---~-~~~~~-~~--------------------

The Numism atic

Chr nicle
Editorial Committee
R. C. E. LUNT HELEN W. BROWN
G. K. JENKINS J. P.C. KENT
J. G. POLLARD

SEVENTH SERIES
UAI<nun XJ

LONDON
THE ROYAL NUMISMATIC SOCIETY
1971
 Circassian Monetary Policy: Silvee
JERE L. BACHARACH

THE sources for a study of Circassian Mamluk Egypt and Syria (A.H. 784-
922/ 1382- A.D. 1517) are more abundant than for any other earlier period in
Islamic history. The relative availability of textual evidence-printed and
manuscript- and numismatic sources has permitted detailed investigations
of Mamluk coinage. Numerous books and articles have referred to some
extent or another to these monetary developments. 2 The purpose of this
study is to bring together all the modern and medieval sources dealing with
changes in the Circassian silver issues and to explain why various policies
were followed at different times.
For the purposes of this study Circassian rule has been divided into four
time periods each representing a different trend: (1) 784-805/1382- 1403 (con-
tinuation of the earlier Bal:lri system); (2) 805- 15/1403- 12 (failure to protect
Egyptian silver); (3) 815- 57/ 1412- 53 (introduction of a 'new' standard due
to Venetian competition and then reduction of the weight of the coin);
(4) 857- 922/1453- 1517 (reintroduction of the 'new' coinage followed by
reductions in its fineness). Certain assumptions as to the nature of Mamluk
rule have been made for this study. Since it is in the interest of the sultan to
maintain control over the mint, changes in the currency are interpreted as
reflecting governmental policies. The relative unity of the Mamluk empire
and the importance of gold and silver should lead to parallel developments
in Syria and Egypt. Unless contradictory evidence is presented it will be
assumed that the coins minted in Egypt were similar to those in Syria and
the policy held in Cairo was true for Damascus.

I
The Ba)Jri sultans had issued dinars (gold), dirhams (silver), and fuliis
(copper) and all three currencies had been exchanged by weight. The exchange
rates for gold were announced as if each dinar weighed one mithqal, 4·25 gm.,
although individual coins weighed from 4 to 14 gm. In theory the dirham was
1
I wish to thank the American Research Center in Egypt for making available a fellow-
ship which enabled me to collect most of the textual references, and I wish to thank Dr.
George C. Miles and Dr. Paul Balog for all the aid they have given me in dealing with the
numismatic problems.
2
For a general bibliography for Mamluk history, l ra Lapidus, Muslim Cities in the
Later Middle Ages (Cam bridge, Mass., 1967), 217-42. For a bibliography of numismatic
references, Paul Balog, The Coinage of the Mamluk Sultans of Egypt and Syria, ANS
Numismatic Studies No. 12 (New York, 1964), 59-63.
268 JERE L. BACHARACH
to be a silver coin of pure silver, weighing seven-tenths of the mithqiil, that
is 2·975 gm. In Bal;ri and Ayyubid Egypt 20 dirhams of 66~ per cent silver
were worth 1 dinar. Thus the gold: silver ratio, not the exchange rate, was
I :9·3 (one unit of fine gold was equal to 9·3 units in the same weight system
of fine silver). The most common silver issues were called the Kamili and
Zahiri for al-Malik al-Kamil (d. 635/1238) and al-Zahir Baybars (d. 676/
1277) respectively.
The Kamili and Zahiri dirhams continued to circulate in Egypt, Syria, and
the Hijaz under the first Circassian, Barquq (784-801 /1382- 99). The date of
their actual replacement by a new style Circassian coin and/or a coin with
a lower silver content is not clear. The noted contemporary Egyptian his-
torian, al-Maqrizi, wrote in his Shudhitr that the Bal)ri coins ceased circulat-
ing in 781- 1379. 1 This date is said to coincide with the appearance of a new
dirham, minted in I:Iamah and called the I:Iamawi. Modern scholars have
repeated this account but supporting e¥idence is weak. The few published
specimens minted in l:lamah are undated and no other contemporary source
relates a similar tale. 2 Thus the actual impact of the l:Jamawi is still open to
question.
A second date for a change in the circulating silver coinage is 794/1391.
The director of the mint in Alexandria, the amir Mal:lmud b. 'An ai-Ustadar,
was accused of flooding the Egyptian market with copper and selling silver to
the Europeans which led to the disappearance of the silver currency.3 The
importance of the latter charge will be examined below but as for issuing large
quantities offulfls, Mahmud was not starting a new policy. The Bal).ri sultans
had already set an example and the amir only followed it for his own profits.
Finally a third date given in the Arabic sources for a new coinage is 26
Rabi' II, 789/16 May 1387, when the Sultan al-Zilhir Barqiiq ordered the
amir Jarkas al-Khalili to have a new style dirham struck with his name,
Barqiiq, inscribed in the centre. 4 A few days later space was cleared in the
Citadel and the minters struck the new coin. The existing Cairo issues of
Barquq fit the contemporary descriptions. 5
The Arabic sources do not give very much information on the nature of
the dated changes except for the new style. The published co ins of Barquq
weigh a little less than their Ba)J.ri predecessors but as they were traded by
weight and not number this would not have been a significant change.
Non-destructive analyses of Barquq's issues indicate a decline in the degree
1
al-Maqr!zi, Shudhur a/-' Uqud, P. Anastoise-Marie, ed. (Cairo, 1939), 62.
• Balog, no. 553.
3
Shudhur 62. References to copper can be found in lbn al-Furat, Ta'rikh (Beirut, J 939),
ix, 6; ai-Maqrizi, al-Suliik !i-Ma'rifat Duwal al-Muluk, MS. (Cairo), Dar al-Kutub ai-
Mi~riyy a, Ta'r!kh no. 339, iii, 695; lbn Jfajar ai-'Asqalani, lnba' al-Ghumr bi Anba', MS.
(Cairo), Diir al-Kutub a l -M i~riyya, Ta'rikh no. 2476, i, 340.
• Jbn ai-Furat 6-8.
5
Balog, no. 551.
CIRCASSIAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 269
of fineness. 1 This is an important change as it is much harder for contempor-
aries to detect this type of movement than weight variations or manipulation
of the exchange rates. However, the Egyptians were aware of the debasement
as exchange rates increased from one dinar for 20 dirhams to 23~ and then
30 dirhams. This meant that the amount of pure silver equal to a unit of pure
gold remained constant although the actual coins in circulation had less
silver in them than in the Ba)J.ri period. 2 The sultan discontinued the Ba)J.ri
standard of fineness because of the pressure of increased expenditures,
primarily associated with his brief deposition in 790-2/1388-90 when large
sums were needed to buy troop loyalty, and a decline in the supply of silver.
When Barquq died in 801 /1399 and was succeeded by his son al-Na~ir Faraj
(801-15/1399- 1412), al-Maqrizi wrote that gold, silver, and copper coins
were in circulation but dirhams were rare and eventually ceased being
traded. 3 For the next two years dinars were cited in Cairo as worth
30 dirhams which meant that their degree of fineness was the same as
Barqiiq's last issues.
The shortage of silver and silver coins which al-Maqrizi mentioned applied
to Syria as well as Egypt. Al-Qalqashandi recorded that a bad Syrian coin
was issued at tltis time with only one-third silver. 4 According to the Egyptian
method of calculating 40 dirhams of 33 per cent (twice the Ba)J.ri rate)
would be wmth 1 dinar. In 803{1400 the gold-silver rate of exchange in
Cairo was 1 to 40. Therefore coins of this low percentage of silver were
circulating in Egypt as well as Syria. At the same time numismatic and textual
evidence indicates that there was a growing demand for and use of gold,
particularly the Venetian ducat or ifranti. The quantity and use of copper
was also being expanded. It appears that the Egyptian demand for silver was
decreasing.
II
The traditional dinar-dirham system of calculation for Egypt finally col-
lapsed during the great economic crisis of 805-6/1403. An extremely low Nile
flood led to famine conditions which created a tremendous inflation with
prices and exchange rates skyrocketing in terms of dirham units. There was
neither enough silver coinage in circulation nor could it be debased and minted
fast enough to meet the tremendous demand. The silver coin ceased to be
the monetary unit in which transactions were calculated although the word
'dirham' was maintained as a technical term. From Rajah, 805/February 1403,
1 Jere L. Bacharach and Adon A. Gordus, 'Studies on the Fineness of Silver Coins',
Journal of the Econ. and Soc. Hist. of the Orient xi (1968), 311.
2 It is possible that the silver was in greater demand than the gold: silver ratio of I: 9· 3
indicates as this ca lculation does not include the cost of minting or of copper.
3
ai-Su!tlk, MS. (Paris), Bibliotheque nationale, no. 1727, 9a.
• al-Qalqashandi, a/-Sub/:1 al-A'shii (Cairo, 1914- 28), iii, 467.
270 JERE L. BACHARACH
at the earliest, all calculations for the value of money, goods, and services
were given in units of dariihim min al-fulus.l These 'dirhams of copper' were
neither silver nor copper coins but rather a name for a fictitious unit of
account. This meant that dinars, dirhams, and fuliis were calculated as worth
so many 'dirhams of copper' or trade dirhams as the late William Popper
called them. 2
Much of the confusion in contemporary sources and in modern scholarly
works can be attributed to the fact that the term 'dirham' had four meanings
after 805/1403 and it is not always clear which definition is approp1iate.
Thus a Circassian dirham could be (1) a unit of weight outside the gold-
silver system (and the scope of this paper); (2) a specific silver coin such as the
Kamili or Z,ahiri dirham; (3) a silver coin weight of 2·975 gm. which could
be equal to one or more individual silver coins; and (4) a fictitious unit used
for accounting. A theoretical example from a contemporary source would
read 'on such and such a day a dirham or dirhams were worth so many
dirhams', meaning that 2·975 gm. of specific silver coins were worth so many
fictitious units.
The critical question is why did the silver coinage for all practical purposes
disappear from Cairo at this time when Egypt had suffered other economic
crises under the Mamluks possibly as severe without similar results? Cer-
tainly internal developments, particularly the political instability associated
with the reign of Faraj, played an important role. Although there are no
references to hoarding of silver as had been done by Barqiiq, it is possible
that this took place. 3 A more important cause, however, was a demand for
the ifranti at the expense of local silver. Therefore gold in general became
more highly valued than it had been and the gold: silver ratio rose from I : 9· 3
to 1:14 for the year 806/ 1403 to 813/1410, at least. This meant that in terms
of gold:silver ratios it was more profitable for European merchants to
obtain silver in Egypt than it had been in the past. 4
By the reign of Faraj, in fact, the demand for silver among the Europeans
was very high and there was an unwillingness to supply Egypt with a metal
which was in great demand in Europe. Both al-Maqrizi and al-Qal.qashandi
felt that the Europeans cut off the supply of silver and this was a major cause
for the disappearance of the silver coinage. 5 Whatever silver reserves the
Egyptians had, they were not adequate to redress the increased pressure for
export associated with the high gold: silver ratio. Thus even if Faraj had
1al-'Ayni, 'Iqd al-Jumiin fi Ta'rikh A/11 al-Zamiin, MS. (Cairo), D~r ai-Kutub ai-
Mi~riyya, Ta'rikh no. 1044, iv, 187.
2 William Popper, 'Egypt and Syria under the Circassian Sultans, 1382- 1468
A.o.',
University of Califomia Publications in Semitic Philology xvi (1957), 52.
3
Ibn al-Furat 132.
4 For a discussion of
the use of gold: silver ratios to analyse East- West trade see
Andrew M. Watson, 'Back to Gold and Silver', Economic History Review xx (1967), 1- 34.
5 al-Qalqashandi iii, 467.
CIRCASSIAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 271
wanted to issue a fine silver coin the necessary raw material was not available
in large enough quantities to permit it.
One of the assumptions of this paper has been the critical role played by
the sultans in determining monetary policies. Only in a negative sense does
this statement hold for Faraj. There is no evidence that he authorized any
of the monetary changes which took place during his reign. 1 In fact it is
possible that his failure to support the use of silver helped create an atmosphere
in which silver, a scarce metal, was not desired resulting in a gold : silver
ratio which implies silver was in abundant supply.
There are two types of silver cited in the Arabic sources for the remainder
of Faraj's reign. One is the /:!ajar or 'stone' of silver which was 'neither struck
nor debased' and the other is the Kamili which now meant any coin of two-
thirds silver. 2 The /:!ajar was infrequently cited. The Kamili, mentioned nine
times until 813/1410, steadily rose in value. What is more important was
that the value of the Kami!I was controlled by its relationship to the dinar.
In those examples where rates for the dinar and the Kamiii are both available,
the dinar was always worth 30 Kamilis. Since 20 Kamilis of the same degree
of fineness were worth one dinar before 806/ 1403, the new rate reflects the
decline in the value of silver vis-a-vis gold. After 813/ 1410 the gold:silver
ratio dropped to about 1 : 11 which reflected an adjustment to the relative
scarcity of silver and the demand for it by non-Egyptians.
Did Syria suffer a silver shortage, severe price rise, a change in the account-
ing system, and a major shift in the gold: silver ratio such as Egypt had
experienced? Unfortunately the contemporary data are very scattered com-
pared to that for Cairo and a well-documented argument cannot be given.
As noted above there are textual references to a shortage of silver and the
circulation of coins of one third silver. 3 The year after Damascus was sacked
by Timiir, 804/1401, a chronicler speaks of the scarcity of silver in Damascus
and another reference, written under the year 813/ 1410 referred to a Syrian
silver coin of one tenth silver. 4 Syria also suffered a serious inflation at about
the same time Cairo experienced her crisis. However, there was enough
money In circulation to meet the resulting price rise in the sense that prices
continued to be given in terms of silver and copper coins, not in trade
dirhams. AI Maqrizi differentiated the two methods of recording prices
when he wrote, under the year 806/ 1403, of a Syrian silver (jir!t;la) 'dirham'
as opposed to a 'dirham' of the money (naqd) of Egypt.5 Later references-
both Arabic and European-speak of Cairo and Damascus as having differ-
ent units for accounting purposes. 6 Since silver coins were used in Syria
1
The Na!liri gold coin attributed to al-Na~ir Faraj was instituted by the amir Mal}mOd
al-Ustadar. al-'Ayni 323.
2
al-Sulitk, Paris, 43b. 3
See p. 269 n. 4.
• lbn J:Iajar ii, 45a. 5 al-Suluk,
Paris, 41b.
6
• al-Asadi, al-Taysir wa-1-'Jtibiir (Cairo, 1968), 127; Reinhold Rohricht and Heinrich
Metsner, ed., Das Reisebuch der Familie Rieter (Tiibingen, 1884), 158-9.

272 JERE L. BACHARACH
during the reign of Faraj there was a demand for them. This demand is
reflected in a gold: silver ratio of about 1:9 to 1 : 10.1 If the calculated gold:
silver ratio is accurate, and Egypt's ratio was 1:14, then there would have
been a movement of Egyptian silver to Syria in exchange for gold whether
it was in the form of bullion, Syrian or European coin. This internal gold-
silver flow cannot be documented. However, there is evidence that Syria was
receiving European silver. (It is assumed that both Egypt and Syria were
always receiving European gold to pay for spices and local commodities.)
In A.D. 1407 (A.H. 809-10) the Venetian Senate lifted its interdict on exporting
silver to Syria and by 815/1412, at the latest, large quantities of Venetian
grossi, called Bunduqi, were circulating in Syria but not Cairo. 2 Thus Syria
used silver coins, had a demand for silver, and maintained the traditional
gold- silver system of exchange.
Ill
In political terms Faraj was continually faced with revolts centred in
Syria. This struggle culminated in the victory of two amirs, Nawriiz and
Shaykh, and the murder of Faraj in 815/ 1412. While Nawriiz in Syria and
Shaykh in Egypt struggled for the sultanate, a unique event in Mamluk
political history took place. The Caliph al-Musta'in Billah was named sultan.
Within eight months Shaykh had removed the caliph from the sultanate,
seized the office for himself, and took the title al-Mu'ayyad. He ruled until
824/1421 although Nawriiz was not defeated until 817/1414. Upon Shaykh's
death a political crisis arose in which four men succeeded one another as
sultan within a year. Finally al-Ashraf Barsbiiy (825-41 /1422-38) success-
fully consolidated his position and imposed his will on the various Mamluk
forces until his death. The last major sultan for the third time period, 815- 571
1412-53, was al-Zahir Jaqmaq (842-57/1438-53).
During the years cited above the major silver coins were the Nawriizi
issued by the amir Nawriiz, Shaykh's Mu'ayyadi, Barsbiiy's Ashrafi: and
Jaqmaq's Ziihiri. In analysing these issues three variables are important:
weight, fineness, and exchange rate. The following statements can be made
in summarizing the data on these three factors found in modern scholarly
works. 3 (1) There is no agreement on the weight nor purity of the Nawriizi
and its exchange value is unknown. (2) Shaykh's Mu'ayyadi is worth 7 trade
dirhams; the Ashrafi: 20 dirhams,and the Ziihiri 24 but (3) estimates differ
as to the weight and purity of these three issues.
1
In calculating this ratio it was assumed that the dirham was 33! per cent silver.
2
al-Suluk, Cairo, iv, 135. In a reference written under $afar 830/December 1426, al-
Maqrizi stated that the Venetian grosso had circulated in the Near East since 813/1410.
Ibid. 539.
3
Balog, pp. 249- 393; Popper 51--67; Ahmad Darrag, L'Egypte sous le regne de Barsbay
(Damascus, 1961), 98-102; Subhi Labib, Handelsgeschichte ;fgyptens im Spdtmittelalter,
(Wiesbaden, 1965) 427-34; Eli Strauss, 'Prix et salaires a l'epoque mamlouk', Revue des
etudes islamiques (1949), 50-4.
CIR C ASSIA I I I IJ If
The Mamluk sultans could have j.,~u u
11 r 1111 rl
and unstable purity, the value of which increas d tr 111 1 trr 11 11111 11 •
ever, a careful study of all the contemporary eviden t tu I .urd 1 111111
matic- indicates that the changes which took place during this peri d ' •r~
very systematic and reflect a very tight control over the silver coinage by the
sultans. It would have been possible to reach the conclusions presented below
by use of the sources cited by most of the other scholars, but the task has
been made much easier by the discovery of pertinent material in the Kitiib
a/-Taysir wa-l-'ltibar. 1 The manuscript was written in 855/1451 by a Syrian
al-Asadi and includes a detailed section on changes in the silver from the
time of Sultan-Caliph al-Musta'in Billiih. 2 The key to the problem is that
the purity and exchange rate remained constant while the weight of the
specific issues was systematically lowered.
In an earlier work Professor Adon A. Gordus and this author demon-
strated by means of neutron activation analysis that the purity of the silver
issues from Shaykh to Jaqmaq was 95 per cent silver.3 This scientific data
only supported contemporary evidence as related in the report on an assay
held in 861 /1457.3 Did the Nawruzi, the first of the series, have as high a
percentage of purity and why are there different estimates to its fineness in
the modern literature? The answer to this double question lies in the fact
that there were three silver coins known as the Nawriizi. The first of these
was a coin of 10 per cent silver which circulated in Damascus in 813/1410.
4
It was called by one contemporary historian, the debased Nawriizi. The
second coin was a dirham of half silver and half copper which Nawriiz
ordered to be minted in Rabi' I, 815/June 1412 while he was viceroy of Syria.
When lbn Taghri Birdi summarized the information for this year in al-
Maqrizi's Su/Uk, he only copied the line referring to the order to mint this
coin of 50 per cent silver and not the following directive to immediately
cease production and mint a new type of Nawriizi. 5 The only chronicle which
has been published covering this historical period is lbn Taghri Birdi's. The
third Nawriizi is the most important of the coins with that name and when-
ever the term Nawriizi is used in this paper it will refer to this third type.
The new coin was minted of pure silver (95 per cent) and it weighed half a
dirham coin weight. The theoretical weight of a ni.if, the technical term for a
coin of a half weight, is 1·488 gm . The average weight of the Nawriizi is
l-45 gm., extremely close to the theoretical standard. (See Table I.) Thus the
degree of purity of the silver issues during the third period was very high
1 ai-Asadi. It is fortunate that this important work which had only been used for historical
studies by Professor Labib and this author is now available in a printed edition.
2 ai-Asadi 126- 8.
3 Bacharach and Gordus 3 I 2.
• Jbn Hajar ii, 45a.
6 al-Suiuk, Cairo, iv, 86-7 ; Jbn Taghrl Bird!, ai-Nujtim al-Zcihirah fi Muhik Mi~r wa-1-
Qcihirah, William Popper, ed. (Berkeley, 1915- 60), vi, 315.
c 820:! T
274 JERE L. BACHARACH
and constant, and the first of the series, the Nawnlzi, weighed a ni,sfand not a
full dirham coin weight.
Although scholars have written about the weight, fineness, and value of
the Nawnlzi, they have not dealt with why Nawniz issued it. It would have
been easy for him to order a coin weighing a full dirham coin weight with
100 per cent or even 50 per cent silver as he did for a very short period.
There was the earlier tradition of a coin with 66% per cent silver which
Nawriiz could have copied, but did not. The model which the amir used
for his coinage was not an Islamic but a European one. The Venetian
grossi which were circulating in Syria at that time were issued by the Doges
Antonio Venier (1382- 1400) and Michel Steno (1400- 13). The average
weight of the former's issues was 1·87 gm. while the latter's was l ·7 J gm.
and both had a purity estimated at 95 per cent silver. 1 The Nawriizi had a
similar degree of fineness, as good a uniformity of weight but weighed slightly
less. Therefore the intent of the reform was to issue a Muslim coin which
could successfully compete against the European issue. For an economist
Nawruz's policy is a simple case of applying Gresham's Law where the lower
weight coin (the Nawruzi) was to drive out the heavier one (the Venetian
grosso) assuming the fo rmer were minted in a large enough quantity.
Nawruz's reform differed in one important way from the later and more
famou s reform of the coin gold coinage by Bars bay when his new dinar, the
Ashrafi, competed successfully against the ifranti: the Nawri1z's weight fitted
into the Muslim metrological system while the gold Ashrafi's did not. As
the ni,sfis composed of eight qira{s (0·186 gm.), very small reductions in the
weight of the coin, equal to one qirat, could be authorized and the resulting
coin weight would still fit the system of weights available to Islamic minters.
This is what took place.
While Nawruz initiated the reform in Syria, Shaykh copied it in Egypt as
two Nawriizi type dirhams issued during the sultanate of the Caliph ai-
Musta'in Billah were attributed to Cairo by Dr. Paul Balog. 2 The only
published pre-817 /1415 dirham issued after Shaykh became sultan is inscri bed
with the date A.H. 815 and the mint Cairo. 3 Engraved in the centre of the
obverse is the word ni,sf indicating its intended weight. However, the total
production of these Cairene coins was limited as the textual sources record
exchange rates for only the /:!ajar and Bunduqi and thus it is unlikely that the
Nawriizi could have replaced the Venetian coin in the Mamluk capital. The
historian al-Maqrizi explained the failure of the Nawriizi by writing that
the people were not familiar with using silver coins. 4
1
The Arabic sources record the weight of the grosso as a ni.yf(l-488 gm.) which does not
correspond with the known weight of the coins. One exception, written under 819/ 1415,
said the Venetian grosso weighed the equivalent of 1·77 gm. which is very close to the
numismatic evidence. al-Su!Uk, Cairo, iv, 155.
2
Balog, no. 673-4.
3
Balog, no. 686. 4
al-Suliik, Cairo, iv, 135.
CIRCASSIAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 275
All the sources agree that al-Mu'ayyad Shaykh defeated Nawriiz in
Ramac;lan, 817/December 1414 and returned to Cairo with large quantities
of Nawriizi and Bunduqi which were then reminted as Mu'ayyadi. The
immediate effect of Shaykh's action of flooding the market with silver was to
cause a brief inflation. A second effect was to redress the difference in the
silver holdings between Syria and Egypt. The latter was no longer deficient
in silver compared to the former. The equalization of holdings must have
created similar gold: silver ratios for the two regions although this cannot be
directly documented. 1 The gold: silver ratio for the Mamluk empire until
872/1468, at least, was primarily between 1 :8·8 and 1: 10·6. Therefore the
pre-Faraj pattern of silver flowing from west to east must have been re-
established.
Al-Asadi wrote that the Nawriizi was of pure silver, weighed a ni,sj, and
was worth n trade dirhams in Egypt. The coin was originally meant to be
traded by n~mber but the difficulty of maintaining a precise standard of
weight necessitated exchanges by weight. When Shaykh issued his Mu'ayyadi,
in 817/1415, al-Asadi stated that it was also of pure silver and was worth
7! trade dirhams in Egypt. However, its weight was one qirat (f:tabba in text)
or 0·186 gm. less than the ni,s_f2 A coin which is {6 of a dirham coin weight
should weigh 1·302 gm. ; the weights of the Mu'ayyadi averaged 1·30 gm.
(Table I). A double Mu'ayyadi of 14 qira(s and a half of 3~ qirtl{s were also
issued. A re-reading of the chronicles in light of al-Asadi's remarks indicates
that the Syrian was not the only contemporary source to record the unusual
weights of the Mu'ayyadi. 3
As in the case of the Nawriizi, the more important question is not what
the Mu'ayyadi weighed but what Shaykh's purpose was in issuing a coin of
such an odd weight. The obvious answer was suggested by al-Asadi who
wrote that losses due to wear and clipping necessitated slightly lower stand-
ards with each new sultan. By minting a coin which weighed slightly less
than its predecessor the sultan could issue more coins from the same quantity
of bullion without tampering with the purity, and Gresham's Law would
operate where the newer but lighter coin would drive the older but heavier
one off the market.
The Sultan ai-Mu'ayyad Shaykh hoped to restore the old gold-silver
system and he ordered all prices b ~ given in Mu'ayyadi and not trade dirhams.
The fact that there was not enough silver available to meet local needs to
replace the trade dirham system spelled the failure of his programme.
Another aspect of his policy was announcing exchange rates for a single coin,
usually the 7 qira{ one, as though transactions could be done by number.
1 The activities of Jacques Coeur in Syria in the
second quarter of the fifteenth century
imply a gold: silver ratio of l :9. Watson 21, 25.
2 Al-Asadi said the Mu'ayyadi weighed a rub'
(t) and a thumn (!)and a ~wbba ( i!r) or
f.r of a dirham coin weight. ai-Asadi 127.
3 al-Suliik, Cairo, iv,
152-4; ai-'Aynl, 402; Ibn tlajar ii, 776b.
276 J ERE L. BACHARACH
ClRCASSlAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 277
However the problem of maintaining a I~i standard plus losses due to wear,
in Cairo; the Mu'ayyad1, $alil)I (Sultan al-$alil)), Ashrafi, Qaramani
clipping, etc., required exchanges be done by weight. Thus it appears that
(An ato lia), 'Uthmani (Ottoman), l;lijazi (Mecca), Takruri (Mali Kingdon.1 of
Shaykh hoped to have his 7 qirtit Mu'ayyadi accepted as an 8 qirti{ ni$_[.
Western Sudan), and Bunduql (Venice).! Eventually the Lankiya (Pers1an)
He failed. The exchange rate of the Mu 'ayyadi dropped from 9 to 8 to 7
and Qubrisi (Cypriot) were added to the list. Nine times between. 826/ 14~3
trade dirhams per coin. The last rate, the most common one during his
and 837 /1433 the sultan o utlawed all the non-Egyptian currenc1es. Wh1le
reign, meant that coins could be traded by weight, as they must have been,
many of these orders were directed again st the Bunduqi, its high degree of
at 16 trade dirhams per dirham coin weight of Mu'ayyadi. The legacy of
purity did not make it (in th at context) a threat to the Ashrafi and by 834i 1430
Shaykh's policy was (1) the issuance of a standard silver coin with multiples
it was officially accepted on a par with Barsbay's coin. 2 It should also be
which was continued by the later Circassians, and (2) the term Mu'ayyadi
noted that the average weight of the grossi minted in the name of Doge
and ni$_{ eventually beca me sy non ymous and later European references to a
Francesco Foscari was l · 36 gm., a drop similar to the change in the weight
medyn or madini (from Mu'ayyadi) referred to any Muslim coin of a ni,~f
of the Muslim coin . However, the Lankiya, Qubrisi, an d Qaramani, which
weight. 1
were outlawed, were only 60 per cent silver and could have undermined the
During the brief reign of al-$aliiJ Mul)ammad (824- 5/1 421 - 2) a meeting
better Mamlu k coinage.
of the money changers was held in the Cairo Citadel to discuss the weight
A second threat to Barsbay's programme was the dra in on the bullion
losses in the Mu'ayyadi. 2 Tt was announced that the coin was to be traded
supply from intern al pressures. The loss of silver through its shipment to the
by weight and not number a nd a dirham coin weight of them was to be worth
Hijaz (and by extension India) and its use for the manufacture of vessels (a
20 trade dirh am s. This rate of exchange was the same for Barsbay's reign.
meth od of removing si lve r from circulation by hoarding) were so great that
One of the published dirhams of al-$alil) has a weight similar to the Mu'ayyadi
Barsbay forbad both practices in 839/1434. 3 The sultan o rdered all silver to
but there are three others which are very close to the standard associated
be carried to the mint where it was to be reissued as coin.
with Barsbay. 3 Thus the weight standard a nd exchange rate used by Barsbay
The norm al losses in th e weight of indi vidual As hrafi as well as the limited
were establ ished befo re he ascended to the sultanate.
bullion supply fo rced Jaqmaq to issue his Zah iri at a slightly lower weight.
The Syrian commentator, al-Asadi, wrote that Barsbay's Ashrafi weighed
Al-Asadi claimed that the Zahiri was to weigh 5~ qirti{s and was worth
~s and i;s of a dirham coin weight or 6 qirti{s (1·116 gm.) an d 12 qlrii{s
8 trade dirhams per coin.'1 Although the theoretical weight stan~ard is _very
(2·232 gm.) respectively. 4 As with the Nawriizi a nd Mu'ayyadi, the actual
irregular, t he ave rage weight of Jaqmaq's published dirhams 1s re l a~tvely
average weight of the Ash rafT as listed by Balog is ve ry close to the theoretical
close to it (Table I). As with Shaykh and Barsbay there were :wo ser.te~ .of
weight predicted by ai-Asadi (Table I). These iss ues are unu su al in that
coins with the heav ier one weighing about 10 or 11 qirti{s. The tmposstbll!ty
Barsbay acknowledged hi s reduction in the weight of individual pieces by
of maintaining a uniform weight necessitated exchange rates at 24 trade
inscribing the actual weight on a number of the specimens : rub' wa thumn
dirhams per dirham coin weight of Zahiri. The Ara bi c sou rces onl~ recorded
(± plus k) and ni$/ wa rub' (l plus t ). 5 Barsbay's action indicates that he gave
this exchange rate for the Muslim years 843, 847, and 854, an d 111 .the firs;
up any hope of seeing them traded by number as opposed to the policy of
and last insta nce the chronicles also listed the Ashrafi at 20 trade d1rhams ."
Shaykh. The exchange rate listed in a!-Tay sir is 7k trade dirhams which is
It is difficult to imagine that most of those invo lved in tran sactions could
equal to 20 trade dirhams per dirham coin weight ; the rate found in all the
have read the inscriptional changes from the Ashrafi to the ~ahiri, but ~he
other Arabic sources. Therefore the substantial jump in the exchange rate
relative differences in the weight of individual pieces would tdentlfy wh1ch
between the Mu'ayyadi and the Ashrafi fou nd in man y contemporary and
modern sources is due to a change in the definition of the term 'dirham'. was which.
The monetary changes which took place during thi s tl~ird chronologic~l
In comparative term s the exchange rate only went from 16 to 20trade dirhams.
period can be analysed in two ways although the econom1c effect of both ts
Barsbay wished to reap the maxim um profits from the exclusive use of his
the same. Using al-Asadi as a guide, it appears that the ~amluk .sultans
silver coin as well as protect it from the competition of other currencies.
systematica lly lowered the weight of their silver coins wlule keepmg the
In 826/ 1422 the Arabic sources li sted the following silver coins in circulation
1
For example, Rohricht 146. Fclix Fabri , Evagatorium in Terrae Sanctae, Arabiae et 1 Popper 53- 5; al-'Aynl 541.
Egypti Peregrinationem, (Stuttgartiae, 1849). iii . 101 ; Berna rd de Brcydenback, Les Saintes
2 al-Sulilk, Cairo, iv, 55 1- 2; Nujiim vi, 667- 8.
3 al-Sultlk, Cairo, iv, 771;
Peregrinations de ... (Cairo, J 905), 64. Jbn l:lajar ii, 326a.
2 ai-Suliik, 4
Cai ro, iv, 410. 3
Balog, no. 701 ·-2. ai-Asadl 128. .h D 1 - r · M d -•
4 a i-Asadi 5 al-Sulilk, Cairo, iv, 975; ai-'Ay nl 740; lbn Taghri Birdl, Ha wddtt a1- u1ur 1 l a a
128 . 5
Balog, no. 71 5- 17.
al-A yyiim wa-1-Shuhtir, William Popper, ed. (Berkeley, 1930), 11 , 76.
278 JERE L. BACHARACH
degree of fineness and exchange rate relatively constant (Table II). This
meant that each ruler could mint more coins than his predecessor from the
same amount of bullion; in other words, he could increase his profit from
the mint. The difficulty of minting with extremely minute weights as well
as other loss factors resulted in market exchanges by weight rather than by
number. Thus the second pattern was a steady increase in the exchange rate
while purity and weight remained constant (Table Il). Each sultan would
call in the old currency at one rate, issue his coin at a higher rate, and the
difference minus cost was his profit. Whichever way the changes are analysed
the net result is the same, an increase in the income for the sultan and the
replacing of the older money by the newer 'inferior' issue as predicted by
Gresham's Law.
These developments in Egypt and Syria also illustrate the impact of inter-
national monetary movements. The dominant role played by Venice and her
currency in Mamluk trade led to the -adoption of the Venetian grosso as
the model for Nawruz's reformed silver coin. The threat from inferior
foreign currencies necessitated their outlawing and the losses due to the
exportation of silver to the East caused its prohibition.
IV
The coinage of the first ruler of the final chronological segment, al-Ashraf
Aynal (857- 65/ 1453- 61) represents a transition between the two periods.
His issues were the natural culmination of the developments since Nawruz in
the sense that his lightest coin weighed 4 qirii{s and its multiple was the ni~f
which had begun the series (Table I). In the same pattern the exchange rate
before 862/1457 for a dirham coin weight of Aynali was 32 trade dirhams.
In that year Aynal announced a new exchange rate which was followed by
most of the succeeding sultans. 1 The Ashrafi dinar, mentioned above, was to
be worth 25 silver coins which in turn were to weigh a ni~f The value of the
ni~f in trade dirhams was rarely given but when it was the coin was worth
12 trade dirhams or a dirham coin weight was worth 24 (Jaqmaq's rate).
Only during the reign of Qi:in$fih al-Gawri (906- 22/ 1501- 16) was the weight
of the Mamluk silver coin significantly lowered and then to about 1·20 gm.
although the term ni,if was retained.
Fortunately the Arab chroniclers did not continue referring to the silver
issues of the sultans by their honorific titles. For example, Sultan al-Ashraf
Qayitbay (872-901 / 1468- 98), o rdered in 885/1480 the cessation of the use of
all dirhams circulating in Damascus. 2 The order spoke of the post-Jaqmaq
coins as the Aynall, Khushqadami, Yalbayi, Tamburghi:iwri, and Qi:iyitbi:iyi
rather than as two types of Ashrafi (Aynal and Qayitbay) and three ~ahiri.
1
lbn Iyiis, Bad{/i' al-Zuhur fi Waqii'i' al-Duhzlr (Bulaq, A.H. 1311), ii, 61-2.
2 9
lbn TUiiin, Mufakahah al-Khillanfi al-Zamiin (Cairo, 1962), i, 24.
CIRCASSIAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 279
The pressures to increase the profits from silver and the demands to supply
coins from a limited if not diminishing quantity of bullion meant some type
of change would have to be initiated. During the third period purity had been
kept constant while the weight was lowered (constant) and value constant
(increased). Now the most common policy was for the sultans to keep the
weight and value relatively constant and to lower the degree of fineness. 1
The first reference to this development was related to a crisis of confidence
in the coinage of Aynai.2 In 861 /1457 a public assay was held and Aynal's
Syrian issues were found to be only 50 per cent pure while those minted in
Cairo were 96 per cent. The resulting juror on the part of the sultan raises
questions as to his responsibility for the issuance of the bad coins. T?is
would have been only the second time a sultan had not set monetary pohcy
and unlike the earlier case of Faraj, Aynal rectified the matter. Within a year
new coins of a high degree of fineness were being issued throughout the
empire. .
Neutron activation analysis indicates that a debasement began durmg
Qayitbiiy's reign but supporting textual evidence is scarce. 3 Contemporary
references to rates in Syria and Palestine of one (Ashrafi) dinar for 50
'dirhams' refer to quarter-weight coins and not debased ni$/ 4 A report of
an assay held in Damascus in 877/ 1472 stated that Qayitbay's dirhams were
95 per cent si lver. 5 However the necessity of holding this test is impo~ant.
During the same Muslim year Qayitbay had written to the Do~e Ntcol~
Trono complaining that a 100 dirham coin weights of Venetmn grosst
yielded only 60 of silver. 6 As if to confirm the sultan's complaint, Sebal~en
Rieter who travelled in the Near East in 1479-80, recorded that Venetlan
silver ~as not readily accepted although the ducat was. 7 Father Felix Fabri,
who visited Cairo in 1483, wrote about money changers biting the silver
coins to check thei r purity. 8 What made Fabri's remarks even more important
is that these 'teeth' tests were applied to Mamluk silver as well as foreign
coins. lf the Venetians were issuing poor coins or if Europeans were selling
debased bullion to the Mamluks 9 the degree of fineness of the Circassian
coins would have declined. At the same time the increased military costs
under Qayitbiiy and Qi:in$fih al-Gawri would have led them .to deb.ase
their silver, as they did with their gold coins, irrespective of Venettan policy.
Therefore, although contemporary monetary data are very scarce for the first
r It is possible that attempts were made to manipulate ~he e~~har:ge rates but the evi~e~ce
is not clear. Ibn lyiis ii, 167; al-Jawharl, Inbti' al-Ha,~r fz Anba al- A$r, MS. (Pans) Btbho-
theque Nationale, no. 1791, 202b.
2 Bacharach and Gordus 312-13.
3
Ibid. 316- 17. - - · 63
4 Waqf of Sultan Qiiyitbtiy, Archives, Ministry of Awqaf, no. 885, p. 44; Ibn Tu1un 1, •
5 ai-Jawhari 193a.
• John Wansbrough 'A Mamluk Letter of 877/1473', Bull. School of Or. and Afr.
Studies xxiv (1961), 206, 212. t Rohricht 146- 7.
s Fabri 102. Watson 21-2.
 280 JERE L. BACHARACH CIRCASSIAN MONETARY POLICY: SILVER 281
decades of the tenth/sixteenth century, with only a few references to the use
SILVER CHANGES IN F I FTEENTH -C ENTURY EGYPT
of ni,if, numismatic evidence indicates that these ni,if were neither half a
dirham coin weight nor of pure silver.
TABLE I
Circassian rule ended almost as it had begun in terms of its silver coins.
In both cases the weight and purity were dropping from an earlier standard. Weight of the Coins
Between these two dates the sultans had initiated a series of policies to meet
their financial needs as well as attempt to increase their personal income. Wt. in Theoretical Mean wt.
Coin qirats wt . in gr. in gr.
The reign of Faraj was the great turning-point for monetary developments.
The sign ificant shift in the gold: si lver ratio worked against Egypt's holding Nawriizi 8 1-488 l-45
its silver at a time when it was already short of silver. The economic crisis Mu'ayyadi 7 1-302 1·30
Ashrafl (Bars bay) 6 1·116 1·03
of 805-6/1403 and the creation of the trade dirham system allowed for new Zahiri 5:\ 0·992 0·81
opportunities for the sultan to increase his income by setting high exchange Ashrafi (Aynal) 4 0·744 0·75
rates for his own new coinage and low rates for that of his predecessors.
Considering the economic, and by extension monetary, dependence of the
Mamluks on Europe, especially for bullion, the Muslim rulers were very
successful in meeting the chal lenge of the Venetian grosso . The systematic TAilLE II

changes from Nawriiz to Aynal have an almost artistic quality about them. 1 Value (~f the Coinage
The ultimate failure of the Mamluks to preserve a silver coinage of uniform
weight, fineness, and value was guara nteed. On one hand, they never had Wt. in Value of Value of a
the natural resources to maintain such a policy nor did international monetary Ruler Coin qirats a coin dir. coin wt.
forces allow them to act in isolation. On the other hand, the Mamluks were al-Musta'in Billah Nawrf1zi 8 7~- units 15 units
scheming, ruthless rulers who wished to maximize their immediate incomes (815 / 1412)
with a minimum regard for the long-term consequences of their actions. ai-Mu'ayyad Shaykh
(815- 24/ 1412-2 1)
Mu'ayyadi 7 n 20- 16
The Circassian era was one of economic stagnation and decay coupled with ai-Ashraf Barsbay Ashrafl 6 7~ 20
increased military costs to buy troop loyalty and to fight foreign adventures. (825-41 / 1422-38) "
In this light it is very impressive that the silver coinage of Circassian Egypt al-Zahir Jaqmaq Zahiri 5! 8 24
(842- 57/ 1438-53)
and Syria was as good as it was for so long. al-Ashraf Aynal Ashrafi 4 8 32- 24
(857- 65/ 1453-61)
Since submission of this article two works have appeared which deal in
part with monetary changes in Circassian Egypt. Professor Eliayahu Ashtor
in his Histoire des prix et des salaires dans !'Orient medidva/, Paris, 1969,
summarizes some of the data, corrects a few of the errors found in earlier
works, and obliquely suggests the application of Gresham's Law without
detailing his argument. Professors Robert Lopez, Harry Miskimin, and
Abraham Udovitch in an article entitled 'England to Egypt, 1350- 1500:
Long-term Trends and Long-distance Trade', in Studies in the Economic
History of the Middle East, M. A. Cook, ed., London, 1970, state that
Gresham's Law had almost no application in the medieval Islamic monetary
context but unfortunatel y they did not elaborate upon their argument.
1
A recent article by John M. Smith on silver changes in Ilkhanid Iran indicates certain
parallel developments particularly in terms of the reduction in the weight of the silver coins.
However, Professor Smith states that in the Iranian case these changes represented in-
creased economic activity. John M. Smith, 'The Silver Coinage of Mongol Iran', JESHO
xii (1969), 16-41.