Phase 1: The Inherited System (685–691 CE)
During the first years of his reign, the Umayyads continued using the currency of the empires they had conquered.
- Gold: Byzantine solidi featuring the Emperor and Christian crosses.
- Silver: Sasanian drachms featuring the Persian King and Zoroastrian fire altars.
- Minor Changes: The Arabs began adding small Arabic phrases like Bismillah (“In the name of God”) to the margins, but the images remained.
Phase 2: The Transitional Period (692–696 CE)
A “war of images” broke out between Abd al-Malik and Byzantine Emperor Justinian II. As tensions rose, Abd al-Malik began “Islamicizing” the designs.
- 72 AH (692 CE): The “De-Christianized” Gold Dinar. The horizontal bar of the Christian cross was removed, turning it into a “cross on steps” that looked like a pillar.
- 74 AH (694 CE): The “Standing Caliph” Dinar. This was a revolutionary experimental coin. It replaced the Byzantine Emperor with a figure of the Caliph (presumably Abd al-Malik) wearing traditional Arab robes and a headdress, clutching a sword.
- The Provocation: These coins were used to pay the Byzantine tribute. Justinian II refused them because they lacked the traditional Christian imagery, eventually leading to open war.
Phase 3: The Great Reform (697–699 CE)
In a move that defined Islamic currency for the next 1,300 years, Abd al-Malik decided to ban all human images entirely and switch to a text-only (epigraphic) design.
- 77 AH (697 CE): The First Purely Islamic Dinar. This gold coin featured only Arabic script in the Kufic style. It established the weight of 4.25 grams (the Mithqal).
- 79 AH (699 CE): The Reformed Silver Dirham. The reform spread to silver coinage. These coins were larger and thinner than the gold dinars and included the name of the mint city (e.g., Damascus, Kufa), providing a paper trail for the empire’s economy.
Summary of the Evolution
| Year | Milestone | Visual Change |
|---|---|---|
| 685 CE | Accession | Standard Byzantine/Sasanian coins with tiny Arabic marks. |
| 692 CE | De-Christianization | Crosses are modified to look like poles or pillars. |
| 694 CE | Standing Caliph | Images of the Emperor replaced by an image of the Caliph. |
| 697 CE | Final Reform | All images removed. Purely Arabic calligraphy remains. |
The Legacy
By the time of Abd al-Malik’s death in 705 CE, the Islamic Dinar was the most stable and trusted currency in the world. Because it was made of high-purity gold and had no “graven images,” it was easily accepted from Spain to the borders of China, facilitating the massive trade boom of the Islamic Golden Age.
Would you like me to explain the specific meaning of the Arabic Kufic script used on these reformed coins?