Item number: A1330

Year: AD 1220-1221 (AH 617)

Material: Gold

Size: 25.9 x 26.9 mm

Weight: 5.85 g

Manufactured by: al-Mawsil Mint

Provenance: Heritage Auctions 2024

This is a gold dinar minted in the year AH 617 (AD 1220–1221) during the reign of Nasir ad-Din Mahmud, the ruler of the Mosul Emirate under the Zengid dynasty.

The obverse of the gold dinar features the first part of the Islamic shahada, “اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ” (There is no deity but Allah, He is One, and has no partner). It also includes the name of the Abbasid Caliph al-Nasir li-Din Allah (الناصر لدين الله), who, despite the declining power of the Abbasid Caliphate, continued to serve as a significant religious authority. Additional inscriptions provide the coin’s date in the Hijri calendar and its mint location, Mosul. Surrounding the central text is an Arabic inscription of the Basmala: “بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ” (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful), which is traditionally recited by Muslims at the start of prayers and various acts of worship.

The reverse of the gold dinar features a similar design style to the obverse but incorporates an additional beaded circle between the inscriptions as a decorative element. At the centre is the second part of the Islamic shahada, “محمد رسول الله” (Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah), along with the name and title of the Zengid ruler of the Mosul Emirate, Nasir ad-Din Mahmud (ناصر الدين محمود). The outer circular inscription includes the name and title of the overlord of the Mosul Emirate at the time, the fifth Sultan of the Ayyubid dynasty, al-Kamil Muhammad (الكامل محمّد الملك). This hierarchical structure in the inscriptions reflects the political relationship between the Mosul Emirate and the Ayyubid Sultanate.

From the inscriptions on this coin, which feature the names of rulers from three different polities, one can glimpse the intricate interplay between religion and politics in the Islamic world. Coins in the Islamic world were not merely tools of commerce; they also carried significant political and religious implications. These included the concept of “Sikka”, the right to mint coins bearing one’s name, symbolising sovereign authority, and “Khutbah”, the Friday sermon in which the ruler’s name was proclaimed to the congregation, serving as both a religious endorsement and a public affirmation of political legitimacy. Together, these elements illustrate how the minting of coins intertwined with the broader mechanisms of power and influence in the Islamic world.

The Zengid Dynasty was established in AD 1127 by Imad ad-Din Zengi, a leader of the Oghuz Turks, whose domain spanned across areas of Iraq and Syria. The Zengids repeatedly challenged the Crusader states, particularly the Crusader kingdom centred in Jerusalem. After Imad ad-Din Zengi’s death, the kingdom was divided between his two sons: his eldest son took control of Mosul, while the second son ruled Aleppo. Nasir ad-Din Mahmud was the last ruler of the Mosul Emirate, ascending to the throne at the age of three, leading to power being largely in the hands of the vizier, Badr al-Din Lu’lu’. In AD 1234, Badr al-Din Lu’lu’ assassinated the young Nasir ad-Din Mahmud, who was only eighteen, and took over as the new ruler of Mosul.

物件編號: A1330

年代: 公元 1220-1221 年 (回曆 617 年)

材質: 黃金

尺寸: 25.9 x 26.9 mm

重量: 5.85 g

製造地: 摩蘇爾造幣廠

來源: 海瑞德拍賣行 2024

這是一枚回曆617年(公元1220至1221年)，贊吉王朝的摩蘇爾酋長國統治者納賽爾·阿爾丁·馬哈茂德鑄造的第納爾金幣。

金幣的正面打印著穆斯林熟悉的清真言前半段「اللهُوَحْدَهُلَاشَرِيكَلَهُ」即「萬物非主，唯有真主，真主獨一」。還有彼時國力已經大不如前，但是仍在宗教上扮演權威的阿拔斯帝國哈里發納賽爾的名諱「الناصر لدين」。除此之外，尚有錢幣鑄造的回曆年份和鑄造地點是摩蘇爾等資訊。正面周圍環繞的阿拉伯銘文是穆斯林作為禱告開頭的「太斯米」其內容為「بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ‎」，意思是「奉至仁至慈的真主之名」。

金幣背面則是類似的設計風格，但是在銘文之間追加一道珠圈作為風格。正中央的銘文是清真言後半段「محمد رسول الله」即「穆罕默德是真主唯一的使者」，以及摩蘇爾酋長國統治者納賽爾·阿爾丁·馬哈茂德的名諱「ناصر الدين محمود」和頭銜。外圍的環形銘文則是彼時摩蘇爾酋長國的宗主國阿尤布王朝第五任蘇丹卡米勒的名諱「الكامل محمّد الملك‎」和頭銜。

從這一枚錢幣的銘文出現三個不同政權的統治者出發，人們得以一窺伊斯蘭世界結合宗教和政治的複雜權力關係。錢幣在伊斯蘭世界不僅扮演貿易的媒介，還包含「希卡」即能否鑄造有自己名字的錢幣，以及每周五主麻日得以被眾人讚頌的「呼圖白」等政治和宗教意涵。

贊吉王朝為烏古斯人伊馬德丁·贊吉在公元1127年建立的王朝，其勢力橫跨伊拉克和敘利亞等地，並且多次挑戰以耶路薩冷為中心的十字軍國家。伊馬德丁·贊吉死後，王國分裂為長子統領的摩蘇爾和次子掌握的阿勒坡政權。納賽爾·阿爾丁·馬哈茂德是摩蘇爾酋長國末代統治者以三歲幼齡繼位，故大權旁落在權臣巴德爾·丁·露露手中。公元1234年，巴德爾·丁·露露謀殺年僅十八歲的納賽爾·阿爾丁·馬哈茂德，就此成為摩蘇爾的新統治者。