Experts in Coins & Medals

Isaac II Angelus, first reign, 1185-1195. Hyperpyron (Electrum, 28 mm, 4.43 g, 6 h), Constantinople. (MHP) - ΘV The Virgin, nimbate, seated facing on throne, wearing tunic and maphorion, holding beardless, nimbate head of an infant Christ on breast. Rev. ICAAKIOC Isaac standing facing on the left, wearing stemma, divitision, collar-piece, and simplified jewelled loros, holding cruciform scepter in his right hand; on the right, the Archangel Michael standing facing, wearing military tunic, breastplate and sagion, both of them holding between them a sheathed sword; in upper center field, manus dei. Berk 357 (this coin). DOC 1b (unlisted loros waist decoration). SB 2001. Beautifully toned and well-centered. Scratches and graffito, otherwise, about extremely fine.

ISLAMIC, Umayyad Caliphate. al-Walid I ibn 'Abd al-Malik, AH 86-96 / AD 705-715. Dirham (Silver, 27 mm, 2.87 g, 12 h), Suq al-Ahwaz, AH 90 = AD 708/9. In the center in three lines: لا اله الا / الله وحده / لا شريك له (There is no god but Allah alone, he has no partners); In the margin: بسم الله ضرب هذا الدرهم بسوق الاهوز في سنة تسعين (In the name of Allah, this Dirham was struck in Suq al-Ahwaz in the year 90). Rev. In the center in four lines: الله أحد الله / الصمد لم يلد و / لم يولد و لم يكن / له كفوا أحد (He is God the One, God the eternal, He begot no one nor was He begotten, and no one is comparable to Him), Qur'an 112:1-4; In the margin: محمد رسول الله أرسله بالهدى ودين الحق ليظهره على الدين كله ولو كره المشركون (Muhammad is the Messenger of God, he sent him with the guidance and the religion of truth, to show that it is above all religions, however much the idolaters may hate this), part of Qur'an 9:33. SICA Vol. 2, 787. Very fine.