Watch List notes:

QARMATID, UNCERTAIN ISSUER Dirham, Tabariya 358h Obverse: In field: la ilaha illa | Allah wahdahu | la sharik lahu | al-Sadat | al-Rusa | Qara (?) Reverse: In field: lillah | Muhammad | rasul Allah | Sala Allah 'alayhi | wa 'ala Allah | al-Muti' lillah | ra – kaf Weight: 3.09g Reference: cf Vardanyan 5 [dated 359h] Struck off-centre, fine to good fine for issue and of the highest rarity, apparently unpublished. The legends on this unpublished coin, which appears to be the earliest known Qarmatid issue from Tabariya, are similar to those on coins struck in the following year except for the enigmatic letters below the fields on each side. The significance of these is unclear. It is possible that Qara..., if correctly read, might be part of a personal name similar to the well-known Qaratekin seen on Samanid coins (it surely cannot be short for Qaramita?), although it has not been possible to identify a plausible candidate. The letters on the reverse could equally be zain and dal rather than ra and kaf as given here.

(1500-2000 GBP)