Silver coins dating back to Abbasid dynasty found

A middle-aged Omani woman stumbled on a 'silver pot' in Yankul wilayat but sensing the historical value of her find, she handed it over to the state.

A stone jar covered with a clay pot to keep it airtight contained silver coins dating back to the Abbasid dynasty (AD750-1258) and possibly earlier. "All 409 coins are in excellent condition and due to the airtight lid there's no corrosion," Biubwa Bint Ali Al Sabry, Director of the Archaeology Department at the Ministry of National Heritage and Culture, told Gulf News yesterday.

Moza Al Esayeh, a resident of Al Wathaba village, was herding her goats through the Bahil Masoud mountain range when she came upon the pot.

Sensing its value, Moza contacted the ministry's guide, who informed the antiquities department.

Al Sabry said that one of the coins is from Iran's pre-Islamic Sassanian dynasty. She said: "It was an indigenous method adopted by people then. The stone jar was used to keep the coins and a bigger size clay pot was used to keep it airtight."

These jars are even older than the coins, she added.

An expert at the ministry said the names of Omani rulers of that time are inscribed on the coins. "The names of Omani ruler Ahmad Bin Hilal and Abbasid ruler Al Maqdheel are inscribed on some of the coins," Ebrahim Ahmad Fadhil said.

The Abbasid dynasty was the second of the two great Islamic dynasties and was a high point in the history of Islamic culture.

Moza will be honoured for finding the coins and turning them over to the ministry.