Watch List notes:

UNCERTAIN DYNASTY, 'UBAYD ALLAH B. ZUHAYR (?). Gold dinar, without mint or date. OBVERSE: Crowned Sasanian bust right, within cross-hatched border; To right: 'Ubayd... | Zuhayr. REVERSE: Sasanian fire-altar flanked by attendants, within cross-hatched border; To left barakat; to right: min Allah. WEIGHT: 1.73g. CONDITION: Severely double-struck, minor edge damage and some staining from atmospheric damage, fine and of the highest rarity, apparently unpublished and believed unique. It has long been doubted whether any gold coins of Arab-Sasanian type were ever struck. Discussing the question in the introduction to Volume 1 of Sylloge of Islamic Coins in the Ashmolean, Stephen Album was 'led to conclude that there appears not to have been any gold coinage in the Arab-Sasanian series.' Two purported dinars held by the British Museum are considered by Album to be crude casts made for jewellery in the nineteenth century (an opinion shared by Walker before him). Another piece, which surfaced in a Russian collection during the nineteenth century and which purports to be a gold coin of 'Abdallah b. Khazim issued at Marw in 70h, appears to be of ancient manufacture but is of coarse style and, in Album's view, best regarded as an ancient imitation or jewellery piece. Album did not exclude the possibility that Arab-Sasanian gold coins might have been struck, noting that the historians al-Baladhuri and Ibn Khaldun both claim that Mus'ab b. al-Zubayr, whose silver drachms are well-known today, also issued gold dinars. But if such coins ever were struck, none are known to have survived. Album correctly points out that little Sasanian gold coinage was produced after the reign of Peroz (AD457-484), except for a few small-scale issues made for presentation purposes. It was the silver drachms which formed the backbone of the Sasanian monetary economy, and which the Muslims allowed mint-cities to continue striking. There was no economic need or precedent for an Arab-Sasanian gold coinage, and with the abolition of the Sasanian court there was now no ceremonial reason either. The Umayyad capital was established far away at Damascus, and it was the local Byzantine solidi which would provide the prototypes for the first Islamic gold coins struck there. The introduction of a standardized and reformed Islamic precious metal coinage in 77/78h made the Arab-Sasanian drachm obsolete both in design and metrology. Over the next few years production gradually ceased, so that by 84/85h silver coins of Arab-Sasanian type were only being issued on the fringes of the Islamic world where local custom and preference still made this necessary. The best-known examples are Tabaristan, where the well-known series of silver hemidrachms bearing the names of local governors lasted until circa 200h, and Sistan, where base silver drachms seem to have survived for a couple of decades longer. Less well known are the Ghuzz Turks of Syr Darya, who struck a series of distinctive silver drachms during the opening years of the 3rd century (lots 8-10). The style, fabric and calligraphy of the present dinar, however, have very little in common with the neatly-engraved Tabaristan hemidrachms, and it seems more likely that it is associated either with the local coinage of Sistan or with the silver drachms of the Ghuzz. Because of the double-striking on the obverse of this dinar, the name on the obverse is very difficult to interpret. 'Ubayd Allah b. Zuhayr would seem to fit the Kufic script, but no individual of this name appears to be attested (although Muhammad b. Zuhayr is known from the local coinage of Sistan). Another possibility might be 'Abdallah ibn Tahir, the governor of Khurasan who served from 215-230h; this is a less satisfactory fit with the poorly-preserved legend on the coin, but would then link it with the Ghuzz issues on which his name is also found. There are other stylistic similarities between this coin and the Ghuzz drachms, not merely in the calligraphy but in the cross-hatched pattern seen on the border of this dinar, which recalls the crown or circlet seen on the ruler's head on the silver coins. If the weight is significant, it may also be noted that this dinar is heavier than contemporary Ghuzz silver drachms - and allowing for losses through damage would appear to maintain the 7:10 ratio between the weights of dirhams and dinars elsewhere in the Islamic world. On the other hand, the reverse legend, barakat min Allah, 'A blessing from God,' is found on a few rare Eastern Sistan drachms, although this would seem appropriate for any presentation issue and need not imply a Sistani origin. It is not at all surprising that the gold and silver coinage of the Ghuzz should have been different in design. Discussing the Sasanian prototypes, Album wrote, 'The gold coinage of Khusraw I, Varahran VI and especially Khusraw II and Queen Boran is...typologically utterly different from contemporary silver coinage. I would expect the same to be true of any genuine Arab-Sasanian gold coinage, were such things to exist.' (SICA 1, p.39). Although almost certainly struck long after the main line of Arab-Sasanian coinage came to an end, this remarkable coin now proves Album's view entirely correct. It is of the highest importance as being the only ancient gold coin of Arab-Sasanian type known to have survived to the present day.
(30000-50000 GBP)