Dr. Busso Peus Nachf.
Auction 428 28-29 Apr 2021
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Arab-Byzantine Coins
Under 'Abd al-Malik, ca. 74-77 H/694-698 AD Dinar, uncertain North African mint (Carthage?). NON EST DEUS NI]SI IPSE SOLOL CIS ET (truncated and garbled version of Non est Deus nisi ipse solus cui socius non est), crowned and draped facing male busts (Heraclius and Heraclius Constantine), the left bearded, each crown topped by trefoil ornament (originally crosses) / [...] LM ET OMMINNAV (truncated and garbled version of Deus dominus noster sapiens magnus eternus omnia noscens), T (truncated cross) on three steps. Wilkes 143. 4.30 g.; Very rare About Extremely Fine
From a German Private Collection, formed between 1970 and 1990.
Carthage fell to the Arabs in AD 695 and changed hands twice over the next five years before its final destruction around 698. Under the reign of the Heraclii (610-641) Carthage minted a large number of the characteristic, particularly thick solidi (and their fractions) with facing busts on the obverse and the cross potent on the reverse. Due to their widespread use in the region, these coins formed the model of the present coin, of which only a few are known. With a Latinized version of the Islamic Declaration of Faith (the Shahada), which differs slightly from the "canonical" form that was later adopted on the coinage of Caliph 'Abd al-Malik (the legends mean: There is no god but the one who has no associate) / God, our Wise Lord, the Great, the Eternal, the All-Knowing), it represents a fascinating time in early Islamic history. The use of Latin instead of Arabic immediately shows the interest of the Arab conquerors in preserving a familiar coinage while at the same time removing Christian symbolism (both the crosses on obverse and reverse have been mutilated).
Under 'Abd al-Malik, ca. 74-77 H/694-698 AD Dinar, uncertain North African mint (Carthage?). NON EST DEUS NI]SI IPSE SOLOL CIS ET (truncated and garbled version of Non est Deus nisi ipse solus cui socius non est), crowned and draped facing male busts (Heraclius and Heraclius Constantine), the left bearded, each crown topped by trefoil ornament (originally crosses) / [...] LM ET OMMINNAV (truncated and garbled version of Deus dominus noster sapiens magnus eternus omnia noscens), T (truncated cross) on three steps. Wilkes 143. 4.30 g.; Very rare About Extremely Fine
From a German Private Collection, formed between 1970 and 1990.
Carthage fell to the Arabs in AD 695 and changed hands twice over the next five years before its final destruction around 698. Under the reign of the Heraclii (610-641) Carthage minted a large number of the characteristic, particularly thick solidi (and their fractions) with facing busts on the obverse and the cross potent on the reverse. Due to their widespread use in the region, these coins formed the model of the present coin, of which only a few are known. With a Latinized version of the Islamic Declaration of Faith (the Shahada), which differs slightly from the "canonical" form that was later adopted on the coinage of Caliph 'Abd al-Malik (the legends mean: There is no god but the one who has no associate) / God, our Wise Lord, the Great, the Eternal, the All-Knowing), it represents a fascinating time in early Islamic history. The use of Latin instead of Arabic immediately shows the interest of the Arab conquerors in preserving a familiar coinage while at the same time removing Christian symbolism (both the crosses on obverse and reverse have been mutilated).