Item number: A2024

Year: AD 998-999 (AH 389)

Material: Silver

Size: 16.7 x 15.7 x 1.4 mm

Weight: 2.9 g

Manufactured by: Farawan, Iran

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2015

This is a dirham silver coin issued in Hijri year 389 (AD 998–999) by Mahmud, the founder of the Ghaznavid dynasty, who at the time still recognised the Samanid dynasty as his suzerain but was on the verge of establishing himself as sultan.

The obverse of the coin features a five-line Arabic inscription, arranged from top to bottom as follows: “لا اله الا” and “الله وحده” (“There is no deity but God, the One”), “لا شريك له” (“None can be compared to Him”), “الطائع لله” (“Al-Ṭāʾiʿ li-llāh,” the 23rd Abbasid Caliph), and “فروان” (“Farawan”). Farawan is the minting location of this coin, situated in present-day Semnan Province, northeastern Iran.

The reverse of the coin bears a six-line inscription, arranged from top to bottom as follows: “لله” (“For God”), “محمد رسول” (“Muhammad is the Messenger [of God]”), “الله منصور” (“Victory belongs to God”), “بن نوح” (“Ibn Nūḥ,” referring to Nuḥ II, the amir of the Samanid dynasty), “سيف الدوله” (“Sayf al-Dawla,” meaning “Sword of the State,” a title bestowed upon Mahmud by the Samanids), and “محمود” (“Mahmud”). Surrounding the central text is a circular inscription from the Qur’an, though it is no longer legible due to the coin’s age.

Mahmud was the son of Sabuktigin, the founder of the dynasty. During the late Samanid period, Sabuktigin established himself as a semi-independent power based in the Ghazni region. After Sabuktigin’s death, Mahmud engaged in a brief internal conflict with his siblings before emerging as his father’s successor. He subsequently declared full independence from the Samanid suzerainty. Beyond consolidating his rule, Mahmud later played a key role in the downfall of the Samanid dynasty and launched multiple jihad campaigns into northern India, plundering the Hindu kingdoms of the region.

物件編號: A2024

年代: 公元 998-999 年 (回曆 389 年)

材質: 銀

尺寸: 16.7 x 15.7 x 1.4 mm

重量: 2.9 g

製造地: 法拉萬，伊朗

來源: 大城郵幣社 2015

這是一枚回曆389年 (公元998-999年)，彼時仍奉薩曼王朝為宗主國，但是即將自立為蘇丹的加茲尼王朝開創者馬哈茂德所發行的迪拉姆銀幣。

錢幣正面有五行阿拉伯銘文，從上而下依序是「لا اله الا」和「الله  وحده 」(萬物非主，唯有真主)、「لا شريك له」(無人能與之比擬)、「الطائع لله」(塔伊，阿拔斯帝國第二十三代哈里發) 和「فروان」(法拉萬)。法拉萬是這枚錢幣的鑄造地點，位於今日伊朗東北部的塞姆南省境內。

錢幣背面則有六行銘文，從上而下依序是「لله」(阿拉)、「محمد رسول」(穆罕默德是真主的使者)、「الله منصور」(真主的勝利)、「بن نوح 」(努阿二世，薩曼王朝的埃米爾)、「سيف الدوله」(國家之劍，薩曼王朝賦予馬哈茂德的頭銜) 和「محمود」(馬哈茂德)。周圍則有環形的《古蘭經》經文，惜因年代久遠已無法辨識。

馬哈茂德為王朝奠基者蘇布克特勤的兒子，蘇布克特勤在薩曼王朝末年以加茲尼地區為據點成為半獨立勢力。蘇布克特勤過世後，馬哈茂德和手足經過短暫的內戰成為父親的接班人，並且正式宣布獨立脫離宗主國薩曼王朝。馬哈茂德後續消滅薩曼王朝外，也多次向北印度發起聖戰掠奪當地的印度教王國。