Prior to the 690s and the creation of a universal type of Islamic coinage under the Umayyad caliph ‘Abd al-Malik (r. 685−705) in which the sole markings would consist of writing (see M.2006.143.5), figural imagery briefly predominated. Coins struck in the eastern end of the Umayyad caliphate, in the former territories of the Sasanian Empire, continued to use the image of the Persian king (see M.2002.1.450), while in the west, in the lands lately under Byzantine rule, the coinage incorporated a generic image of the Christian emperor, as here.
On its face or obverse, this humble fals, which was used for everyday transactions, depicts an imperial standing figure wearing a diadem with a cross, holding an orb with cross in one hand and in the other a cruciform scepter. On the reverse at center is the Greek letter “M,” indicating the number 40, a denomination mark found primarily on Byzantine copper coins; below is “DAM,” indicating the mint is Damascus. Subsequent figural coinage could be bilingual or exclusively Arabic (see M.2002.1.456).
2025
