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At the height of their power, the Fatimid
Caliphate ruled much of the Islamic world,
including North Africa, the Hejaz, and the
Eastern Mediterranean, from their capital in
Cairo. However, their roots can be traced to the
shores of Ifriqiya in modern day Tunisia and
eastern Algeria where in 909 A.D. an imam from
the Ismaili sect of the Shia branch of Islam
declared himself caliph and adopted the name of
al-Mahdi (the Divinely Guided One). Directly
opposing the power of the Sunni Abbasids, the
Fatimids legitimized their claim to authority by
tracing their descent to Muhammad by way of his
daughter Fatima (hence the name Fatimid) and
her husband Ali, the first Shia imam. Soon after
their founding, the Fatimids began to expand
outwards, swiftly bringing all of the Maghreb
under their dominion. Thereafter, the Fatimids
set their sights to the East where the Abbasids
centers of power lay.
After numerous campaigns launched under
multiple caliphs, the Nile Valley was finally
conquered in 969, opening up the Middle East to
their armies. The city of Cairo was founded as a
new capital. Opulent mosques and centers of
learning including al-Azhar University were
constructed, as Cairo quickly became the
spiritual center for Ismaili Shia. The arts
flourished during the Fatimid era, specifically
rock-crystal carvings that became treasured by
the Caliphs themselves and throughout the
Mediterranean world. In their ultimate pursuit of
usurping Abbasid power, the Fatimids eventually
extended their control throughout the Red Sea
and the Hejaz (including the two holy cities of
Mecca and Medina), thereby opening up direct
sea routes with India and effectively diluting
Abbasid trade with these foreign markets.
The middle of the 11th century marked the
height of Fatimid power in the East, when a
dissident general in Iraq switched side and
declared his allegiance to the Fatimids. Yet this
turn of events was brief as Seljuk Turks soon
regained control of Baghdad, marking the
beginning of the decline of the Fatimid Dynasty.
A combination of local opposition by the largely
Sunni populations they ruled and outside attacks
by Byzantines, Turks, and Crusader armies of
Europe would ultimately prove lethal as the once
extensive reach of the Fatimid Caliphate was
eventually reduced to Egypt itself. By the time
the last of a series of ineffective caliphs passed
away in 1171, the vizier Salah al-Din had
become the real master of Egypt and the Fatimid
Caliphate was formally abolished.
How many hands have touched a coin in your
pocket or purse? What eras and lands have the
coin traversed on its journey into our
possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull
out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of
who might have touched the coin before us, or
where the coin will venture to after it leaves our
hands. More than money, coins are a symbol of
the state that struck them, of a specific time and
location, whether active currencies in the age we
live or artifacts of a long forgotten empire. This
stunning hand-struck coin reveals an expertise
of craftsmanship and intricate sculptural detail
that is often lacking in contemporary machine-
made currencies. This luminous gold dinar is a
historical testament to the Fatimid Dynasty,
simultaneously reflecting the luxury and wealth
of the Islamic Egypt passed from the hands of
civilization to civilization, from generation to
generation.
- (C.7427)
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