Coins of Harar

[Figleaf]

Thanks to Afrasi, I am now the proud owner of what may amount to one of the largest collection of Harar coins in the Netherlands Of course, he didn't identify them, since they were in great condition and any fool can read them, so here's my public attempt to shame myself. If any of them is upside down ... well ... I did my best

I think (coin numbers are below the pictures):

coin 1 is KM 4, mahallak 1222, 8.5 mm, 0.3 gram
coin 2 is KM 5, mahallak ND, 6 mm, 0.1 gram (probably less, my scales hesitated before they jumped to 0.1)
coin 3 is KM 6, mahallak 1258, 11 mm, 0.4 gram
coin 4 is KM 7, mahallak 1274, 11 mm, 0.5 gram
coin 5 is KM 8, mahallak 1279, 11 mm, 0.4 gram
coin 6 is KM 9, mahallak 1284, 13 mm, 0.5 gram
coin 7 is KM 11, mahallak 1303, 17-18 mm, 1.4 gram

The coins are better in hand, but oh so tiny. The scans are the best I could produce with limited means. This is not the natural colour of the coins. I hiked the contrast to maximum and compensated with brightness to make the lettering as readable as possible. I wish I'd bought a camera with a macro function ...

Peter

[Figleaf]

The rest of the pics...

[ghipszky]

Peter who or what is Harar. What language is on the coins? Sure I'll bet just any ole person can read them.
Ginger

[Figleaf]

Harar is a city in what is now Ethiopia. While Ethiopia has its own form of Christianity, Harar is predominantly an Islamic city. The city and the area around it (Adal) was contested between the rulers of what is now Ethiopia and Egypt, but it remained independent until 1875. When these coins were struck, Harar was still an important market town on the road from the Arab peninsula into Central Africa. The coins struck in Harar are among the oldest of the continent.

I recognize some of the words on the largest coin as Arabic. The lettering is certainly Arabic. However, the local language is not Arabic, but Harari. Today, Harari is no longer written in Arabic, but in Ethiopian script, as on your coin of Haile Selassie.

As you can see, these coins are difficult to recognize and they very rarely figure on lists of coin dealers who carry international coins. However, Afrasi not only knows his stuff, but also got me (relatively) good looking coins. You can imagine what an average looking coin looks like

Peter

[ghipszky]

That does sound like an interesting collecting area, certainly different.
Thanks for the explanation.
Ginger

[Overlord]

Boy, were these guys stingy with their brass!
In the very last pic, I can read "Al 'Abd" (The slave) in the first line. Any idea what the word after "Al" in the second line is? The reverse of this coin reads "Zarb Fi Madinat Harar" [Struck in (the) City (of) Harar].

The coin above that (pics 61 and 62) was great fun to work with:

Obv:


Rev:

[Figleaf]

Overlord! Brilliant! You have done it again! Now I have to run out and buy a new batch of colour ink for the printer, because I must have this analysis on paper.

Here's what KM has to report on what's on these coins:

KM4: anonymous strike, without name of ruler (Ahmad II)
KM5: believed to be an issue of Abd-al-Karim
KM6: anonymous (Abu Bakr II)
KM7: obv - Sultan Muhammad bin Ali; rev - Al Sultan abd al Shakur, date
KM8: obv - Sultan Muhammad bin Ali, date; rev - city of al Harar
KM9: obv - Sultan Muhammad bin Ali; rev - struck at Harar, date
KM11: anonymous (Abdallah), in name of 'THE WEAK SLAVE'
You have of course already improved on the above.

On KM11, could there not have been confusion in the Krausian minds between slave (abd) and Abd'allah?

Peter

[Figleaf]

On KM 7, KM says it should be 9-11 mm (check!) and 0.19-0.25 gram. Mine is 0.5 gram, the only weight that's significantly out of line with what KM says. Comparing with the similar sized KM 6, 8 and 9, I am inclined to believe my scales, rather than KM.

Peter

[Overlord]

KM11: anonymous (Abdallah), in name of 'THE WEAK SLAVE'
On KM11, could there not have been confusion in the Krausian minds between slave (abd) and Abd'allah?
Peter

I consulted Valentine's Modern Copper Coins of the Muhammadan States, but his reading of the last word seems to be incorrect (he reads it as "Saeed", following it with a question mark indicating that the reading is doubtful). I do not think the word in the second line is "Allah" (for it to read "Abd'allah"). What we are probably looking for is an Arabic word that means "weak". But what could it be? Perhaps Oesho or Richie could help us.

[Overlord]

@KM11
After a bit of Googling and using the clearer image in the Standard Catalog as reference, I have a possible candidate for the last word:

[Figleaf]

So the Krausians had it right. This is great stuff, Overlord. I can see now that side 42 (KM 7) also reads Al Sultan Muhammad bin Ali and I can read the date 1274 below on side 41 and the date 1279 on 52. I presume the last word on side 32 is Harar (picture to be turned 45° counterclockwise).

The rest is still clear as mud, but it cover thee groun.

Peter

[Afrasi]

Selfdeterming is more fun ... 

1. coin 2. picture has to be turned 90° counterclockwise
2. coin 2. picture dito
3. coin 1. picture has to be turned 90° clockwise
3. coin 2. picture has to be turned 45 ° counterclockwise

Afrasi

[Oesho]

The legend on the last Harar coin could be read as:
Obv.:Zarb Fi Madinat Harar (Struck at city of Harar)
Rev.: Al-Abd al-Daí'f  1303 (the insignificant servant, AH 1303)
and is attributed to al'Abd al Da'il (=Abdallah ibn al-Shakir (1303-1304/AD1885)

[Afrasi]

But who did let these coins struck? The Sultan? That would be a lot of understatement, I think ...

Regards, Afrasi

[Oesho]

Insignificant or humble servant, is an expression of modesty towards Allah and not unusual to find on coins with Arabic inscriptions.