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WIDOW'S MITE FROM THE TIME OF CHRIST 

The story of the Widow's Mite can be found in the Bible in Mark 12:41-44.  For Jesus, the widow's small offering of her only two small coins was worth far more than the large contributions of the rich who gave only a small portion of what they had.  The mite, also known as the lepton, was the smallest denomination struck in ancient Judea.  It was a crudely made copper coin.  Most display an anchor on one side and a wheel on the other. The coin was first struck during the reign of Alexander Janeaus, and continued to be used during the time of Christ. The minters were paid by how many pieces they produced, not how well they produced them.  As a result the coins tend to be poorly struck and are off center, and every coin is different.  The coin comes mounted on a card that describes its historical significance.

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ANCIENT ROMAN COIN COMMEMORATES BATTLE OF PHILIPPI

The Battle of Philippi was a major turning point in Ancient Roman history, in which the forces of Mark Antony Octavian (later known as Augustus) defeated forces of Julius Caesar's assassins, Brutus and Cassius, at Philippi in Macedonia in 42BC.  This coin was struck at the Roman colony of Philippi, near the site of the battle. The colony was formed by troops from both sides who settled there after the conflict. The coins picture winged Victory on one side and three Praetorian Standards on the other  The bronze coin is approximately 19mm in diameter.  It is a bit unclear when the coin was struck.  Some attribute it to Augustus, who won the battle and ruled Rome from 29BC to 14AD.  Others feel it was issued by Claudius in 42AD to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the battle and to honor the Praetorian Guards of his time, who helped assure his ascension as Emperor.   Either way it is a fascinating and important ancient Roman commemorative coin.

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SILVER DIRHAM OF THE UMAYYAD CALIPHATE  

In the seventh century, AD, a new religion, Islam, was founded in Arabia.  Arab forces under the banner of Islam soon conquered what is now Iraq from the Sasanians.  After that their forces spread out, conquering the rest of the Sasanian Empire as well as Afghanistan and and North Africa.  At its height the Umayyad (Omayyad) Caliphate spread from Spain and southern France to northern India.  Though they initially copied the coins of the lands they conquered, the Umayyads soon established their own style of coins. This included a well made silver Dirham.  The design has no pictures, but features professions of the Islamic faith.  One side of the coin reads "There is no god except Allah alone. He has no partner."  On the other side it reads "Allah is One, Allah is the Eternal.  He begets not neither is He begotten".   This silver Dirham was minted in Wasit during the reign of Caliph Hisham.  Wasit was a city established by the Umayyads as the capital for the eastern provinces and was the principal eastern mint. It was located in what is now Iraq between between Basra and al-Kufa on the Tigris River.  It was a great commercial center and famous for boat building - until the river shifted, leaving it stranded in the middle of the desert.   The coin was struck during the reign of the Caliph Hisham, a competent and frugal administrator who reigned from 724 to 743 AD.  These attractive coins grade Very Fine, though may have a few spots.  They are dated the reignal year they were minted.

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SQUARE SILVER COIN OF THE MOORS

This square silver Dirhem was issued by the Muwahhids (Almohads), a Moorish Dynasty that ruled Spain and North Africa in the 12th and 13th Century.  A puritanical sect, they forced Christians and Jews living in their territories to convert to Islam or emigrate.  Initially they were successful in battles against the divided Christian kingdoms of Spain.  In 1212 the Christian kingdoms combined forces defeated the Muwahhid forces and began to reclaim Spain.    By 1269 they had lost control of both Spain and Africa and their empire collapsed. 

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COIN OF GHENGHIZ KHAN

This crude copper Dirham was issued in the name of “The Great Khan” for Ghenghiz Khan and his successors from the early to mid 13th century in Kashgar.   Kashgar, located in Singkiang Province, in western China, was a major city along the ancient Silk Road. The coin is weakly struck.

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JITAL OF KHWARIZM SHAH MUHAMMAD II

Ala ad-Din Muhammad II assumed the throne of the small central Asian province of Khwarizm the death of his father in 1200AD.  He soon vastly expanded his empire, conquering all of Persia, creating an empire that reached from the Aral and Caspian Seas to the Persian Gulf.  An attempt to conquer Baghdad met with disaster when his army was decimated by a blizzard in the Zagros Mountains.  Shortly thereafter Ghenghiz Khan sent his emissaries, who were badly mistreated by the governor of an eastern province.  Ghenghis was not happy and marched into the Khwarizm Empire with an army of 200,000 to retaliate.  Entire cities were sacked and destroyed, including Herat, Samarkand and Bukhara. Urganj, the capital, was completely wiped off the face of the earth.  Muhammad fled ahead of the advancing Mongol hoards, only to die of disease on an island in the Caspian Sea in 1220AD.  This heavily debased Jital of Ala ad-din Muhammad II has inscriptions on both sides and grades Good or better.