collections

Abi’el coin

an-Najd (Muscat Governorate) Minted in Mlayha or ad-Dur (Oman) Copper or copper-alloy 200–100 BCE (Late Iron Age)

DRACHM

al-Awabi (al-Batinah North Governorate) Issued by Shahinshah Khusrau II Minted in the Sasanian Empire (modern-day Iran) Silver 6 AH/628 CE

DIRHAM

Sohar (al-Batinah North Governorate) Minted in Damascus (modern-day Syria) Silver 40–129 AH/661–746 CE (Umayyad Caliphate)

DINAR

al-Minaigalah (ash-Sharqiyah South Governorate) Minted in Oman Gold 316–385 AH/929–995 CE (Buyid Dynasty)

DIRHAMS

Sohar (al-Batinah North Governorate) Minted in Oman Silver 174–175 AH/791–792 CE (Ibadhi Imamate)

DINARS

Minted in Yemen Gold 570 and 585 AH/1175 and 1190 CE (Ayyubid Dynasty)

MARIA THERESA THALERS

Issued under Empress Maria Theresa Minted in Habsburg Empire (modern-day Austria and Hungary) Silver 1154 AH/1742 CE Silver thalers bearing the portrait of the Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa were first struck in Austria in 1153 AH/1741 CE. Their consistently pure silver content and intricate design meant that they were highly valued and difficult to counterfeit. Millions of thalers were issued with the same design long after the death of the Empress in 1193 AH/1780 CE. This trusted currency was used across the Middle East, from Egypt and the Red Sea to the Arabian Gulf, and remained in circulation in Oman until the 14th century AH/20th century CE.

LEOPOLD I THALER

LEOPOLD I THALER

Issued under Emperor Leopold I Minted in Habsburg Empire (modern-day Austria and Hungary) Silver 1102–06 AH/1691–94 CE

1-RUPEE COIN

Issued under King William IV Minted by East India Company Silver 1250 AH/1835 CE (British-India)

1-RIAL COIN

Issued by Sultan Sayyid Barghash bin Said al-Busaidi Minted in Brussels, Kingdom of Belgium Silver 1299 AH/1881 CE (Sultanate of Zanzibar)

¼-ANNA COINS

Issued by Sultan Sayyid Faisal bin Turki al-Busaidi Minted in Muscat Copper 1312–15 AH/1895–98 CE (Sultanate of Muscat and Oman)

¼-ANNA AND 1/12-ANNA ...

¼-ANNA AND 1/12-ANNA COINS

Issued by Sultan Sayyid Faisal bin Turki al-Busaidi Minted in Muscat (Sultanate of Muscat and Oman) Copper 1311 AH/1894 CE The al-Busaid Dynasty first issued coins for local use in the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman in 1311 AH/1894 CE. They consisted of low values, including the baisa, quarter-anna, and the ghazi, twelfth-anna or one pie, denominations that were based on Indian paisas and annas. The obverse (front) of the two coins bore the date, ruler’s name, and value. The reverse (back) had an image of Fort al-Jalali, two ships, palm trees and the palace of Bait al-‘Alam. This was the first time that the above motifs were depicted on Omani money and used as national symbols.

SET OF 100, 50, 25, 1...

SET OF 100, 50, 25, 10, 5, 2 BAISA COINS

Issued by Muscat Currency Authority Minted by Royal Mint, United Kingdom Copper-nickel and bronze 1390 AH/1970 CE (Sultanate of Muscat and Oman)

15-RIAL SAIDI COIN

Issued by Sultan Sayyid Said bin Taimur al-Busaidi Minted by Royal Mint, United Kingdom Gold 1381 AH/1962 CE (Sultanate of Muscat and Oman)

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL S...

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL SAIDI AND 100-BAISA BANKNOTES, WITH AN ALBUM (1ST ISSUE)

Issued by Muscat Currency Authority Printed by Bradbury Wilkinson, United Kingdom 1390 AH/1970 CE (Sultanate of Muscat and Oman)

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL O...

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL OMANI AND 100-BAISA BANKNOTES (2ND ISSUE)

Issued by the Omani Currency Board Printed by Bradbury Wilkinson, United Kingdom 12 Shawwal 1392 AH/18 November 1972 CE (Sultanate of Oman)

20-RIAL OMANI BANKNOT...

20-RIAL OMANI BANKNOTE (3RD ISSUE)

Issued by the Central Bank of Oman Printed by Bradbury Wilkinson (United Kingdom) 25 Thu al-Qa’dah 1396 AH/18 November 1976 CE (Sultanate of Oman) A third set of banknotes, now called Rial Omani, was issued in 1396 AH/1976 CE to mark the sixth National Day. The newly established Central Bank of Oman had replaced the Oman Currency Board, and featured on the back of the 20 Rial Omani banknotes. Also featured was an image of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said on the front, the first time in the history of Omani currency that a portrait of the ruler was placed on money. This was an innovative step to mark a new national currency.

50-RIAL BANKNOTE (7TH...

50-RIAL BANKNOTE (7TH ISSUE)

Issued by the Central Bank of Oman Printed by Giesecke and Devirient (Federal Republic of Germany) 1431 AH/2010 CE (Sultanate of Oman)

AYYUBID DINAR (MIRBAT...

AYYUBID DINAR (MIRBAT DINAR)

Mirbat (Dhofar Governorate) Issued by Turan-Shah bin Ayyub Minted in Aden, Ayyubid Sultanate Gold 574 AH/1179 CE (Manjawi Sultanate) This coin was found by a citizen in 1984 CE in an abandoned house in the old market (sūq) of Mirbat. Subsequently, the coin was handed over to the Ministry of National Heritage and Culture, and registered under the name of Mirbat Dinar. This dinar dates back to the 6th century AH/12th century CE, at the time Mirbat was the capital town of the Manjawi Sultanate, and a major port for the export of Dhofari incense. This gold coin, minted by Turan-Shah, the Ayyubid King of Yemen, and brother of the famed Salah ad-Dīn al-Ayyubi, Sultan of Egypt and Syria, attests to Mirbat’s status as an important trading hub.

COMMEMORATIVE 1-RIAL ...

COMMEMORATIVE 1-RIAL COIN

CELEBRATING 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF AL-BUSAID DYNASTY Issued by the Central Bank of Oman Minted by Huguenin Medailleurs, Le Locle (Switzerland) Gold 1414 AH/1994 CE (Sultanate of Oman)

COMMEMORATIVE COIN

CELEBRATING 45TH NATIONAL DAY ANNIVERSARY Issued by the Central Bank of Oman Gold 1437 AH/2015 CE (Sultanate of Oman)

JAR WITH COINS

Sinaw (ash-Sharqiyah North Governorate) Sinaw Hoard Glazed pottery and silver 92–98 AH/710–717 CE

JAR WITH SILVER COINS

Sa’al (ad-Dakhiliyah Governorate) Issued by Shahinshah Suleiman I Minted in Huwaysa (modern-day Iran) Sa’al Hoard Silver 1085–92 AH/1674–82 CE (Safavid Dynasty) A hoard of 449 silver coins was discovered in Sa’al District of Nazwa. All coins bear the Islamic declaration of faith (ash-shahādatān), namely: ‘There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, and Ali is the vice regent of Allah’. While the coins do not bear the name of a ruler, they were struck during the time of Shahinshah Suleiman I of the Safavid Dynasty (r. 1076–1106 AH/1666–94 CE). The hoard gives an insight into the coins that were in prominent circulation in Oman during this period.

Numismatics

Abi’el coin

DRACHM

DIRHAM

DINAR

DIRHAMS

DINARS

MARIA THERESA THALERS

LEOPOLD I THALER

1-RUPEE COIN

1-RIAL COIN

¼-ANNA COINS

¼-ANNA AND 1/12-ANNA ...

SET OF 100, 50, 25, 1...

15-RIAL SAIDI COIN

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL S...

10, 5, 1, ½, ¼ RIAL O...

20-RIAL OMANI BANKNOT...

50-RIAL BANKNOTE (7TH...

AYYUBID DINAR (MIRBAT...

COMMEMORATIVE 1-RIAL ...

COMMEMORATIVE COIN

JAR WITH COINS

JAR WITH SILVER COINS