Umayyad Caliphate. 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, AH 65-86 / AD 685-705. Fals (Bronze, 20 mm, 2.11 g, 8 h), Standing caliph type with modified cross on steps, Qinnasrin, no date (circa AH 70s / AD 690s). Standing caliph facing, bearded, placing his right hand on the pommel of his sheathed sword; whip hanging from his elbow; around: li-ʿabd Allāh [ʿAbd al-Malik amīr al-muʾ]minīn (‘For the servant of God ʿAbd al-Malik, Commander of the Faithful’ in Arabic). Rev. Transformed cross on steps; in field wāf to right and bi-Qinnasrīn to left (‘full or complete standard'; ‘in Qinnasrīn’ in Arabic); around: lā ilāha illā Allāh waḥdahu Muḥammad rasūl Allāh (‘There is no deity but God alone; Muḥammad is the Messenger of God’ in Arabic). Album 3530. DOCAB 114. Goodwin 45. SICA I, 661-71. Walker 134-5. Some deposits, struck on an irregular flan and the usual areas of weakness, otherwise, very fine.


The so-called Standing Caliph coinage represents a transitional phase in early Umayyad monetary history before the introduction of the fully epigraphic Islamic coinage reform under ʿAbd al-Malik in AH 77 / AD 696-7. These bronzes combine Islamic inscriptions with imagery derived from Byzantine prototypes, most notably the frontal standing ruler holding the hilt of a sheathed sword.

The reverse preserves the traditional Byzantine cross-on-steps motif, though simplified and adapted within an Islamic context. The mint name appears in the field as bi-Qinnasrīn, while the accompanying inscription wāf (واف) likely represents a metrological mark meaning “full” or “complete,” a term also known from Islamic coin weights indicating adherence to the proper monetary standard.

The present specimen preserves remarkably clear details of the robe and garment folds, features that are often poorly preserved on this series due to weak strikes and irregular flans.