Baldwin's of St. James's
Auction 10 22 Sep 2017
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Islamic Coins, Harthamid, Rafi'i b. Harthama (268-283h), gold dinar, al-Muhammadiya 278h, wt. 4.23gms. (A.A1396; Bern.208Mh), good very fine and extremely rare
Rafi'i b. Harthama was a vigorous participant in the game of 'musical chairs' which was played out in Iran in the third century of the Hijra. He was the only member of his family to be acknowledged numismatically. On this coin he is known as al-Mansur (the Victor), an epithet that was probably given to him after his victory over the 'Alid of Tabaristan, Muhammad bin Ziyad. This hypothesis is confirmed by the presence of the Conquest or Victory Surah, number 48, in the obverse margin of this Dinar – 'We have indeed granted you a manifest victory so that God may pardon you your sins of the past and the future and may perfect His blessing upon you'. After the death of the last Tahirid in 268h/882 CE, Rafi'i claimed Khurasan, and attempted a resurgence in central Iran. However, he was ultimately driven out and killed by the Saffarids in 283h. (8000-10000 GBP)
Rafi'i b. Harthama was a vigorous participant in the game of 'musical chairs' which was played out in Iran in the third century of the Hijra. He was the only member of his family to be acknowledged numismatically. On this coin he is known as al-Mansur (the Victor), an epithet that was probably given to him after his victory over the 'Alid of Tabaristan, Muhammad bin Ziyad. This hypothesis is confirmed by the presence of the Conquest or Victory Surah, number 48, in the obverse margin of this Dinar – 'We have indeed granted you a manifest victory so that God may pardon you your sins of the past and the future and may perfect His blessing upon you'. After the death of the last Tahirid in 268h/882 CE, Rafi'i claimed Khurasan, and attempted a resurgence in central Iran. However, he was ultimately driven out and killed by the Saffarids in 283h. (8000-10000 GBP)