Najm al-Din Alpi Bronze Dirham — Seleucid Portrait Type

Own a Medieval Bronze Dirham of Najm al-Din Alpi

A fascinating bronze dirham blending ancient Greek imagery with medieval Islamic coinage from the 12th century AD.

Najm al-Din Alpi AE Dirham — Seleucid Portrait Type

$250.00

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✓ Carefully Verified
✓ 30-Day Returns

🏛 Struck during the medieval Islamic period nearly 900 years ago
⚔ Features the portrait of a Hellenistic Seleucid king reused centuries later
🌍 A remarkable fusion of Greek and Islamic artistic traditions

Own This Piece of History

Why This Coin Matters

Najm al-Din Alpi ruled during the 12th century AD, a turbulent era shaped by the Crusades, shifting Islamic dynasties, and the legacy of the ancient Near East.

This extraordinary bronze dirham reflects one of the most fascinating artistic traditions in medieval coinage: the reuse of ancient classical imagery by Islamic rulers centuries after the fall of the Greek and Roman worlds.

The obverse features the facing portrait of the Seleucid king Antiochus VII Sidetes, originally modeled from Hellenistic coinage over a thousand years earlier. Across the neck appears Alpi’s laqab, “Najm al-Din,” linking medieval Islamic authority directly onto the image of an ancient Greek ruler.

The reverse contains a four-line Kufic inscription, blending Islamic calligraphy with classical artistic influence in a uniquely medieval style.

Coins like this were struck in a world where Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Persian, and Islamic traditions overlapped across the cities of the Near East.

Today, these Artuqid issues are highly collectible for their unusual iconography, historical depth, and striking combination of civilizations on a single coin.

This piece is more than medieval currency — it is a tangible artifact of cultural continuity stretching from the Hellenistic age to the Islamic Middle Ages.

Perfect for:

• Medieval Islamic coin collectors
• Hellenistic and Seleucid history enthusiasts
• Collectors of unusual portrait coinage
• Anyone seeking a historically rich and visually distinctive ancient artifact

What You’ll Receive

• The exact bronze dirham shown
• Authentic medieval Islamic coin of Najm al-Din Alpi
• Features reused Seleucid portrait imagery
• Approximately 850–900 years old

Buy with Confidence

• Guaranteed authentic ancient coin
• Carefully sourced and verified
• 30-day return policy
• Secure shipping from the U.S.

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