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1 Dirham - 'Ali b. Muhammad 'Askar al-Imâm
| Issuer | Zanj Rebellion |
|---|---|
| Year | 872 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Dirham (0.7) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Arabic |
| Obverse lettering | لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله |
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| Additional information |
The Zanj Rebellion — a massive uprising of enslaved East African laborers in the marshlands of southern Iraq — lasted from 869 to 883 and at its height controlled Basra and threatened Baghdad itself. 'Ali b. Muhammad's movement struck its own coinage as a direct assertion of governmental authority, an act that placed the rebellion in deliberate competition with the Abbasid caliphate it sought to overthrow. That this silver dirham survives at all is remarkable; the Abbasid reconquest was thorough, and rebel material was not preserved with any sympathy.
The epithet "Askar al-Imam" — the Imam's Army — reflects the quasi-messianic framing 'Ali b. Muhammad imposed on the movement.