Umayyad Caliphate. temp. 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, AH 65-86 / AD 685-705. Drachm (Silver, 28 mm, 3.05 g, 3 h), Arab-Armenian type, citing governor Muhammad ibn Marwan, the Caliph’s brother (circa AH 75-78 / AD 694-697), ŠY (Shiz), RY 37. Draped and crowned Sasanian-style bust to right, resembling Khosrau II; behind head, ‘GDE / ʾp̄zwt’ (‘[may his] glory increase’ in Pahlavi); before head, ‘hwslw’ = ‘Husraw’ (‘Khosrau’ in Pahlavi); in the margin, ‘Muḥammad’ (‘Muhammad’ in Arabic). Rev. Fire altar with ribbons, flanked by two attendants; above altar, star and crescent; to left, ‘hptsy’ = ‘haft-sī’ (‘37’ in Pahlavi); to right, ‘ŠY’ (abbreviation for the name of the mint in Pahlavi). Album H97. Extremely rare. Traces of cleaning, otherwise, good very fine.



Shiz was an ancient city located in the West Azerbaijan Province of present-day Iran.