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1/2 Dirham - Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah
| Issuer | Fatimid Caliphate |
|---|---|
| Year | 953-975 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Concentric circular design in the field, featuring a central raised pellet surrounded by an inner beaded ring, enclosed within a larger band of radiating petals or lobes forming a stylised rosette. An outer circular legend in Kufic Arabic script encircles the design within the coin's border, with a further marginal inscription running along the outermost periphery. The entire composition is typical of Fatimid hammered silver coinage, exhibiting the characteristic irregular flan and flat relief of the period. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Concentric circular layout mirroring the obverse, with a central pellet enclosed by a beaded inner ring and a surrounding band of radiating lobed ornaments forming a rosette motif. Kufic Arabic legends occupy an intermediate circular band and an outer marginal inscription, together bearing the Shahada and references to the Imam Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah and the Fatimid succession. The irregular hammered flan and flat striking are consistent with Fatimid mint practice of the mid-to-late tenth century. |
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| Additional information |
Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah oversaw the Fatimid conquest of Egypt in 969, transferring the caliphate's seat from al-Mahdiyya in Ifriqiya to the newly founded city of al-Qahira — Cairo. Coinage struck under his reign spans two distinct geographic phases, and half-dirhams from the earlier Maghrebi period are considerably scarcer than those struck after the move east. The Fatimids issued in Ismaili Shi'a theological formulae, a deliberate doctrinal challenge to Sunni Abbasid legitimacy stamped into the currency itself.