'Abbasid Caliphate. Al-Mutawakkil, AH 232-247 / AD 847-861. Dinar (Gold, 19 mm, 3.11 g, 12 h), citing the caliph al-Mutawakkil 'ala Allah, San'a, AH 239 = AD 853/4. Central field, in three lines: lā ilāha illā / Allāh waḥdahu / lā sharīka lahu (‘There is no god but God alone, He has no associate’ in Arabic). Margin: bi-sm Allāh ḍuriba hādhā al-dīnār bi-Ṣanʿāʾ sanat tisʿ wa-thalāthīn wa-miʾatayn (‘In the name of God, this dinar was struck in Ṣanʿāʾ in the year two hundred and thirty-nine’ in Arabic). Outer margin: [li-llāh al-amr min qablu wa-min baʿd] wa-yawmaʾidhin yafraḥ al-muʾminūn [bi-naṣr Allāh] (‘To God belongs the command before and after, and on that day the believers will rejoice in the help of God’ in Arabic). Rev. Central field, in five lines: li-llāh / Muḥammad / rasūl / Allāh / al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (‘For God / Muhammad is the Messenger of God / He who trusts in God’ in Arabic). Margin: [Muḥammad rasūl Allāh arsalahu] bi-l-hudā wa-dīn al-ḥaqq li-yuẓhirahu ʿalā al-dīn kullihi wa-law kariha al-mushrikūn (‘Muhammad is the Messenger of God, whom He sent with guidance and the religion of truth to make it prevail over all religion, even though the polytheists may dislike it’ in Arabic). Album -, cf. 1053. An exceedingly rare date. Some areas of weakness, tiny marks and a clipped edge, otherwise, nearly very fine.


Gold dinars of al-Mutawakkil from Ṣanʿāʾ are rare, and no dinars of this type dated AH 239–248 are recorded in the standard references or traceable in major auction archives. The clearly dated marginal formula of AH 239 therefore documents an apparently unlisted issue and materially extends the attested gold coinage of the mint under this caliph. This date should be considered exceptionally rare within the Abbasid Yemeni coinage.