Umayyad Caliphate. 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, AH 65-86 / AD 685-705. Fals (Bronze, 21 mm, 2.41 g, 9 h), Standing caliph type with modified cross on steps, Sarmin, no date (circa AH 70s / AD 690s). Standing caliph facing, holding the hilt of a sheathed sword; around: li-ʿabd Allāh ʿAbd al-Malik amīr al-muʾminīn (‘For the servant of God ʿAbd al-Malik, Commander of the Faithful’ in Arabic). Rev. Modified cross on steps; to right and left, sar / mīn (Sarmīn); 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 3532. DOCAB 128. SICA I, 639-45. Walker 94. An unusually well-centered specimen. Deposits and the usual areas of weakness, otherwise, good very fine.


The so-called 'Standing Caliph' coinage represents a transitional phase in early Islamic monetary history during the reign of ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Marwān, before the introduction of the purely epigraphic Islamic coinage reform of AH 77 / AD 696-7. These bronze issues combine Islamic inscriptions with imagery derived from Byzantine prototypes. The obverse portrays the caliph standing frontally with his hand resting on the hilt of a sheathed sword, emphasizing both political authority and military leadership.

The reverse preserves the traditional cross-on-steps motif of Byzantine coinage, though the design is simplified and adapted within an Islamic context. At the mint of Sarmīn, the name of the town is typically divided across the field as sar-mīn, a characteristic feature of this series.

Well-centered examples of this type are quite difficult to obtain due to the thin and irregular flans typical of these early bronze issues. The present specimen preserves clear details of the garments and folds of the robe, as well as fully legible mint inscriptions, features seldom encountered together on this issue.