Speaker
Description
Our objective is to discuss early Mongol monetary issues in the Caucasus. We focused on the coins bearing the mint name “Qarabāgh” and issued temp. Ögedei and Töregene. The anonymous bow type bearing this mint name has already been published. However, we discovered a specimen restruck from the silver drama (Georgian for dirham) of Queen Rusudan of Georgia (1223-1245) (2.37 g; reportedly, accidental find from the vicinity of Tiflīs). Stephen Album notes that these coins are “occasionally found overstruck on Rum Seljuk dirhams, especially on the lion & sun type” (coins of the latter type circulated widely within the Georgian Kingdom). We also discovered an as yet unique and previously unknown coin of mounted archer type bearing the mint name “Qarabāgh” previously unknown for this type (2.70 g, accidental find from the historical Hereti region of Georgia). Our data and research clarify the numismatic history of Mongol dominion in Caucasus.
