Catalog
Dirham - 'Ilkhan' Arghun Khan
| Issuer | Ilkhanate |
|---|---|
| Year | 1286 |
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| Diameter | 16 mm |
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| Obverse description | Hammered silver flan bearing a multilingual legend in Mongolian rendered in Uighur script, arranged in horizontal lines across the field. The inscription names the Ilkhanid ruler Arghun Khan and invokes issuance in the name of the Great Khan, combining Mongolian political authority with Islamic coinage conventions. The script is boldly struck though slightly irregular due to the hammered technique, with letters filling the central field and extending toward the rim. No figural imagery is present, consistent with the aniconic tradition of Ilkhanid silver coinage. The overall layout reflects the distinctive bilingual administrative character of Arghun Khan's monetary issues. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse script | Arabic |
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| Additional information |
Arghun Khan ruled the Ilkhanate from 1284 until his death in 1291, and his reign was defined in large part by an aggressive diplomatic campaign to forge a Franco-Mongol alliance against the Mamluk Sultanate. He dispatched multiple embassies to European courts — including the famous mission of Rabban Sauma to Rome and Paris in 1287-88 — seeking a coordinated crusade that never materialized. The silver coinage of his reign reflects a transitional authority: the Ilkhans remained nominally subordinate to the Great Khan in China, yet struck independent issues bearing their own names.