'Abbasid Caliphate. temp. Al-Rashid, AH 170-193 / AD 786-809. Dinar (Gold, 18 mm, 4.18 g, 11 h), no mint (Madinat al-Salam), AH 188 = AD 803/4. Central field, in three lines: lā ilāha illā / Allāh waḥdahū / lā sharīka lahū (‘There is no deity but God alone; He has no associate’ in Arabic). Margin: Muḥammad rasūl Allāh arsalahu bi-l-hudā wa-dīn al-ḥaqq li-yuẓhirahu ʿalā al-dīn kullihi (‘Muḥammad is the Messenger of God, whom He sent with guidance and the religion of truth that He may cause it to prevail over all religion’ in Arabic). Rev. Central field, in four lines: Muḥammad / rasūl / Allāh / hāʾ (‘Muḥammad / Messenger / of God’ in Arabic), with Arabic letter hāʾ. Margin: bi-sm Allāh ḍuriba hādhā al-dīnār sanat thamān wa thamānīn wa miʾa (‘In the name of God, this dinar was struck in the year one hundred and eighty-eight’ in Arabic). Album 218.4. Lowick 399. Very rare. Lightly clipped, some scratches and minor deposits, otherwise, very fine.


Anonymous Abbasid dinars bearing isolated Arabic letters in the reverse field form a rare and insufficiently understood series. The present example carries the letter hāʾ (probably for Harun al-Rashid?) beneath the central inscription.

Most known specimens of this type are heavily clipped, frequently affecting the marginal inscriptions. Despite the light clipping on the present example, the marginal legends remain largely intact and clearly readable, an uncommon and highly desirable characteristic for the series.