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Dinar - al-Muttaqi Donative type
| Issuer | Abbasid Caliphate |
|---|---|
| Year | 940-944 |
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| Composition | Gold |
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| Obverse description | Central field contains a multi-line Arabic religious inscription arranged in horizontal lines within an inner circle, surrounded by a concentric marginal legend in Arabic script. The inscriptions are executed in a clear Kufic style typical of Abbasid gold coinage of the 4th century AH. A decorative dotted border frames both the inner and outer legends. The overall design follows the purely epigraphic tradition established by the coinage reform of Abd al-Malik, with no figural imagery. |
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| Reverse description | Central field displays a multi-line Arabic Kufic inscription arranged in horizontal bands within a double circular border, containing religious and caliphal titulature referencing the Caliph al-Muttaqi and the Abbasid dynasty. The marginal legend runs continuously around the circumference, separated from the central inscription panel by a dotted inner border and a plain outer border. The epigraphy is characteristic of mid-4th century AH Abbasid dinar production, with well-spaced Kufic letterforms across a flat, unadorned gold field. |
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| Additional information |
Al-Muttaqi's reign lasted barely four years before he was blinded and deposed by the Hamdanid amir Nasir al-Dawla in 944 — a fate that had become almost procedural for late Abbasid caliphs reduced to ceremonial figureheads while Buyid and Hamdanid strongmen held real power. Donative dinars of this type were not struck for commerce but distributed as ceremonial largesse, typically at court functions or to secure political loyalties the caliph could no longer enforce by other means.
The designation "donative" implies production in limited quantities outside normal mint runs, which accounts for the relative rarity of survivors in collectible condition.