★ Falconry Type ★

Time of Mu'awiya I ibn Abi Sufyan AD 661-680. (AH 41-60). Imperial standing figure type (Type VI). Struck circa AD 660s-680. Dimashq (Damascus) mint
Fals Æ

21mm., 4,93g.

Standing imperial figure, holding long cross and globus cruciger, to left, bird standing right on T, ΔAMACKOC to right / Large M, monogram above, star (or crescent) below, ja’iz left, darb right, dimashq in exergue in Arabic.

very fine

SICA 1, 566; Album 3517.2; ICV -. From The Tareq Hani collection

Falconry was so significant in Arab culture, that by the advent of Islam the Prophet Muhammad specifically mentions it in the Quran. These birds have played a crucial part in the traditional culture of the Umayyad Caliphate and are also used as symbols of high status.