Heritage

Council of Majorca acquires Muslim-era coins

Coins acquired by the Council of Majorca.

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPalma14/03/2020 04:01

The Council of Majorca's heritage department has acquired two Majorcan coins from the Muslim era, which are described as "unique and of great value" and that were put up for auction in Barcelona. The Council has paid 35,000 euros for coins that an expert in numismatics, Antoni Calero, had feared could fall into "foreign hands".

One of the coins is a gold dinar minted for Ishaq ibn Muhammad of the Banu Ghaniya dynasty; he was emir of the Balearics from 1165 to 1183. The coin is said to be representative of twelfth century Balearics historiography and is listed among the one hundred finest monetary pieces at the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid, which has its own coin. Its estimated value is between 30,000 and 40,000 euros.

The other coin is a silver dirham. It is in good condition and said to be very rare. Its value is between 3,000 and 4,000 euros.