Dirham - Ya'qub b. al-Layth

Ya'qub ibn al-Layth al-Saffar was a coppersmith from Sistan who built an empire through military conquest rather than political appointment — the first ruler in the post-conquest Islamic east to openly defy Abbasid authority. His dirhams are politically pointed objects: by placing his own name on the coinage, he was broadcasting independence from Baghdad in the most public medium available. The Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tamid's court understood exactly what that meant.

Ya'qub died in 879 before he could press his campaign against the caliphate to its conclusion, halting what might have been a fundamental reorganization of eastern Islamic power.