Item number: A282

Year: AD 975

Material: Gold

Size: 20.1 x 20.1 x 0.8 mm

Weight: 4.00 g

Manufactured by: Mansuriya, Tunisia

Provenance: Spink 2023

This is a gold dinar coin minted during the final year of the reign of Al-Muizz, the fourth caliph of the Fatimid dynasty, in the Islamic year AH 365 (AD 975), featuring the distinctive third type of “Bullseye” dinar. This type of coin was the most abundant and widely circulated among those issued by the Fatimid dynasty, leading the populace to colloquially refer to it as the “Al-Muizzi.”

At the centre of both sides of the coin is a solid dot, surrounded by three concentric circles and circular inscriptions. On the obverse side, the three inscriptions consist of the familiar Muslim declaration of faith in the inner circle, praise for the fourth rightful caliph Ali as the “Ali is the best of the nominees and the wazir of the best of the Messengers,” in the middle circle, and the content of Quranic verse 9:33 in the outer circle. On the reverse side, the three inscriptions include Al-Muizz’s full name in the inner circle, praise for Al-Muizz as a leader of faith in the middle circle, and finally, in the outer circle, the year and place of coin minting, in the name of Allah: Mansuriya, North Africa, Tunisia, which served as the capital before Al-Muizz moved the capital to Cairo, Egypt.

Al-Muizz’s innovative coinage system, referred to by contemporaneous Europeans as the “Bullseye,” was a strategic move to distinguish his realm from the Abbasid Empire centred in Baghdad and the Umayyad dynasty entrenched in Andalusia (Spain), both significant Sunni powers dominating the Islamic and Mediterranean worlds. By redesigning his coins, Al-Muizz aimed to assert the distinctiveness of the Fatimid dynasty in the face of these Sunni political rivals. Fatimid gold dinars, renowned for their high purity gold content, were highly valued by merchants for their quality. Beyond showcasing economic strength through gold coinage, Al-Muizz aimed to assert the religious stance of the Shia sect.

In AD 680, following the assassination of Husayn, the grandson of Muhammad and the last legitimate caliphic successor of Ali, by the Umayyad Caliphate at Karbala, Islam plunged into a major schism. Those who believed that only Ali’s bloodline could rightfully assume the caliphate were known as the Shia, meaning “followers of Ali.” The Fatimid dynasty, which originated in Tunisia under the name of “Fatima,” Muhammad’s daughter and Ali’s wife, was a prominent Shia political entity. Under the leadership of Al-Muizz, the Fatimid dynasty successfully conquered Egypt, the wealthiest region in the Mediterranean world, and established Al-Azhar University in Cairo, the oldest university in the Islamic world.

The “Bullseye” dinars issued by Al-Muizz can be classified into three types based on their ornamentation and inscription content：(See Table)

物件編號: A282

年代: 公元 975 年

材料: 黃金

尺寸: 20.1 x 20.1 x 0.8 mm

重量: 4.00 g

製造地: 曼蘇利亞，突尼西亞

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2023

這是一枚什葉派法蒂瑪王朝的第四代哈里發：穆儀茲於統治的最後一年，回曆365年(公元975年)，鑄造極具法蒂瑪特色的第三型「牛眼」第納爾金幣。該款金幣是法蒂瑪王朝發行量最大和流通最廣的類型，因此民眾還以「穆儀茲」稱呼這枚第納爾。

金幣兩面的正中央有一個實心圓點，向外依序有三道實線圓圈和環狀銘文。正面的三道銘文，內圈是穆斯林熟悉的清真言，中圈是推崇第四位正統哈里發阿里為「先知最優秀的提名者和維齊爾」讚詞，外圈則是《古蘭經9:33》經文內容。背面的三道銘文，內圈是穆儀茲的全名，中圈則是盛讚穆儀茲作為信仰的領導者。最後外圈則是以真主的名義，標示這枚硬幣的鑄造年份和地點：北非突尼西亞的曼蘇利亞，這是穆儀茲定都埃及開羅以前的首都。

穆儀茲獨創的錢幣形制，被同時代的歐洲人稱作「牛眼」。穆儀茲之所以重新設計自己的錢幣，是為了在伊斯蘭和地中海世界跟巴格達為中心的阿拔斯帝國和盤據在安達盧西亞(西班牙)的後伍麥亞王朝，兩個重要的遜尼派政權分庭抗禮和作出區別。法蒂瑪王朝金幣在品質上具備高純度的含金量為商人所喜愛。以金幣展現厚實的經濟實力外，穆儀茲最重要的是展現什葉派的宗教立場。

公元680年，海珊作為穆罕默德的外孫，最後一位正統哈里發阿里的兒子在卡爾巴拉被伍麥亞王朝殺害後，伊斯蘭教便陷入大分裂。認定唯有阿里的血親方能擔當哈里發的信徒稱為什葉派，即「順從阿里」的意思。法蒂瑪王朝正是高舉穆罕默德的女兒，阿里的妻子「法蒂瑪」之名，在突尼西亞發跡的什葉派政權。法蒂瑪王朝在穆儀茲的領導下，成功佔領地中海世界最富饒的埃及，並且在開羅創辦伊斯蘭世界最古老的大學：艾資哈爾大學。

穆儀茲發行的「牛眼」第納爾可按照紋飾和銘文內容分為三種類型 (見下表)：