Arab-Sasanian & Early Islamic

Khwarazmshah Gold Dinar of Muhammad II

Muhammad II ruled one of the largest empires of the Islamic Middle Ages — from the Caspian to the Indus — but his execution of Mongol envoys provoked Genghis Khan's catastrophic invasion of 1219–1221, ending the Khwarazmian state and beginning the Mongol era in Iran.

Key specifications for Khwarazmshah Gold Dinar of Muhammad II
Date	1200–1220 CE
Ruler / issuer	'Ala' al-Din Muhammad II
Metal	Gold
Era	Arab-Sasanian & Early Islamic (651 – 1258 CE)
Region	Caliphate provinces of Iran

Obverse

Shahada with Khwarazmshah titles.

Reverse

Caliph's name in Arabic; mint and date.

Historical context — Arab-Sasanian & Early Islamic

Arab governors continued striking Sasanian-style drachms with added Arabic Kufic legends (bismillah). Abd al-Malik's reform (696/77 AH) introduced epigraphic-only Islamic coinage — the silver dirham and gold dinar.

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Frequently asked

What is the Khwarazmshah Gold Dinar of Muhammad II?: Muhammad II ruled one of the largest empires of the Islamic Middle Ages — from the Caspian to the Indus — but his execution of Mongol envoys provoked Genghis Khan's catastrophic invasion of 1219–1221, ending the Khwarazmian state and beginning the Mongol era in Iran. It was struck in 1200–1220 CE under 'Ala' al-Din Muhammad II.
What metal and weight is it?: Gold.
What designs appear on it?: Obverse: Shahada with Khwarazmshah titles. Reverse: Caliph's name in Arabic; mint and date.

Umayyad Gold Dinar

Abd al-Malik (post-reform)

77 AH / 696 CE

First purely epigraphic Islamic coin — a revolution in monetary art.

Samanid Gold Dinar (Nishapur)

Abd al-Malik I (Samanid)

955–956 CE

Samanid silver dirhams flooded Viking-age trade; vast hoards found from Russia to Sweden.

Ghaznavid Gold Dinar

Mas'ud III (Ghaznavid)

1099–1115 CE

Ghaznavid Indian campaigns funded vast gold issues from Mahmud onward.

Great Seljuq Gold Dinar

Malik-Shah I

1072–1092 CE

Issued across a vast empire from Anatolia to Transoxiana.

Ilkhanid Gold Dinar of Arghun

Arghun Khan (Ilkhanid)

AH 684 / 1285–1286 CE

Bilingual Arabic-Uighur issue from the Mongol Ilkhanate of Iran, before Ghazan's conversion to Islam.

Abbasid Gold Dinar of Harun al-Rashid

Caliph Harun al-Rashid

AH 184 / 800 CE

Struck at the height of the Abbasid Caliphate's prestige under the patron of the 'Thousand and One Nights' court. Abbasid gold dinars circulated as the dominant trade coin from al-Andalus to Sogdia, and the standard was rigorously maintained for over two centuries.

Source

Commons – 'Ala' al-Din Muhammad Khwarazmshah →