Umayyad Caliphate, Standing Caliph, temp. ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, Ba’albakk (Heliopolis) mint, AH 65-86 / AD 685-705

-Islamic, Umayyad Caliphate, Standing Caliph, temp. ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, Ba’albakk (Heliopolis) mint, AE Fals, (bronze, 3.3g, 20mm), AH 65-86 / AD 685-705

-Arabic Title: الخلافة الأموية، طراز الخليفة الواقف، في عهد عبد الملك بن مروان، دار ضرب بعلبك، 65–86 هـ.

-Obv: Caliph standing facing, bearded, placing his right hand on the pommel of his sword and whip hanging from his right elbow; in field to left, star; around, ‘bism Allah, abd Allah’ abd al-Malik amir al-Mu’minin’ (‘for the servant of God, Abd al-Malik, Commander of the Faithful’ in Kufic).

-Rev: Transformed cross standing on three steps; in field to left, wāf (‘full weight’ in Kufic); in field to right, ‘bi-hims’ (‘Baalbek’ in Kufic); around, part of the first Kalima reading ‘la ilaha illa Allah wahdahu Muhammad Rasul Allah’ (‘There is no God but God alone; Muhammad is the prophet of God’ in Kufic)

-Ref: SICA I, 701

-Rarity/Choice: Rare, VF (Some verdigris, otherwise very attractive, with a clear mint)

-Note: Umayyad Caliphate – Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (r. AH 65–86 / 685–705 AD) During the reign of ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Marwan, the Umayyad Caliphate underwent major administrative and monetary reforms that strengthened Islamic rule across the Middle East. This period saw the development of distinctive early Islamic coinage, including the “Standing Caliph” type, which still retained figural imagery influenced by Byzantine traditions before the caliph introduced his famous coinage reform around 696–697 AD that replaced images with purely Arabic inscriptions. These issues reflect the transitional phase of the early Islamic state as it established its own political and cultural identity following the Arab conquests.