13/12/2025
, as the heart of both the ancient and modern world, and by virtue of its religious status as the cradle of the heavenly religions, became a target of aggression and colonial invasions. As a result, it experienced political upheavals unmatched by any other place on this earth. Yet it remained faithful to the great Eastern civilizations—the Canaanite, Phoenician, Nabataean, Palestinian, Pharaonic, Assyrian, Persian, and Hyksos civilizations. Thus, the land preserved its Arab identity despite the Western eras, from Greek to Roman to Byzantine. Palestine remained Arab first and last, a living witness to those civilizations. The Arab identity endured in the land, while the colonial froth vanished into nothingness, and likewise the Zionist froth will vanish, sooner or later.
Coinage is a civilizational witness no less important than archaeological excavations. It is a science in its own right—*numismatics*—which indicates the identity of the peoples who minted those coins. The Canaanite and Palestinian kingdoms were among the earliest kingdoms in the Middle East to mint coins, as they formed a vital link on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean between caravan routes moving between the Arabian Peninsula, the Far East, and the countries of the Mediterranean basin, especially Egypt and Greece. Coins bearing the name of Palestine and its cities have existed for more than two thousand five hundred years.
Arab–Phoenician coins were minted in Gaza during the period of Persian control over the country (538–332 BCE). The currency used in that era was the gold *daric*, and silver coins known as *siglos* were also minted. This currency was the legal tender in Palestine. The bearded Persian king wearing a crown appeared on the obverse of the gold coin. When Alexander the Great conquered the country in 332 BCE, coins were minted according to Greek standards and circulated widely for about a quarter of a century. The gold coins were called *staters*, while the silver coins were issued in various units and called *tetradrachms* (four drachmas), alongside bronze and copper coinage. After Alexander’s death came the Ptolemaic–Seleucid period, during which coins were minted in four Palestinian cities: Gaza, Ashkelon, Jaffa, and Acre.
The city of Rafah was among the most famous Palestinian cities in which Roman coins were minted at the end of the second century CE. These bore the name of Rafah and were issued under Emperor Severus, and others under Emperor Aurelian. Gaza, meanwhile, minted its own coins throughout the Roman period, serving as evidence of its economic and commercial prosperity. Ashkelon minted coins in the Roman style, distinguished by the depiction of warships and, on the reverse, certain deities. The coins carried many symbols, such as palm fronds, birds, and the winnowing fork. In the same manner, coins were minted in Jaffa, Caesarea, Dora, Acre, Beit Jibrin, Aelia (Jerusalem), as well as Tiberias, Beisan, and Sebastia.
The Byzantine period, extending from 365 CE until the appearance of Arab Islamic coinage in 632 CE, was marked by the Byzantine Empire’s attempt to end the role of Palestinian cities in minting coins. It worked to establish unified minting values based on gold, whose basic unit was the *solidus* (the dinar), valued at twenty-four carats, alongside the minting of bronze *follis* coins. These coins continued until the reign of Heraclius, who introduced the silver dirham, and so matters remained until the Islamic conquest.
**Arab Islamic coinage in Palestine:**
At first, Arab Islamic coinage was influenced by the Byzantine style and was minted in several cities, including Tiberias, Jerusalem, Yibna, and Beit Jibrin. Most of these were copper coins, alongside gold dinars and silver dirhams. The letter “M” appeared on the reverse of the coin to indicate its value and to signify the liberation of the Arab economy from Byzantine dependency. During the reign of Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, minting spread across most Palestinian cities, and modifications were introduced to coins that had Byzantine features. The image of Heraclius was replaced with that of Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, and on the reverse was inscribed: “In the name of God, this dinar was struck in the year seventy-six.” Later, the phrase “Muhammad is the Messenger of God” was added around the image of the caliph, while the letter “M” was retained in the center of the reverse, surrounded by the word “Palestine.” In a later phase of the Umayyad era, coinage became purely Arab Islamic. Copper coins were minted in most Palestinian cities. During the Abbasid period, minor modifications were introduced, particularly in the way “Muhammad is the Messenger of God” was written, and the verse “To God belongs the command before and after, and on that day the believers will rejoice in the victory of God” was added to the reverse. This remained the case throughout the Tulunid and Ikhshidid periods, while some changes occurred in minting during the Fatimid period.
Due to the Ayyubid state’s preoccupation with resisting the Crusaders and the transformation of the land of Palestine into a battlefield, the minting of Palestinian coins ceased. Coins were minted instead in Cairo and Alexandria in 1169 CE, following the Fatimid style. In 1250 CE, the Crusaders minted coins in Acre and Jerusalem, forging Ayyubid coins. Later, the Mamluks resumed minting coins in some Palestinian cities, such as Gaza, and some coins bore symbols like the lion, which was the emblem of al-Zahir Baybars.
With the extension of Ottoman control over the Levant after the Battle of Marj Dabiq in 1516 CE, Ottoman coins were introduced, devoid of Qur’anic verses, which were replaced by the titles of the sultans. When Britain entered Palestine, it announced on 23 November 1917 that Egyptian currency would be the official currency of the country, with Egyptian pounds minted in London. Based on the Balfour Declaration, the Mandate authorities formed a special committee to study the establishment of a distinct monetary system for Palestine. The committee consisted of four foreign bank directors, three government officials, two Arabs appointed by the Mandate authorities, and three Jews whose nomination was left to the Zionists. The Palestinian people rose up in rejection of this idea. The Islamic–Christian Association in the city of Haifa led the campaign, supported by the Chambers of Commerce of Jaffa and Haifa, and joined by the Arab Executive Committee, which submitted a memorandum of protest to the British High Commissioner.
The project was suspended for two years, after which the British Secretary of State for the Colonies issued a decision known as the “Palestine Currency Law.” A body called the “Palestine Currency Board” was appointed, with no Palestinians among its members, and was granted authority to issue currency on behalf of the Government of Palestine. Accordingly, the Currency Ordinance was issued in February 1927, accompanied by an explanation from the Secretary of State stating that the Palestinian currency would be in three languages—Arabic, English, and Hebrew—that the image of the British king would not appear on it, that it would be minted in London, and that after the name “Palestine” the currency would bear two Hebrew letters, aleph and yod, as an abbreviation for the words “Eretz Israel” (Land of Israel).
The Palestinian people realized the scale of the conspiracy and rose up in the streets of Jaffa and Jerusalem. The demonstrations soon spread to other cities and became known as the “Currency Demonstration.” The gold pound of this currency remained merely a slogan and was never minted at all. Subsequently, coins bearing the name “Palestine” were introduced into Palestinian markets. Their designs were determined by the British, who limited them to natural shapes and symbols such as the olive branch, images of certain Arab and Islamic monuments, and some symbols that their designers believed to be part of Jewish heritage, only to discover that they were in fact Arab Islamic artifacts. The absence of political symbols was intended to appease the Jews more than the Arabs.
To what extent can coins and currency be read not merely as economic tools, but as enduring historical documents that preserve identity, power, and resistance across centuries of Palestinian history?
