
  • al-Mu'alla, mawlah of al-Mahdi, 45
  • Mu'āwiyah b. Zufar b.'Āṣim, 56, 66
  • Mu'ayyad al-Dawlah, 167–171
  • Mufliḥ, 142
  • Muḥammad b. 'Abdullāh, 28
  • Muḥammad b. 'Abd-al-Razzāq, 156, 162
  • Muḥammad b. 'Ali Ṣa'lūk, 135–138, 143–146
  • Muḥammad b. 'Ali b. Ṭāhir, 127
  • Muḥammad b. al-Ash'ath, 23
  • abu-Ja'far Muḥammad b. Dushmanzār Kākwayh, 181, 188–193, 196
  • Muḥammad b. Hārūn, 133
  • Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan b. Qaḥṭabah, 69
  • Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd al-Ṭāhiri (al-Ṭūsi), 111
  • abu-Sa'd Muḥammad b. Ismā'īl, 179
  • Muḥammad b. Ja'far b. al-Ḥasan, 127
  • Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd of Ghazna, 191
  • Muḥammad b. Maḥmūd ('Irāq Seljūqi), 215, 216
  • Muḥammad b. Malik Shāh, 211–213
  • Muḥammad b. Sulaymān b. 'Ali, 29, 30, 35–37, 41, 44, 50
  • Muḥammad b. Taghlaq, 146
  • Muḥammad b. Ṭāhir b. 'Abdullāh, 127
  • Muḥammad (?) b. Thaml (?) or Naṣr (?), 18
  • Muḥammad b. Ṭughj, 148, 149
  • Muḥammad b. Yaḥya b. al-Ḥārith b. Shakhīr 67–70, 111
  • Muḥammad b. Zayd, 130, 132
  • Mu'izz al-Dawlah, 157, 159
  • al-Muktafi, 132–134
  • Mūnis, 137
  • al-Muntaṣir, 121, 125, 126
  • al-Muqtadi, 205, 208, 209
  • al-Muqtadir, 134, 135, 142, 143, 147–149
  • al-Muqtafi, 214, 216
  • Mūsa, (cf. al-Hādi) 44, 45, 48, 50, 59
  • Mūsa b. Bugha al-Kabīr, 128, 129
  • Mūsa b. Ḥafṣ, 112
  • Mūsa b. 'Īsa, 50
  • abu-Mūsa al-Ash'ari, 6
  • al-Musayyab b. Zuhayr, 42, 46
  • Muslim b. Sa'īd b. Aslam b. Zur'ah, 11
  • abu-Muslim, 16–18, 20–23
  • al-Musta'īn, 126, 128
  • al-Mustakfi, 154, 155
  • al-Mustanjid, 216
  • al-Mustarshid, 213
  • al-Mustaẓhir, 209
  • al-Mu'taḍid, 132
  • al-Mu'tamid, 129–132
  • al-Mu'taṣim, 115, 117
  • al-Mutawakkil, 118, 121, 123, 125
  • al-Mu'tazz, (cf. abu-'Abdullāh) 120, 121, 123–125, 128
  • al-Muṭī', 155, 160, 166
  • al-Muttaqi, 151
  • al-Muwaffaq, 130–132
  • Naḥrīr al-Ṣaghīr, 137
  • banu Nahshal b. Dārim, 20
  • Nāṣir-i-Kabīr, 136
  • Naṣr b. Aḥmad, 135, 136, 143–145, 147–150, 152. 153
  • Naṣr b. Mālik, 40
  • Naṣr b. Sayyār b. Layth b. Rāfi', 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 28
  • Niẓām al-Mulk, 209
  • Nūḥ b. Manṣūr, 169, 175
  • Nūḥ b. Naṣr, 153–157, 160
  • Nu'aym b. Muqrin, 5
  • Nūshirwān (Mongol), 220
  • Pērōz, 3
  • Qābūs b. Washmgīr, see Shams al-Ma'āli
  • al-Qādir, 173–177, 186, 192
  • al-Qāhir, 149
  • Qaḥṭabah, 21
  • Al-Qā'im, 192, 197, 199, 203, 205
  • abu-al-Qāsim al-Khāqāni, 142
  • Qizil, 194
  • Qutaybah b. Muslim, 9, 27
  • Qutulmish, 203
  • al-Rāḍi, (cf. abu-al-'Abbās b. Amīr al-Mu'minīn, 134, 149–151
  • Rāfi' b. Harthamah, 131, 132
  • al-Rāshid, 214
  • al-Riḍa, 103–105, 107, 108, 127
  • Rūḥ, mawla of al-Faḍl b. Yaḥya, 64
  • Rūh b. Ḥātim, 45, 52, 64
  • Rukn al-Dawlah, 149–151, 153–160, 162–164, 166–169, 177
  • abu-Ṭālib Rustam, (cf. Majd al-Dawlah) 173–178
  • Sa'd, mawlah of al-Mahdi, 45, 46, 48
  • abu-Sahl al-Ḥamdūni, 191–193
  • Sa'īd b. 'Amr al-Ḥarashi, 11
  • Sa'īd b. Da'laj (or Ṣāliḥ), 37, 38
  • abu-Sa'īd, 218–220
  • al-Ṣalāni (al-Ṣalābi), 129, 130
  • al-Salār, see Ibrāhīm b. al-Marzubān
  • Ṣālih b. 'Abd-al-Raḥmān, 9
  • Ṣāliḥ b. Dāwūd b. 'Ali, 44
  • Salm b. 'Abdullāh, see Khalaf b. 'Abdullāh
  • Salm b. 'Abdullāh (or 'Ubaydullāh) b. abi-Bakrah, 43, 44
  • Salm b. Qutaybah b. Muslim al-Bāhili, 27–29
  • Ṣa'lūk, see Aḥmad b. 'Ali and Muḥammad b. 'Ali
  • Ṣamṣām al-Dawlah, see abu-Kālījār al-Marzubān
  • Sanjar b. Malik Shāh, 213–215
  • al-Sayyidah, 174, 178, 180, 181, 185
  • Shahriyūsh, 191
  • Shams al-Dawlah, 180, 181, 185
  • Shams al-Ma'āli Qābūs b. Washmgīr, 169
  • Sharaf al-Mulūk, see abu-Kālījār Fanā-Khosraw
  • Shawkat b. Fulādh, 186
  • Sīmjūr al-Dawāti, 143
  • Sinbādh, 22, 23
  • al-Sindi, 84
  • al-Sindi b. Yaḥya al-Ḥarashi, 84
  • al-Sirri b. 'Abdullāh, 24
  • Subuktekīn (Ghaznawid), 175
  • Subuktekīn (general), 158
  • Sufyān b. Mu'āwiyah, 23
  • Malik Sulaymān, 213, 214
  • Sulaymān (Caliph), 10
  • Sulaymān b. 'Ali, 22
  • Sulaymān b. Qutulmish, 203
  • Sulaymān Shāh, 216
  • Ṭāhir b. 'Abdullāh, 118
  • Ṭāhir b. al-Ḥusayn, 93, 94, 97, 99, 100, 109, 111, 112, 114
  • al-Ṭāhir b. Ṭalḥah, 42
  • abu-Ṭāhir b. Muḥammad, 146
  • al-Ṭāhiri, see Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd
  • al-Tā’i', 164, 166, 172–176
  • Takash b. Alp Arslān, 205, 207
  • Talh, 25
  • Ṭalḥah b. Ṭāhir, 112, 114, 115
  • abu-Ṭālib, see Rustam
  • Ṭalmajūr, 130
  • Tāsh-Farāsh, 190, 191
  • Ṭayfūr, mawla of al-Hādi, 50
  • Ṭoghril -Beg, 194, 196–203
  • Ṭoghril b. Muḥammad, 214
  • Turkān khātūn, 209
  • al-Ṭūsi, see Muḥammad b. Ḥumayd
  • Tutush b. Alp Arslān, 210
  • 'Ubayd, 77, 83, 84, 97
  • 'Ubaydullāh, 77, 86
  • 'Ubaydullāh b. al-Mahdi, 77
  • 'Ubaydullāh b. Yaḥya, 77
  • 'Ubaydullāh b. Ziyād, 6, 7
  • Ūgurtmish, 132
  • Uljāītu, see Khodābendeh Muḥammad
  • 'Umar b. al-'Alā, 48
  • 'Umar b. Hubayrah, 11
  • 'Umar b. abi-al-Ṣalt, 9
  • 'Umar b. Shuraḥbīl, 67
  • 'Umar b. Zuhayr, 37
  • 'Umārah b. Ḥuraym al-Murri, 13
  • Umm-Ja'far, 83, 84, 87
  • 'Uqbah b. Salm, 30
  • 'Uthmān b. Zufar, 56, 65–67
  • Vistahm, 3
  • Wandād Hurmuzd, 48
  • WaqI' b. abi-Sūd, 9, 10
  • Washmgīr b. Ziyār, 149–153, 156, 157, 160
  • Waṣīf al-Begtimuri, 137
  • al-Wāthiq, 117, 118
  • Yaḥya al-Ḥarashi, 77
  • Yaḥya b. Khālid, 55, 56, 69
  • Yannāl b. Anūshtekīn, 212
  • Yannāl Ibrāhīm, 196, 198
  • Ya'qūb b. al-Layth, 129, 130
  • Yazdikirt II, 3, 5, 48
  • Yazīd b. abi-Kabshah, 9
  • Yazīd b. Manṣūr, 35, 41
  • Yazīd b. Mazīd al-Shaybāni, 58, 59
  • Yazīd b. al-Muhallab b. abi-Ṣufrah, 9, 10
  • Yazīd b. abi-Muslim, 9
  • Yazīd b. Qays al-Hamadhāni, 6
  • Yazīd b. Ruwaym, 7
  • Yazīd b. 'Umar b. Hubayrah, 18, 20, 21, 28
  • Yūsuf b. Dīwdād, see Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj
  • Yūsuf b. abi-al-Sāj, 137, 139, 140, 142, 143
  • Yūsuf b. 'Umar, 13–15, 27, 28
  • al-Zabandi, 31
  • Zayd ('Alid), 127
  • al-Zaynabi, 31
  • Ziyād b. 'Āmir, 6
  • Ziyād b. abi-Sufyān, 6
  • Zubaydah (bint Ja'far), 83
  • Zufar b.'Āṣim al-Hilāli, 65, 66

THE NUMISMATIC HISTORY OF RAYY.

PLATE I.

image

UMAYYAD

'ABBĀSID

PLATE II.

image

'ABBĀSID

ṬĀHIRID

PLATE III.

image

'ABBĀSID

SĀMĀNID

BUYID

PLATE IV.

image

BUYID

SEJŪQ

PLATE V.

image

SELJŪQ

PLATE VI.

image

ṢA'LŪKID SĀJID SĀMĀNID BUYID GHAZNAWID KĀKWAYHID SELJŪQ