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Primary sourceArtifactAH 582-613 / 1186-1216 AD

Silver Dirham of az-Zahir Ghazi

AH 582-613 / 1186-1216 AD

A silver coin struck under az-Zahir Ghazi, son of Saladin, showing the Ayyubid dynasty his father founded.

A coin struck under Saladin's son az-Zahir Ghazi, showing the Ayyubid dynasty Saladin founded continuing after him.

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Photograph of two silver Ayyubid dirham coins side by side against a light background. Each coin is a circular silver piece with raised Arabic inscriptions in the center, surrounded by a six-pointed star pattern formed by lines and dotted borders.
Silver dirham of Al-Zahir Ghiyath al-Din Ghazi, Ayyubid dynasty, AH 582-613 / 1186-1216 AD. Photograph by Jean-Michel Moullec, 2012.

About this source

What it is

This is a silver dirham struck for Al-Zahir Ghiyath al-Din Ghazi, son of Saladin, issued at Aleppo. It measures about 21mm across and weighs around 3 grams, with Arabic inscriptions surrounded by a six-pointed star pattern. The coin shown is a modern photograph of two such coins held in a private or museum collection.

Why it matters

Coins like this were struck in the name of Ayyubid rulers, the dynasty Saladin founded. Minting coins was a way rulers showed their authority over a region, so this dirham is physical evidence of the Ayyubid state continuing after Saladin's death, under his son's rule.

Look closer

  • Why might a ruler put their name and title on coins?
  • What does the survival of this coin tell us about trade and government in Aleppo at the time?
  • How does a coin differ from a written document as a historical source?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Saladin on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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