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Dirham - al-Nasir Salah al-Din Yusuf - Saladin Damascus
| Issuer | Ayyubid Sultanate of Egypt |
|---|---|
| Year | 1180-1193 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Reverse script | Arabic |
| Reverse lettering | الناصر صلاح الدين يوسف أمير المؤمنين |
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| Additional information |
Saladin's Damascus dirhams occupy a politically charged position in Ayyubid numismatics. He struck coins in Damascus only after consolidating control over Syria in 1174 — seized opportunistically following the death of Nur ad-Din — and the Damascus mint served partly as a statement of legitimacy to a city still skeptical of Ayyubid authority. The inclusion of the Abbasid caliph's name on the coinage was not devotion but diplomacy: Saladin needed Baghdad's nominal endorsement while pursuing an agenda Baghdad never fully controlled.
Bal I#90 is among the more frequently encountered types of his Syrian issues, though specimens without flat areas from worn dies are harder to find than mintage alone would suggest.