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Almoravid Dynasty
Ishaq Ibn Ali
Gold Dinar
穆拉比特王朝
伊沙克·本·阿里
金第納爾
Item number: A1477
Year: AD 1146-1147 (AH 541)
Material: Gold
Size: 24.3 x 24.3 mm
Weight: 4.15 g
Manufactured by: Marrakech, Morocco
Provenance: Stack’s Bowers 2024
This is a gold dinar minted in the year AH 541 (AD 1146–1147) during the decline of the Almoravid dynasty, which once spanned the Maghreb region of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. The coin was issued by the dynasty’s fifth and final caliph, Ishaq ibn Ali.
The obverse of the gold coin features two concentric circles, inscribed in a Maghrebi variant of Kufic script, a localised form of Arabic calligraphy. At the centre is the Islamic profession of faith, the Shahada: “لا اله الا الله محمد رسول الله” (There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God). Below the Shahada, the coin bears the name and titles of Ishaq ibn Ali, rendered as “امير المسلمين اسحق” (Amir, Commander of the Faithful, Ishaq), followed by “بن علي بن يوسف” (Son of Ali ibn Yusuf). Ali ibn Yusuf, the second ruler of the dynasty, was Ishaq’s father.
The outer circular inscription on the coin is an excerpt from the Quran, Surah Al-Imran (3:85): “ومن يبتغي غير الإسلام ديناً فلن يُقبل منه وهو في الآخرة من الخاسرين” (And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter, he will be among the losers).
The reverse of the gold coin also features two concentric circles. At the centre are inscriptions emphasising the ruler’s religious authority, including the titles “الامام” (Al-Imam, The Leader), “عبد الله” (Abd Allah, Servant of God), and “أمير المؤمنين العدل” (Amir al-Mu’minin al-Adl, Commander of the Faithful, The Just). The outer circular inscription provides details of the coin’s minting, reading: “بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بمراكش عام أحد وأربعين وخمسمائة” (In the name of God, this dinar was struck in Marrakech in the year AH 541). Marrakech, one of the most significant cities in Morocco, served as the political and administrative centre of the Almoravid dynasty.
The Almoravid dynasty was an Islamic empire established by the Sanhaja Berbers of North Africa in the 11th century. At its peak, the dynasty controlled the Maghreb region of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. Due to its dominance over the trans-Saharan gold trade, which linked West Africa with the Mediterranean, the Almoravid dinar became widely accepted in both Europe and the Islamic world.
Ishaq ibn Ali was the uncle of the fourth caliph, Ibrahim ibn Tashfin. In AD 1147, Ishaq ibn Ali launched a coup to depose the young Ibrahim ibn Tashfin and declared himself the new caliph. However, by this time, the Almoravid dynasty was already on the brink of collapse, facing the mounting threat of the rival Almohad dynasty. In April AD 1147, the Almohads captured the capital, Marrakech, killing both Ishaq and Ibrahim, thereby bringing an end to the Almoravid dynasty’s rule.
金幣正面有兩道同心圓,以本土化的阿拉伯庫法書法變體「馬格里布體」,於正中央打印穆斯林熟悉的清真言禱詞「لا اله الا الله محمد رسول الله」即「萬物非主,唯有真主,穆罕默德是真主唯一的使者」。下半部是伊沙克·本·阿里的名諱和頭銜「امير المسلمين اسحق 」(埃米爾 信士的指揮官 伊沙克) 和「بن علي بن يوسف」(阿里·本·優素福之子)。阿里·本·優素福為王朝的第二任統治者也是伊沙克的父親。
外圍的環形銘文摘錄自《古蘭經3:85》「ومن يبتغي غير الإسلام ديناً فلن يُقبل منه وهو في الآخرة من الخاسرين」,意思是「舍伊斯蘭教而尋求別的宗教的人,他所尋求的宗教,絕不被接受,他在後世,是虧折的」。
金幣背面亦有兩道同心圓,於正中央打印「الامام」(伊瑪目)、「عبد الله」(阿不都阿拉) 和「أمير المؤمنين العدل 」(信士的指揮官,正義) 等凸顯統治者宗教權威的頭銜。外圍的環形銘文則描述這枚錢幣的鑄造時間和地點「بسم الله ضرب هذا الدينار بمراكش عام أحد وأربعين وخمسمائة」(奉真主之名,這一枚第納爾於回曆541年鑄造於馬拉喀什)。馬拉喀什是摩洛哥最重要的城市之一,也是穆拉比特王朝的統治中心。
Ronald A. Messier, “The Almoravids: West African Gold and the Gold Currency of the Mediterranean Basin,” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 1974, pp. 31-47
Ronald A. Messier, “Quantitative Analysis of Almoravid Dinars,” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 1980, pp. 102-118