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Falus - Anonymous Pentafoil
| Issuer | City of Balkh (Afghan Cities) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1415 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Obverse description | Central field dominated by a large pentafoil (five-lobed rosette) design formed by interlacing arched segments radiating from a central point, creating five distinct lobed compartments each containing a small pellet or boss. The pentafoil motif is enclosed within a plain inner circle bordered by a beaded or rope-like outer rim. The hammered flan exhibits characteristically irregular edges and an uneven surface consistent with hand-struck copper coinage of the period. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Central field bears a multi-line Arabic legend in Nastaliq script, boldly struck within a plain inner circle. The inscription fills the majority of the field and likely records the mint name Balkh and the date in abjad or numerical notation. Scattered pellets or diacritical dots accent the lettering. The outer border consists of a raised rim following the irregular contour of the hammered flan, with traces of a marginal legend visible at the periphery. |
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| Additional information |
Balkh, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central Asia, was under Timurid control by 1415 — Shah Rukh had consolidated the region following his father Timur's death in 1405. Anonymous copper falus of this period are poorly documented precisely because no ruling name appears, making attribution dependent almost entirely on type and findspot. Album 3184 places this issue firmly within the Afghan city series, but the absence of a ruler's name was not an oversight — it reflects either a period of administrative uncertainty or a deliberate local minting convention where the city's identity sufficed.