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1 Dirham - Muhammad b. 'Abbad
| Issuer | Western Sicily |
|---|---|
| Year | 1219-1222 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Uniface hammered billon dirham struck on an irregular flan, the obverse field occupied entirely by multiple lines of Arabic Kufic-influenced script. A crescent symbol is visible to the upper left of the field. The legends, disposed in horizontal registers across the flan, carry the name and titles of the issuing authority. The surfaces show typical die-struck relief with irregular flan edges consistent with hand-hammered production of the early 13th century Norman-Arab Sicilian tradition. |
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| Obverse script | Arabic |
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| Additional information |
Muhammad b. 'Abbad was among the last Muslim administrators governing under the Hohenstaufen crown in Sicily, operating in an increasingly precarious position as Frederick II systematically dismantled what remained of Islamic administrative autonomy on the island. These billon dirhams represent the terminal phase of Arab-Norman monetary tradition in the west of Sicily — a coinage that borrowed Islamic metrology while functioning within a Christian feudal structure. The weight drop from earlier silver issues reflects the deteriorating silver supply available to regional mints by the early thirteenth century.