Islamic Auction 3
Date: 2023-04-27 00:00:00
Lots: 270
Total starting: $ 0.00
Total realized: $ 0.00 (+0.00%)
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Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 1
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Byzantine. Early Pseudo-Byzantine coinage. Mid to late 7th century. CU Fals (29mm, 10.88 g, 6h). Justin & Sophia type. Abila mint. Justin, holding globus cruciger, and Sophia, holding cruciform scepter, seated facing on double throne; trace of star above; DA(horizontal B) to right / Large M; cross above, A/N/N/O and */X/O/V across field; A//ИIKA. APBQ C6; SICA 1 –; DOCAB –; Album 3509.3. Earthen green patina. VF. Extremely rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 2
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. In the name of Yazdigerd III. AR Drachm (32.1mm, 4.08 g, 7h). SK (Sistan) mint. Dated YE 20 - AH 31 (AD 651/2). Obverse margin: - / lillah APD / - / - / Malek, Arab-Sasanian 952; SICA 1, -; Album -. Good VF. Extremely rare. On this very early type the Pahlawi word APD, meaning 'excellent', follows the word lillah in the obverse margin. This word is also often seen, similarly positioned, on drachms of Khusraw II, but is not found on the coins of Yazdigerd III which this type copies. It should, therefore, be regarded as a deliberate addition to the Arabic marginal legend rather than something left over from a Sasanian prototype. APD is presumably the Pahlawi equivalent of the Arabic jayyid, which also appears in the margin of some rare early drachms of both Khusraw II and Yazdigerd III types struck in this year.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 3
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. In the name of Yazdigerd III. AR Drachm (34.8mm, 4.12 g, 6h). SK (Sistan) mint. Dated YE 26 = AH 37 (AD 657/8). Obverse margin: - / bismillah / - / -. Malek, Arab-Sasanian p. 201; cf. CNG 394 (29 March 2017), lot 561; SICA 1, -; Album 1. Near EF. Very rare with an authentic date rather than the normal frozen 'year 20'.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 4
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. al-Hakam b. Abi al-'As. Circa AH 54-58 / AD 674-677. AR Drachm (30.5mm, 4.01 g, 12h). NAL (Narmashir) mint. Dated AH 56 (AD 675/6). Obverse margin: bism / Allah rabb al-hukm / - / -. Malek, Arab-Sasanian 915; cf. SICA 1, 343 (without bism in first quadrant of obverse margin); Album 11. Some lustre on reverse. Choice EF. Rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 5
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. al-Hakam b. Abi al-'As. Circa AH 54-58 / AD 674-677. AR Drachm (31.3mm, 4.05 g, 8h). SLCN (Arrajan) mint. Dated AH 56 (AD 675/6). Obverse margin: bism / Allah rabb al-hukm / - / -. Malek, Arab-Sasanian 1157 (same dies); SICA 1, -; Album 11. Minor deposit. Good VF. Rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 6
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Ubaydallah b. Ziyad. AH 54-64 / AD 673-683. AR Drachm (32.7mm, 4.06 g, 3h). MYAP (uncertain location). Dated AH 59 (AD 678/9). Obverse margin: - / • bismillah :: / - / - / Reverse margin: • • / - / - / -. Malek, Arab-Sasanian ; SICA 1, -; Album 12. Some lustre remaining. AU. Extremely rare. Malek knew of only two Arab-Sasanian drachms with this mint name, and like the present coin these are both issues of 'Ubaydallah b. Ziyad dated AH 59. It has been suggested that the name is a compound of MY (the district name, Maysan) and AP (a city name, possibly Abarqubadh). Why this mint should have been active for this year only is unclear, although Malek's observation that 'mints would open and strike coins when there was a particular local need such as to pay troops' seems as plausible a suggestion as any.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 7
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Ubaydallah b. Ziyad. AH 54-64 / AD 673-683. AR Drachm (32.6mm, 4.05 g, 2h). DŠT (Dasht Maysan) mint. Dated AH 59 (AD 678/9). Obverse margin: - / li-ayyatan Musa (or li-Allah Musa / - / -. Unpublished. Old ink graffiti in first quadrant of reverse margin. EF. Of the highest rarity, apparently unpublished and believed unique. Because it is written in unpointed Kufic, the obverse marginal legend on this remarkable coin is ambiguous. It can be read either as 'for a sign for Moses' or 'for the God of Moses,' and while neither of these exact phrases appears to occur in the Qur'an, it is possible to find very close parallels for both. Ilahu Musa, 'the God of Moses', is found inter alia in Qur'an 20:88. Li-ayyatan occurs some twenty times in the Qur'an, often in a phrase along the lines of 'as a sign for those who believe,' and the related form occurs in the phrase arsuluna Musa bi-ayyatuna, 'We sent Moses with Our signs', in Qur'an 14:5. The mint-signature on this coin is written DŠT', with an additional stroke after the T. It is thought that DŠT', DŠT and DŠ all denote the same place, and all three variants are known for most years of 'Ubaydallah's governorship. DŠ is found on coins with dates for the five years between AH 57-61 inclusive, while DŠT and DŠT' are known for AH 56 and AH 61-64. The present coin appears to be dated AH 59, and it is surprising that it should have the DŠT' spelling at a time when DŠ appears to have been the preferred version, but the unit is clearly '9' and the decade can hardly be anything other than '50'. It is thought that DŠT and its variants denote a place-name beginning with the element Dasht, and Dasht Maysan, which is also an Umayyad post-Reform dirham mint, is regarded as the most likely possibility. The question of why the phrase 'for the God of Moses' or 'as a sign for Moses' should have been added to a drachm of 'Ubaydallah b. Ziyad, issued at Dasht Maysan in the year AH 59, is a puzzling one. The phrase is not otherwise used on the Arab-Sasanian coinage, and there is nothing obvious in the career of 'Ubaydallah himself or in the history of southern Iraq which might suggest a possible explanation. Nevertheless, comparison with other Arab-Sasanian drachms suggests two possible explanations. Governors might add their own personal identifying phrases to the marginal legends. These can allude directly to the governor's name, such as the drachms of al-Hakam b. Abi al-'As with the legend bismillah rabbi al-hukm (this last word echoing the name of al-Hakam), or, like the drachms issued by 'Atiya b. al-Aswad with bismillah wali al-amr in the margin, be specific to that particular governor but without reference to his personal name. But it seems impossible to interpret li-Allah Musa in this way, given that 'Ubaydallah b. Ziyad's other drachms bear the standard bismillah in the margin. More promising, therefore, is the alternative possibility: that non-standard legends were added for religious reasons. Some later governors adopted the shahada rather than the shorter bismillah (apparently from personal choice rather than to make an explicit religious or political statement), while drachms issued by Qatari b. al-Fuja'a bear the Kharijite slogan la hukm illa lillah. On the face of it, the phrase 'For the God of Moses' seems better understood along these lines, even though it is not possible to suggest why it should have been used at this mint and in this year only. It is tempting, if highly speculative, to wonder whether the reference to Moses might be somehow connected to the building work undertaken in Jerusalem during the caliphate of Mu'awiya. But while the reasons for its issue remain a fascinating enigma, this coin nevertheless has the distinction of being the earliest Islamic coin to bear the name of Moses, and as such is a piece of the greatest rarity, importance, and historical interest.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 8
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Humran b. Aban. AH 72 / AD 691. AR Drachm (33.9mm, 3.71 g, 9h). ART (Ardashir Khurra) mint. Dated AH 72 (AD 691/2). Obverse margin: - / • bismillah / Humran bin Aban :: / - / Malek, Arab-Sasanian 85; SICA 1, 31; Album 23.1. Small edge chip (not affecting legends). VF. Rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 9
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Numayla b. Malik. fl. AH 72-73 / AD 692-3. AR Drachm (26.4mm, 2.07 g, 3h). WYHC (Arrajan) mint. Dated AH 72 (AD 691/2). Obverse margin: - / • bismillah :: / Numayla bin Malik / -. Cf. Malek p. 308 = Walker p. 106, Cam.11 (dated AH 73). Lightly clipped, slightly ragged edge and some corrosion on bust. Good Fine. Of the highest rarity, believed unique. The marginal inscription on this coin confirms the correct reading of the governor's name, which had previously been the subject of some uncertainty since the Pahlawi name-legend is somewhat ambiguous. Originally interpreted as 'al-Mughira b. al-Muhallab' by Walker, this was subsequently corrected by Mochiri to 'Numayra b. Muslih', and refined further by Malek to 'Numayla b. Muslih.' The Arabic version of his name confirms that 'Numayla' is the correct reading of the first name and also establishes that the full name of this mysterious governor is in fact 'Numayla b. Malik.' This reading had in fact been proposed in 2000 by Alan DeShazo, who identified Numayla b. Malik as a military commander who led one of the divisions of the army of Basra. It is not clear that this position would have given him sufficient authority to strike drachms in his own name, but if he ever held a higher post our sources are silent on the matter. The present specimen also confirms that he struck coins in AH 72 as well as 73.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 10
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Bishr b. Marwan. fl. AH 73-75 / AD 692-694. AR Drachm (32.4mm, 3.34 g, 3h). GD (Jayy) mint. Dated AH 74 (AD 693/4). Obverse margin: - / bismillah Zayd b. Abi Ziyad / - / - / Reverse: additional circle outside stars-and-crescents in margin. Malek, Arab-Sasanian p. 149 = Gaube 46 = Walker p. 109, Th.13 (same dies). Cleaned, reverse weak. VF. Excessively rare. The Pahlawi legend in the obverse margin names a certain Zayd b. Abi Ziyad. This individual, otherwise apparently unknown, is presumed to have been a sub-governor.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 11
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Bishr b. Marwan. fl. AH 73-75 / AD 692-694. AR Drachm (32.2mm, 3.59 g, 3h). AKWLA (Aqola) mint. Dated AH 74 (AD 693/4). Obverse margin: DYN / bismillah Muhammad / rasul Allah / - / Reverse field: Standing bearded figure facing, wearing long elaborate robe, flanked by two smaller figures wearing plain robes, their heads turned to face the central figure; mint (in Pahlawi) and date (in Pahlawi numerals) to right and left respectively. Treadwell, Orans Drachms A5-A8; Malek, Arab-Sasanian 13 var. (without dyn in obverse margin); SICA 1, p. 28; Album 27.1. Parts of edge broken away and repaired (not affecting the three standing figures on reverse). Good VF. Extremely rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 12
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. temp 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan. AH 65-86 / AD 685-705. AR Drachm (31.5mm, 3.11 g, 9h). Dimashq mint. Dated AH 73 (AD 692/3). Obverse: bismillah / la ilaha illa Allah wa- / hdahu Muhammad ra- / sul Allah in margin; name of Khusraw in Pahlawi before bust / Reverse: Dimashq to left; date thalath wa saba'in in Arabic to right. Malek, Arab-Sasanian 525; SICA 1, 279; Album D6. Minor staining. Good VF. Extremely rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 13
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. temp 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan. AH 65-86 / AD 685-705. AR Drachm (23.5mm, 1.58 g, 9h). Without mint-name. Undated. Obverse field: Armoured bust to right, holding sheathed sword in right hand, with name of the Sasanian ruler Khusraw in Pahlawi to right and GDH APZWT ('may his glory increase' ) to left Obverse margin: bismillah la i- / laha illa Allah wa / hdahu Muhammad ra / [sul Allah] / Reverse field: Arch supported on columns, within which is a vertical barbed spear which has two pennants floating to the right just below the head; to right and left of the columns: khaqat (sic) Allah - amir al-mu'minin; to either side of the spear-shaft: nasr – Allah. Cf. Malek, Arab-Sasanian fig. 9.32.27; cf. Walker 1941, p.24, ANS.5 = Gaube 1973, 2.3.2.4. Clipped and with edge chips. Near VF. Excessively rare. One of the greatest rarities of the Arab-Sasanian series, the 'Mihrab and 'Anaza' drachm has been rightly described as 'extraordinary' (Grabar, O., The Formation of Islamic Art, revised and enlarged edition, Yale, 1987). As this name suggests, scholars have tended to focus on the remarkable image on the reverse, showing a lance or spear mounted within an arch. It was George Miles who first suggested that this represented the spear of the Prophet himself, set within a mihrab. Miles even suggested tentatively that the mihrab could be identified more specifically as the mihrab mujawwaf, or niche type, in which case this coin would be the earliest depiction of this important Islamic architectural feature. Later scholars have suggested other possibilities, however, and Luke Treadwell has pointed out that arches of this type are found on Christian and even Jewish coins also. Most scholars have assumed that this coin was struck at Damascus, the Umayyad capital, but there are good reasons for rejecting this view. While other experimental drachms issued at Damascus during the mid-70s/690s bear both mint and date, the present coin bears neither of these pieces of information. Of the available space on the obverse, the obvious place to include this information would have been to the right of the Sasanian bust (where it is found on Standing Caliph drachms dated AH 75). Instead, it was evidently felt more important to retain the name of the long-dead Khusraw II, written in Pahlawi, than to include the date and place of issue. This decision would make little sense for a coin struck at Damascus, which had not previously been part of the Sasanian empire. The inscription to the right of the mihrab on the reverse presents some problems. It has generally been interpreted as khalifat, 'caliph', with the long ī omitted and the final letter written as a t rather than a ta marbuta. The present coin offers an unpublished variety of this legend, and simply reads kh-f-t with the l also omitted. In spite of these orthographical difficulties, there seems little doubt that the word khalifat was intended, since the same word is also found, spelled similarly, beside the standing figure of the Caliph himself seen on drachms dated AH 75. But this presents another puzzle: why, on the present coin, is the phrase 'caliph of God' placed next to a depiction of a spear within an arch, rather than beside the armoured bust on the obverse? Closer examination of the composition of the 'mihrab and 'anaza' image may hint at an unexpected answer. The two pellets either side of the spearhead do not form an integral part of the design, but can be interpreted as the eyes of a hidden face, with the top of the arch as the headdress, the spearhead as the nose, and the tassels on the spear shaft forming a beard, with the vertical inscriptions either side of the shaft resembling the folds of a cloak. Whatever the intentions of the die-engraver, it is difficult to imagine that this face has only been seen by twenty-first century eyes. Another curious feature of the Mihrab and 'Anaza drachms is the large number of dies used. The seven specimens listed by Treadwell were struck from seven different obverse and six reverse dies, and the present coin adds yet another a new die pair to this total. While extremely rare today, this gives the impression of a coinage which was intended to be struck in quantity, and this seems at odds with the idea of this having been a short-lived, experimental type trialled briefly in Damascus. Furthermore, the portrait on the obverse is clearly different from the familiar crowned image of Khusraw II. It is clearly a military bust, wearing a helmet and holding a sheathed sword rather awkwardly, and with cross-hatching across his breast representing armour. These details are not found on drachms struck at Damascus between AH 72-75, but are paralleled on an extremely rare Arab-Hephthalite issue struck by Yazid b. Muhallab in AH 84. The reverse of this type features a standing warrior, equipped with chain-mail and armed with sword and spear, and wearing a distinctive domed, crested helmet which has clear similarities with that seen on the Mihrab and 'Anaza drachms. Support for this view comes from the fact that at least one surviving Mihrab and 'Anaza coin bears a Hephthalite countermark, indicating that these coins did indeed circulate in the East, thousands of miles from Damascus. On this analysis, there are good reasons for regarding the Mihrab and 'Anaza coinage as having been struck for a specific event in the context of a military campaign, rather than forming part of the sequence of experimental drachms produced at Damascus. The iconography of the Mihrab and 'Anaza drachm is clearly appropriate for a military coinage: an armoured bust on the obverse, helmeted and wearing a sword, and a barbed spear accompanied by the phrase 'Victory from God' on the reverse. If these coins were struck at a travelling mint accompanying an army on campaign, this might also account for the absence of a mint-name and a fixed date. Whether struck to play a role in an iconographic 'war of images' between Damascus and Byzantium, or issued as a physical expression of a military victory in the East, this extremely rare drachm surely merits Miles's description of 'a very valuable little archaeological document.'
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 14
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. temp. Qatari b. al-Fuja'a. AH 69-79 / AD 688-698. AR Drachm (27.1mm, 3.04 g, 9h). ART (Ardashir Khurra) mint. Dated AH 76 (AD 695/6). Obverse margin: - / bismillah • / la hukm illa lillah / - / Before bust, in place of governor's name: LWYTW DATWBR / BLA YYZTW ('There is no justice except from God'). Malek, Arab-Sasanian, p. 102 = Morton & Eden 54 (23 April 2012), lot 16 (same obverse die); SICA I -; Album 34. Some porosity in margin below bust (obverse) and in third quadrant (reverse) . Good VF. Extremely rare. Instead of a personal name, this issue carries a Middle Persian translation of the Arabic slogan in the obverse margin
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 15
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. al-Hajjaj b. Yusuf. AH 75-95 / AD 694-713. AR Drachm (31.4mm, 3.40 g, 3h). YZ (Yazd) mint. Dated AH 81 (AD 700/1). Obverse margin: - / • bismillah / MNSWL / - / Governor's name in Arabic. Malek, Arab-Sasanian 1321; SICA 1, 493 (same dies); Album 35.2. Smoothed in reverse margin between 8h and 10h. VF. Rare. The Pahlawi word in the third quadrant of the obverse margin is the name Mansur. It is now generally accepted that this is a personal name rather than a title meaning 'victorious'.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 16
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. al-Hajjaj b. Yusuf. AH 75-95 / AD 694-713. AR Drachm (31.2mm, 3.85 g, 3h). ART (Ardashir Khurra) mint. Dated AH 77 (AD 696/7). Obverse margin: bism / Allah // la i- / laha i- / lla A- // llah wa- / hdahu / Muhammad // rasu- / l A- / llah, arranged radially Obverse field: governor's name in Arabic before bust / Reverse: additional circle outside stars-and-crescents in margin. Malek, Arab-Sasanian 96 (same obverse die); SICA 1, p. 29; Album A35. Near VF. Extremely rare. Al-Hajjaj's attractive 'radial' drachms were issued at four mints: Bishapur, Ardashir Khurra, Jayy, and al-Mada'in. Bishapur and Ardashir Khurra used Pahlawi for the mint and date on the reverse, while Arabic was employed at Jayy and al-Mada'in. Drachms of this type from all mints except Bishapur are extremely rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 17
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Abd al-Rahman b. Muhammad (Ibn al-Ash'ath). fl. AH 80-84 / AD 700-703. AR Drachm (30.7mm, 3.29 g, 3h). ST (Istakhr) mint. Dated AH 82 (AD 701/2). Obverse margin: - / bismillah / MNSWL / - Obverse field: 'Abd al-Rahman / bin Muhammad before bust. Malek, Arab-Sasanian p. 212 = Gaube pl. 4, 41; SICA 1, -; Album 38. Corrosion and minor edge losses between 3h and 9h in obverse margin. Good VF. Extremely rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 18
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian. Ubaydallah b. 'Abd al-Rahman. fl. AH 83-84 / AD 702-703. AR Drachm (30.2mm, 4.05 g, 3h). KLMAN (Kirman) mint. Obverse margin: - / 'amr Allah bi'l-Wafa ∵ / - / - / Malek, Arab-Sasanian p. 161 = SICA 1, p. 39 ('apparently unique') = Gaube 81; Album B40. VF, toned. Excessively rare. Ex CNG 114 (13 May 2020), lot 1084.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 19
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Sasanian copper issues. Æ Fals (20.1mm, 3.36 g, 7h). Kirman mint. Dated AH 95 (AD 713/4). Obverse: In four lines: bismillah / duriba bi-Kirman / sanat khams / wa tisa'in / Reverse: Five-line Pahlawi legend, with mint-name KLMAN in third line. Malek 1415 = Stephen Album Rare Coins 31 (17 May 2018), lot 185. Some staining on obverse. Near Fine. Extremely rare. The Pahlawi legend on the reverse has not been securely read, but seems to be a direct translation of the Arabic mint and date legend on the obverse
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 20
Pre-reform issues, Arab-Armenian. Muhammad b. Marwan. Circa AH 80 / AD 700. AR Drachm/Zuzun (25.4mm, 3.19 g, 3h). AY mint (possibly Dabil). Dated 'year 4'. Obverse margin: - / wafin / - / - Obverse field: bust of Khusraw II right, Pahlawi mhmt before. Album F97; Sears 9ff. Good VF. Rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Islamic Auction 3 . 21
Pre-reform issues, Ghuzz Rulers of Syr Darya. 'Abdallah b. Tahir. AH 213-230 / AD 828-844. AR Drachm (23.8mm, 1.14 g, 7h). Without mint-name. Undated. Obverse: Bust to right, with name of 'Abdallah b. Tahir in Arabic before / Reverse: Horseman riding right, holding bow; Namij Jabuya above horse's rump. Goncharov & Nastich Type II; Album 100.2. Dark toning. VF. Very rare. Ex Morton & Eden 73 (23 April 2015), lot 14.