Catalog
Fals - 'Ilkhan' Hulagu Khan
| Issuer | Ilkhanate |
|---|---|
| Year | 1256-1265 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Dinar (1256-1388) |
| 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 | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Central field occupied by a multi-line Arabic legend in Kufic-influenced script, presenting the Islamic shahada: 'La ilaha illa allah muhammad rasul allah' (There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God), followed by a Quranic invocation of blessing upon the Prophet. The inscription is arranged horizontally across the flan within a plain linear border. The flan is irregular and the strike is typical of early Ilkhanid hammered copper coinage, with characteristic surface granularity and patina. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Central field bearing a multi-line Arabic legend in angular script naming the issuing ruler: 'al-Qaan al-A'zam Hulagu al-Mu'azzam' (The Supreme Qaan, Hulagu the Exalted). The inscription is arranged in horizontal registers across the flan and enclosed within a plain linear border. The strike is characteristically off-centre and the flan edges are rough and irregular, consistent with hammered Ilkhanid copper production of the mid-13th century AH. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Hulagu Khan's westward campaign reached its defining moment in February 1258 with the sack of Baghdad — ending the Abbasid Caliphate after five centuries and killing the last caliph, al-Musta'sim. Copper fals from this reign occupy an awkward administrative moment: the Ilkhanate had no established monetary bureaucracy of its own, and early issues like this one drew heavily on pre-existing Abbasid and Seljuq mint conventions while Mongol governors were still sorting out which cities they hadn't burned.
Hulagu died in 1265 before converting to any of the faiths competing for his favor — his wife was Nestorian Christian, his closest astronomical advisor a Muslim. The coinage reflects that ambiguity.