Item number: A3588

Year: circa AD 650-712

Material: Silver

Size: 32.2 x 31.1 x 0.5 mm

Weight: 3.8 g

Manufactured by: Stakhr Mint

Provenance: Stephen Album Rare Coins 2025

This is a silver drachm, probably struck by the Western Turkic Khaganate in imitation of the coinage of the Sasanian monarch Khosrow II.

The obverse depicts a right-facing bust of Khosrow II wearing a rounded crown with wings at either side and a crescent surmounting the crown, supporting a star or solar emblem. On the left shoulder appears a sun symbol, on the right a crescent, while the crown itself is flanked by a star to the left and a star-in-crescent motif to the right. Along the right-hand side of the bust, arranged vertically to be read from the right (rotated 270 degrees), is the Pahlavi legend 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩 (hwsrudy), transcribing “Khusro.” To the left is 𐭯𐭫𐭥𐭰𐭩 (pylwci), corresponding to the epithet “Parviz,” literally “the victorious.” The central design is framed by a double rope-pattern border, while at the four external points are outward-facing star-in-crescent symbols. At the lower right is the legend 𐭠𐭯𐭣 (apd), possibly standing for 𐭠𐭯𐭩𐭣 (afid), with the sense of “praise.” At the upper right is a countermark, perhaps representing a winged lion or a bird.

The reverse shows a Zoroastrian fire altar, its shaft adorned with fluttering ribbons. Above the altar flames appear a sun to the left and a crescent to the right. On either side stands an attendant, their headdress decorated with an upward-facing crescent, and each holding a long sword inverted with the point resting on the ground. To the right of the altar is the inscription 𐭮𐭲 (st) or 𐭠𐭲 (t’), the former indicating Stakhr (modern Istakhr in Fars), the latter Atrapatan (Atropatene, roughly corresponding to modern Azerbaijan), both functioning as mint signatures. To the left is the legend 𐭮𐭩𐭰𐭮𐭩𐭧 (syčsyh), denoting regnal year thirty-three. The design is enclosed by a triple rope-pattern border, with outward-facing star-in-crescent motifs at the four external points.

Khosrow II, who reigned from AD 590 to 628, was the last powerful shahanshah of the Sasanian dynasty. His reign brought the empire to its greatest territorial and political extent, yet also heralded its collapse. Son of Hormizd IV, he ascended the throne after his father’s deposition, but was soon overthrown by the general Bahram Chobin and forced to flee to Byzantium. With the support of Emperor Maurice, he regained power and forged a close alliance with the Byzantine court. However, after Maurice’s murder, Khosrow launched a war of vengeance, during which Sasanian forces captured Syria, Egypt, and much of Asia Minor, extending the empire to unprecedented limits. These early triumphs were later overturned by the bold counter-offensive of Emperor Heraclius, who in AD 627 defeated the Persians at Nineveh. Soon after, Khosrow was overthrown in a palace coup by his son Kavadh II, who sought peace with Byzantium. The empire, weakened by war and internal strife, entered a period of turmoil and decline.

The Western Turkic Khaganate emerged after the division of the Turkic Khaganate, forming in the late sixth to early seventh centuries as a confederation of tribes in Central Asia, ruling over regions corresponding to modern southern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. During the reign of Shegui Khagan in the early seventh century, its power reached a peak, controlling Transoxiana and Sogdian city-states. During the Zhenguan era of the Tang, Dulu Khagan had relations with the Tang court, but later tensions increased. After his death in AD 653, the confederation fractured, and Ashina Helu proclaimed himself khagan. In AD 657, Tang general Su Dingfang defeated Helu, who was forced to surrender, after which the Western Turks were nominally subordinated to Tang authority. The Tang established the Anxi and Beiting protectorates to govern the western regions, incorporating areas such as Kucha and Kashgar. Nevertheless, Western Turkic remnants continued to resist, and Helu later rebelled again, defeating Tang forces in AD 679. Thereafter the khaganate never regained its former strength. By the early eighth century, with the Umayyad Caliphate expanding eastward and new tribal groups such as the Turgesh and Karluks rising to prominence, the Western Turkic tribal confederation disintegrated and ceased to exist as an independent polity.

物件編號: A3588

年代: 約公元 650-712 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 32.2 x 31.1 x 0.5 mm

重量: 3.8 g

製造地: 斯塔赫爾造幣廠 (今伊什塔克爾)

來源: 史蒂芬稀有錢幣專輯 2025

這是一枚可能由西突厥汗國，仿波斯薩珊王朝霍斯勞二世鑄幣，所造的1德拉克馬銀幣。

錢幣的正面是霍斯勞二世右側半身像，頭戴圓冠，上方兩側有翼，正上方有托舉星辰或太陽的新月。半身像肩上左側有太陽，右側有新月圖樣，頭冠左側則是星辰，右側則是新月孕星圖樣。肖像右側由上至下，為右讀(旋轉270度)的缽羅婆文(或譯巴列維文，Pahlavi script)「𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩」(hwsrudy)，譯為「霍斯勞」，左側應為「𐭯𐭫𐭥𐭰𐭩」(pylwci)，即為其稱號「帕維斯」原文，意譯為「勝利的」。雙層繩紋狀紋飾環繞幣圖，外側四方則各有一開口向外的星月孕星圖案。右下有「𐭠𐭯𐭣」(apd)，可能是「𐭠𐭯𐭩𐭣」(afid)，意為「稱讚」。右上有一戳記，可能為翼獅或飛鳥。

背面是祆教拜火聖壇，中央壇柱飾有飛舞漂浮的緞帶，壇柱上方聖焰左右側各飾以太陽與新月。兩側各有一侍從，帽以仰月為飾，雙手倒持長劍柱地。幣圖右側有「𐭮𐭲」(st)或「𐭠𐭲」(t’)，前為「斯塔赫爾」(Stakhr，今伊什塔克爾)後為「阿特羅帕特干」(Atrapatan，今亞塞拜然)的簡寫，標示其製造地。左側文字為「𐭮𐭩𐭰𐭮𐭩𐭧」(syčsyh)，標示發行年為王曆三十三年。三層繩紋狀紋飾環繞幣圖，外側四方則各有一開口向外的星月孕星圖案。

霍斯勞二世(Khosrow II)，約西元590至628年間在位，是薩珊王朝最後一位強盛的沙阿，其統治期間，帝國臻至極盛，又由盛轉衰。他是霍爾米茲德四世之子，父王遭廢黜後繼位，不久卻被將軍巴赫拉姆·楚賓推翻，被迫流亡至拜占庭。在拜占庭皇帝莫里斯的支持下，他重新奪回王位，並與東羅馬建立密切聯盟。然而當莫里斯被弒後，霍斯勞以復仇為名向拜占庭發動戰爭，薩珊軍隊一度攻佔敘利亞、埃及與小亞細亞，將帝國疆域推至前所未有的廣度。這場戰爭初期大獲全勝，但拜占庭皇帝希拉克略後來展開大膽反攻，於西元627年尼尼微會戰擊敗薩珊軍，其子喀瓦德二世弒君叛亂，向拜占庭求和，帝國也由此陷入內亂與分裂。

西突厥汗國是突厥汗國分裂後於西域建立的重要政權，約在6世紀末至7世紀初成形，其統治範圍涵蓋今哈薩克南部、吉爾吉斯、烏茲別克及塔吉克一帶。乙毗射匱可汗在位時(約7世紀前期)，勢力一度強盛，控制河中與粟特城邦。貞觀年間，乙毗咄陸可汗與唐朝互有往來，但後來關係惡化。乙毗咄陸於公元653年去世後，汗國陷入分裂，阿史那賀魯自立為汗。顯慶二年(657年)，唐將蘇定方率軍在擊破賀魯，迫其降服，西突厥自此名義上歸附唐朝。唐廷在天山以西設安西與北庭都護府，將龜茲、疏勒等地納入體制。但西突厥殘餘部眾仍然活躍，賀魯後來又復叛，唐與之戰於公元679年失利，但大勢不改。此後西突厥勢力雖時有餘緒，但已難復舊觀。公元八世紀初，隨著奧瑪雅王朝東進與突騎施、葛邏祿等新興部族崛起，西突厥舊有的部落聯盟逐漸瓦解。