Lu'lu'ids. Badr al-Din Lu'lu. AH 631-657 / AD 1234-1259. AV Dinar (26.2mm, 7.68 g, 10h). Al-Mawsil mint. Dated AH 656 (AD 1258). Near EF.

Islamic Auction 4 – Session 1
Lot: 189. Estimated: $ 1 000

Pre-Mongol Iran, Gold

Sold For $ 850. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

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Lu'lu'ids. Badr al-Din Lu'lu. AH 631-657 / AD 1234-1259. AV Dinar (26.2mm, 7.68 g, 10h). Al-Mawsil mint. Dated AH 656 (AD 1258). Obverse field: citing the ‘Abbasid caliph al-Musta‘sim / Reverse field: citing the Ayyubid ruler al-malik al-nasir / Yusuf to right and left. Jafar 61; Album 1871.9. Faint edge marks. Near EF.

This is the last dinar of Badr al-Din Lu’lu’ to bear the name of the ‘Abbasid caliph, al-Musta‘sim. As the Mongol forces of Hulagu began to prepare for their final assault on Baghdad, Lu’lu’ attempted to remain neutral. However, Hulagu would not allow this, and demanded that Lu’lu’ offer military assistance. While Lu’lu’ had little choice but to comply, his support appears to have been somewhat lukewarm. A force led by Lu’lu’s son, Isma‘il, marched slowly south from Mosul but only arrived after Baghdad had already fallen to the Mongols in the first weeks of AH 656. Evidently unimpressed, Hulagu accused Lu’lu’ of failing to commit to the Mongol cause until the outcome of the battle was already decided. Terrified, Lu’lu’ immediately sought to appease Hulagu with lavish gifts, and sending also his death shroud as a sign that his own life lay in the Mongol ruler’s hands.

Coins struck by Lu’lu’ later in AH 656 duly name the Mongol khan Möngke, whose name is prominently displayed at the top of the reverse field. The present dinar, which is much rarer than these, must have been struck at the beginning of AH 656 before news of al-Musta‘sim’s death had reached Lu’lu’ in Mosul, meaning that such coins can only have been struck during a period of a few weeks.

The final winners of all CNG Islamic Auction 4 – Session 1 lots will be determined during the live sale that will be held on 19 October 2023.

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