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Fals - Anonymous Busra
| Issuer | Umayyad Caliphate |
|---|---|
| Year | 696-750 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Hammered |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Central field displaying a multi-line Kufic Arabic inscription arranged in three lines, likely incorporating the mint name Busra (البصرى) and additional religious or administrative text, all within a plain circular border. The flan exhibits irregular hammered surfaces with natural porosity and surface wear consistent with circulation. The epigraphy follows the standard Umayyad post-reform anonymous fals type, with no figural design elements. The overall style reflects the provincial mint production characteristic of Busra in the Umayyad period. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | محمد رسول الله / بصرى |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Busra — ancient Bostra, the old Nabataean capital and Roman provincial hub in southern Syria — remained a significant administrative node under Umayyad rule, and its copper fals coinage was never centrally standardized the way the gold dinar and silver dirham were after Abd al-Malik's monetary reforms of 696–697. The anonymous attribution reflects exactly that: no caliph claimed these small-denomination pieces, which circulated in local markets well outside the prestige economy of the reformed bimetallic system.
The absence of a named authority on provincial copper was deliberate policy, not an oversight. Weight variation across anonymous fals from Syrian mints is extreme, and 2.47g sits toward the lighter end of attested examples from Busra.