BURID, TEMP ABAQ (534-549h) Quarter-dinar, mint and date off flan Obverse: In inner margin: ‘ayad al-din Sanjar wa Mas ‘ud Reverse: In centre: citing the Abbasid caliph as al-Imam al-Muqtafi Weight: 1.14g Reference: Album N784. Good very fine and extremely rare. Abaq was the last of the Burid atabegs of Damascus, and came to power in 534h – the year this coin was issued. His influence evidently extended as far as Busra (almost 100 miles south of Damascus), where he is known to have improved the city’s defences in anticipation of a Crusader assault. He was finally expelled from Damascus by Nur al-Din Zangi in 549h. Although a few extremely rare full dinars carry Abaq’s name, his fractional dinars do not; they cite only the two Great Seljuq rulers, Sanjar and Mas‘ud.

Estimate: GBP 700 - 1000