I was wondering if it could be Safavid?
Size: 16mm
Weight: 2.14gr
Dear maudry, I think your coin is:
Safavids, Shah Tahmasp I, AR 1/2 Shahi, Sari mint (AH 930-984/1524-1576 AD)
Obverse (Second photo):
Shiite Kalima: لا اله الا الله محمد رسول الله علی ولی الله , La ilah illa Allah / Muhammad rasul Allah 'Ali wali Allah, meaning, "no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God, 'Ali is the chosen one of God"
Reverse (First photo):
Mint inside a center circle, ضرب سارى Struck in Sari, his title around in margin.
Rare mint Sari (main city of Mazandaran), beautiful calligraphy.
Maythem
Thank you Maythem.
Marc
A beautiful and with no doubt a rare coin :applause: but I am not so certain that's a Safavid coin... :-\
The kalima (with a separating ornament) doesn't appear to be the shiite formula ? even off-centered I think that there is no room for " 'Ali wali Allah ".
instead, at bottom I would read (curiously..) "zarb ضرب " and on the other face, in center : " ب ساري " which is also somewhat weird; "zarb b Sari" could be more of turkish style?
The visible part of the circular legend (with something like " ... بهی الملک ال ..." is also puzzling and hardly linkable with a ruler's title.
A suggestion (and no more..) : Aq Quyunlu or a late Qara Quyunlu struck at Sari???
Thank you Saro, I was in doubt about this coin. I tried hard to find one like it, but could not, so I went by the style and assumed it is Safavid coin. But I agree with you now it is not Safavid coin. I am glad you agreed on the Mint Sari, it is clear " ضرب سارى ".
Maythem
I think that the mystery is off...
I was not completely satisfied with the reading of the central text as being "Sari"... and indeed, not sure it was a mintname :-\ which should have been better expected after "zarb" on the other face.
In fact it's the ruler's name : "Barsbay / برسبای ", a Mamluk ruler (825-841 AH) / a coin (from type) which has been struck at Halab (Alep).
Some coins are listed on Zeno (1/2 and 1 dirham) , see here (https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=124524) and here (https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=260864)
Mamluks, Barsbay (825-841 AH) / dirham of Halab mint
:applause: :coinsilver: :applause:
This sketch gives the circular legend present on this coin : "... al-mulk al-ashraf... الملک الاسرف " (full title : al-ashraf Sayf al-din Barsbay)
The strange word I took for "bhi / بهی " was in fact an ornament ::)... clearly seen on one of the Zeno coin
On the other face "zarb" is at bottom and the mintname is at top but is out of flan here.
Dear Saro, you have done a wonderful job on this coin, the details of this coin:
Mamluks, Al-Ashraf Sayf al-Din Barsbay, ¾ Dirham, no Date, Dimashq (Damascus) mint (AH 825–841/1422–1438 AD)
First photo:
Clockwise marginal legend: السلطان الملك الاشرف ابو النصر عز نصره , "al-Sultan al-Malik al-Asharf abu al-Nasr azza nasrahu" , meaning, "al-Sultan al-Malik al-Asharf abu al-Nasr, may his victory be glorious"
Inner circle, central legend: " برسباى " , Barsbay (Ruler's name)
Second photo:
بدمشق , Bi-Dimashq , in Damascus (On top, not visible)
لا اله الا الله , La Ilah illa Allah
(figure) , see attachment.
محمد رسول الله , Muhammad Rasul Allah
ضرب , Zarb.
Barsbay struck silver coins, with the following denominations: 1/2 + 1/4 = 3/4 Dirham, of 1.45 + 0.725 gram = 2.175 gram.
Maythem
Thank you Maythem :)
The mintname is out of flan at top and I wonder why you think that this coin is from Dimashq / Damascus mint and not from Halab ? the ornament placed under the kalima seems to be found only on the Halab coins listed on Zeno.
I'm not expert in Mamluks coinage but I notice that Halab silver coins of Barsbay listed are :1/2 dirham of circa 1,1g and (scarcer) dirham of 2,1 -2,3 g (like Maudry's coin ?); may be there was a weight std slightly different for these two mints ?
Thank you Saro, you are right about the " Figure " is used in Aleppo mint. It is Aleppo mint and it should be written as two words next to each other " ضرب بحلب Dhuriba bi-Halab " plus another type of heraldic symbol " Figure 2 " included on the other side of the coin which is there in the margin of first photo above letter " N ن " of the word " al-Sultan السلطان ".
As for the weight standard, you could be right.
The coin is then:
Mamluks, Al-Ashraf Sayf al-Din Barsbay, AR Dirham, no Date, Aleppo (Halab) mint (AH 825–841/1422–1438 AD)
First photo:
Clockwise marginal legend:
السلطان al-Sultan,
(Figure 2) , see attachment.
الملك الاشرف أبو النصر عز نصره , al-Malik al-Asharf abu al-Nasr azza nasrahu.
"al-Sultan al-Malik al-Asharf abu al-Nasr azza nasrahu" , meaning, "al-Sultan al-Malik al-Asharf abu al-Nasr, may his victory be glorious"
Inner circle, central legend: " برسباى " , Barsbay (Ruler's name)
Second photo:
لا اله الا الله , La Ilah illa Allah
(Figure) , see attachment.
محمد رسول الله , Muhammad Rasul Allah
ضرب بحلب, Dhuriba bi-Halab (Aleppo).
Maythem
From another coin, it is now possible to complete the legible legend present on Maudry's coin with the word "sultan" to give : "al-Sultan al-Malik al-Asharf " :)
Thank you gentlemen a lot for another full and clear identification of one of my coins.
I have modified the title of this thread and will also need to modify the label on the coin :)