Umayyad gold coins were generally struck in Damascus, while silver and copper coins were minted elsewhere.ĭuring the rule of the caliphs who followed, coins of one-half and one-third of a dinar were struck they were smaller than the dinar in size and weight, and carried shorter inscriptions in the margin denoting the value of each coin. The new gold dinars weighed a bit less than the solidus and the state controlled the accuracy of its weight along with the purity of the gold. Those who did not comply faced the death penalty. All remaining Byzantine and Arab-Byzantine pieces were to be handed to the treasury, to be melted down and re-struck. After he introduced this coin, Abd al-Malik issued a decree making it the only currency to be used throughout Umayyad lands. On both sides of the new dinar were inscribed verses from the Qur’an, expressing the message of Islam and making each piece an individual missionary of the faith. In 697 the caliph decided to abandon all traces of iconography and introduced the first Islamic coin devoid of figurative representation (figure 3). Once more, the Byzantine emperor responded by striking a new coin similar to that of the Arabs, which greatly displeased Abd al-Malik. The reverse bore the same column on three steps and the sphere, but a new legend appeared around the margin: “In the name of God this dinar was struck in the year four and seventy” Only eight of these early Arab-Byzantine dinars, dated according to the new Islamic calendar, have survived. On its obverse was the upright figure of the caliph, wearing an Arab headdress and holding a sword, with the testimony of Islam inscribed in the margin. Early Umayyad coins, 691/692CE.Ĭaliph Abd al-Malik’s response was to issue a new dinar in 693 (figure 2). The Byzantine emperor Justinian II responded to this challenge by striking a new solidus with the head of Christ on the obverse and on the reverse an image of himself robed and holding a cross.įigure 1. The new Arab-Byzantine coin stressed the unity of God to counter the Christian Trinitarian doctrine, and made no mention of the caliph. In the margin surrounding the design the testimony of Islam was written in Arabic: “In the name of God, there is no deity but God He is One Muhammad is the messenger of God.” On the obverse, there were three standing figures of unknown identities, as on the Byzantine coin, which had on its obverse the figures of Heracles, Heraclias Constantine, and Heraclonas on the reverse, the Byzantine cross was replaced by a column placed on three steps topped with a sphere. The new Islamic currency that was first coin to carry an Arabic inscription was called a dinar and was similar, in both size and weight, to the Byzantine solidus. The early coins were struck either in 691 or 692 the Byzantine emperor was angry and refused to accept the new Arab gold currency, renewing the war between the Arabs and the Byzantines. This is a short extract from the full article by Wijdan Ali PhD available here as a PDF fileĭuring the early years of their reign, the Umayyads continued to use silver Sassanian coins in Iran and Iraq, and gold and copper Byzantine coins in Syria and Egypt (figure 1).Īs part of his policy to unify the various regions under Islamic rule, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (685-705CE) introduced the first Umayyad gold coins at a time of discord between the Umayyads and Byzantines over the merits of Islam and Christianity. Within a short period of time, Islamic Coins replaced all Sassanian and Byzantine coins in Muslim lands. As part of a policy to unify the various regions under Islamic rule, Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan introduced the first Umayyad gold coins in 691CE.
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