Lot 5258

Description

Abbasid Caliphate, al-Rashid, (A.H. 170-193) (A.D. 786-809), gold dinar, no mint name but struck at Misr, (Fustat in Egypt), A.H. 172 = A.D. 788, type variant with additional name "Musa" on reverse, (A.218, cf.BMC 142 [year 171 with additional name]). Very fine and rare.

This additional name "Musa" on the reverse is only known for years 171, 172. "Musa" mentioned on the reverse of the coin is Musa ibn 'Isa ibn Musa ibn Muhammad ibn `Ali, governor of Egypt from 171-172 A.H. Al-Rashid was the caliph about whom the `Thousand and One Nights' was composed, memorialised in the ballet Scheherezade.