Dirham - al-Salih Isma'il Damascus

Al-Salih Isma'il ruled Damascus during one of the most fractious periods of Ayyubid dynastic politics, when the family's various branches — controlling Egypt, Syria, and the Jazira — were in near-constant conflict over supremacy. Isma'il notoriously allied with the Crusader states against his own nephew al-Salih Ayyub of Egypt, granting the Franks access to Safed and Beaufort Castle in exchange for military support. The arrangement was deeply unpopular and ultimately failed to secure his position.

The volume of Bal reference numbers attributed to this type reflects the extensive die production across his eight-year hold on Damascus — a mint with continuous output through periods of siege, political reversal, and shifting allegiance.