Lion-sun coin
Type:
Coins
Date:
1243
Location or Findspot (Modern-Day Country):
Turkey
Medium:
Silver
Dimensions:
2.2 cm; 3.02 g
Description:
The Seljuqs of Rum defeated the Byzantines at Manzikert in 1071 and established a sultanate in central and eastern Asia Minor. One of their sultans, Ghiyath al-Din Kaykhusraw II (r. 1236–45), deviated from the epigraphic coinage favored by Islamic rulers since the late seventh century and minted silver dirhams with figures. These lion-sun coins associated the sultan with a powerful planet and creature—but only briefly. Despite the help of Frankish mercenaries and Byzantines from the empire of Trebizond, Kaykhusraw's army was defeated by the Mongols in 1243 at the Battle of Köse Dağ. To pay the tribute required by the victorious Mongols, Kaykhusraw issued more traditional nonfigural coins.
The inscription on the obverse says "imam al-Mustansir, commander of the faithful" (al-Mustansir was the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad from 1226 to 1242). The text on the reverse names "the supreme sultan" and identifies the mint (here Sivas; more often Konya) and the hijra year (640, equivalent to 1242/3).
The figural coins may have been inspired by Kaykhusraw's second wife, a Georgian princess named Rusudan who supposedly had the astrological sign Leo. The Ilkhanids later imitated the coin in copper, and the lion-sun combination eventually became a symbol of Iran, appearing on the country's flag until the revolution of 1979.
The inscription on the obverse says "imam al-Mustansir, commander of the faithful" (al-Mustansir was the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad from 1226 to 1242). The text on the reverse names "the supreme sultan" and identifies the mint (here Sivas; more often Konya) and the hijra year (640, equivalent to 1242/3).
The figural coins may have been inspired by Kaykhusraw's second wife, a Georgian princess named Rusudan who supposedly had the astrological sign Leo. The Ilkhanids later imitated the coin in copper, and the lion-sun combination eventually became a symbol of Iran, appearing on the country's flag until the revolution of 1979.
Relevant Textbook Chapter(s):
8
Repository and Online Resources:
• This coin is in the American Numismatic Society collection, no. 1922.211.171.
• See another lion-sun coin in The David Collection, Copenhagen.
Image Credits:
American Numismatic Society (public domain)
