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Follis / Fals - Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan - standing caliph type Arab-Byzantine
| Issuer | Umayyad Caliphate |
|---|---|
| Year | 685-705 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 3.25 g |
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| Obverse description | Standing caliph depicted facing, robed in long garments, his right hand raised and left hand resting on the hilt of a sword at his side, in the tradition of Byzantine imperial standing-figure types adapted for early Islamic coinage. The figure is rendered in a hieratic, frontal posture characteristic of the Arab-Byzantine transitional series. An Arabic legend surrounds the effigy within a beaded border, with additional inscription elements visible in the field. The overall design reflects the Umayyad appropriation and Islamicization of late antique Byzantine coin iconography under Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | بسم الله |
| Reverse description | A modified Byzantine cross-on-steps motif occupies the center of the reverse, the crossbar having been replaced or transformed to remove explicitly Christian symbolism, consistent with early Umayyad religious reforms to coinage. The adapted cross rises from a multi-tiered stepped base (calvary), flanked by Arabic mint inscriptions: وافٍ (wāf) to the left and بحلب (bi-Ḥalab) to the right, identifying the Aleppo mint. The entire design is enclosed within a wreath border and an outer beaded circle, closely following the compositional conventions of the Byzantine follis. The transformation of the cross reflects Abd al-Malik's deliberate policy of Islamicizing the visual language of coinage in the late 7th century. |
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