Artuqids of Mardin, 599 AH / 1202-1203 AD., Nasir al-Din Artuq Arslan, Mardin mint, Æ Dirham, S/S 38.1.

Artuqids of Mardin (AH 502-811 / 1108-1408 AD.), Nasir al-Din Artuq Arslan bin Il-Ghazi (AH 597-637 / 1201-1239AD.), Mardin mint, AH 599 / 1202-1203 AD.,
Æ Unit / Æ Dirham (26-28 mm / 7,48 g), copper, axes irregular alignment ↑→ (ca. 90°),
Obv.: ﺔﺋﺎﻤﺴﻤﺧﻭ ﻦﻴﻌﺴﺗﻭ ﻊﺴﺗ ﺔﻨﺳ ﻦﻳﺩﺭﺎﻤﺑ ﺏﺮﺿ , "Duribe bi-Mardin sene 599" , Centaur-archer running to r., crowned head facing, stretching a bow whose arrow is pointed towards the wide-open head and jaws of a dragon emerging from the centaur's tail (Jupiter in Sagittarius), mint and date legend in margin.
Rev.: ﻦﻴﻨﻣﺆﻤﻟﺍﺮﻴﻣﺍ ﻪﻠﻟﺍ ﻦﻳﺪﻟﺮﺻﺎﻨﻟﺍ / ﺮﻜﺑﺭﺎﻳﺩ ﻚﻠﻣ ﺏﻮﻳﺍ ﻦﺑ ﺮﻜﺑﻮﺑﺍ ﻝﺩﺎﻌﻟﺍ ﻚﻠﻤﻟﺍ / ﻥﻼﺳﺭﺍ ﻖﺗﺭﺍ ﻦﻳﺪﻟﺍﺮﺻﺎﻧ , "El-Nasır lidinillah emir'ül müminin el-Melik'ül Adil Ebubekir bin Eyub Melik-i Diyarbekir . Nasıreddin Artuk Arslan" , four line Kufic central legend arranged in a square and continuing in the margin, with name of Caliph al-Nasir and the Ayyubid al-‘Adil Abu Bakr, and Nasir al-Din.
Spengler/Sayles I, p. 122 ff., no. 38.1 ; BMC 429-431 ; Butak 41 ; Alb. 1830.2 .

the strange obverse depiction can be interpreted astrologically: The Centaur´s body means "Jupiter in Sagittarius", the dragon's tail means "jawzahr" = the moon eats the sun: here the eclipse of AH 598.

das ungewöhnliche Bild der Vorderseite ist astrologisch zu deuten: Der Kentaur mit Herrscher-Oberkörper bedeutet "Jupiter im Schützen", der Drachenschwanz steht für "jawzahr"= der Mond, der die Sonne frißt: hier die Sonnenfinsternis von AH 598.