‘Islamic Coins and Manuscripts’ Exhibition Underway in Rabat
Inaugurated by ISESCO Director General Salem bin Muhammad Al-Malik on Wednesday, the “Coins” exhibition is displaying samples from Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz Public Library.
On display are the library’s “most important” manuscripts and coins, explained the library’s director Bandar Al-Mubarak, adding that they date back to different periods and reveal aspects of Islamic history and its dealings with other civilizations and societies.
The exhibition contains models of dinars and dirhams from different stages of the Umayyad dynasty, starting from the year 78 after Hijra (AH) to 126 AH. Abbasid money from the years 138 AH to 343 AH is also on display.
Al-Mubarak explained that Muslim societies used Byzantine, Sasanian, and other currencies before Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan “initiated the Arabization of Islamic Arab money in stages.”
In addition, the event is exhibiting coins from Egypt, the Levant, Morocco, and the Arabian peninsula, whose civilizations were concentrated in Mecca and Medina.
Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al-Bulahid, Secretary-General of the National Committee for Education, Culture, and Science, described the exhibition as “important and wonderful,” pointing to great turnout for the event as well as a great reception for the way it presents part of Islamic history.
“He stressed that many visitors to the exhibition believed that the exhibits were exact copies of the original coins, but they were amazed when they learned that they were original, dating back thousands of years,” says a press release about the event.
Source: moroccoworldnews.com
