Soufides de Khwarezm - Fakhr al-dawla abu’I Hasan ‘Ali, AH 373-387. Médaillon en argent coulé AH 385, al-Muhammadiya. Inscription sur sept lignes, entourée d’une légende sur un cercle, lui-même entouré de quatre mots bénéfiques et de quatre croissants / Inscription sur six lignes, entourée d’une légende sur un cercle, lui-même entouré de quatre mots bénéfiques et de quatre croissants. 23,10g. cf. Treadwell Mu377b.
Trou rebouché, sinon très beau. D’une grande importance.
Cette monnaie spectaculaire et inédite fait probablement partie d’une série d’émissions célébrant les victoires de Fakhr al-dawla. Ces monnaies gigantesques étaient clairement destinées à récompenser la loyauté de ses troupes. La dimension exceptionnelle de l’objet rendant la fabrication de coins et leur utilisation fort complexes, cette monnaie fut coulée dans des moules, une méthode beaucoup plus lente que la frappe au marteau. Par conséquent, fort peu d’exemplaires durent être produits et pratiquement tous furent transformés en bijoux ou refondus pour servir à la frappe de monnaies de dimension plus modeste.
Legends on obverse : In field : la ilah illa Allah/Muhammad rasul Allah/al-amir al-sayyid/shahanshah/Fakhr al-dawla/wa falak al-umma/bin Rukn al-dawla (no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God, King of Kings, the Prince, the Lord, Glory of the State and Celestial Sphere of the people, son of Rukn al-dawla) Inner margin : bismillah amr bi-darb hadha’l-dinar al-amir al-sayyid Shahanshah bi’l-Muhammadiya sana khams wa thamanin wa thalath mi’a (in the name of God this dirham was ordered to be struck by the prince, the lord, king of kings, in Muhammadiya the year five and eighty and three hundred) Outer margin : four good luck words with stars and crescents at 12:00, 9:00, 6:00 and 3:00.
Legends on reverse : In field : qul huwa/Allah ahad Allah/al-samad lam yalid wa/lam yulid wa lam yakun/lahu kufuwan ahad/al-Ta‘i’ lillah (Say! God is One, God is Eternal, He does not beget nor is He begotten and there is none like unto him), Surah CXII al-Ikhlas. Inner margin : Muhammad rasul Allah arsalahu bi’l-huda wa-din al-haqq li-yuzhirahu ‘ala al-din kullihi wa law kariha al-mushrikun (Muhammad is the messenger of God who sent him with guidance and the Religion of truth that he might make it supreme over all other religions, even though the polytheists may detest it).
This spectacular and unpublished coin is probably one of a series intended to celebrate the achievements of Fakhr al-dawla, the Buwayhid ruler of the Jibal.They were clearly intended as presents to reward the loyalty of his followers.The sheer size of the coin made the preparation of its dies and the actual striking a technical feat which could best be avoided by casting the flans in carefully prepared moulds, a manufacturing process that was considerably slower than hammering the pieces in the usual way.
As a result very few were issued and nearly all of them were pierced for suspension and later returned to the mint where their metal was restruck into conventional dirhams.

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Soufides de Khwarezm