Now, at long last, the world of Islamic numismatics has been provided with a comprehensive compilation guide to the first period of Islamic gold coinage from the time of the Umayyad caliph ‘Abd al-Malik bin Marwan until the deposition of the Abbasid caliph al-Mustakfi in 334 Hijra (946 CE). Giulio Bernardi’s corpus is a labour of indefatigable and dedicated scholarship which puts all other such works in the shade. This book is a truly great achievement which should stand the test of time and will be used by the many people who have the good fortune to turn its pages from the time of its publication and in the years to come.
