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1 Dinar - 'Abd al-Malik I Nishapur
| Issuer | Samanid dynasty |
|---|---|
| Year | 954 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 4.27 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Arabic |
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| Reverse description | Central field bearing a multi-line Arabic inscription in angular Kufic script, arranged in horizontal registers within a plain inner circle, referencing the Abbasid caliph and the Samanid amir 'Abd al-Malik. A single word or phrase appears isolated at the top of the central roundel above the main legend block. The inner circle is surrounded by a beaded border, beyond which a continuous marginal legend in Kufic script encircles the design. The outer marginal inscription contains the mint name Nishapur and the date of issue in the Islamic AH calendar. The flan is irregular in shape, as is typical of hammered gold dinars of the Samanid period. |
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| Additional information |
The Samanid dinar is the benchmark Islamic gold coinage of the 10th century — the standard against which Abbasid and Buyid issues were measured in eastern trade networks stretching from the Volga to the Indian subcontinent. Nishapur, as the administrative capital of Khurasan, operated one of the dynasty's most active mints. 'Abd al-Malik I ruled only from 954 to 961, making his issues relatively short-series by Samanid standards.
A#1460 in Album's checklist places this squarely within the well-documented mainstream Samanid type, but individual die studies by Lowick identified meaningful variation in mint output across even brief reigns.