FREE BOOK: CHECKLIST OF ISLAMIC COINS, 3RD EDITION

We are happy to announce that we have decided to make Stephen Album's Checklist of Islamic Coins, 3rd Edition (2011) available as a free PDF download from our website. We hope that many of you will find this to be a useful resource during these difficult times, and in your future research and collecting.

Collectors of Islamic coins have long bemoaned the lack of general literature on the subject. In particular, there has never been a general listing of Islamic coin types that could serve as a convenient guide to what exists, what is readily collectible, and what is rare. For that reason, it occurred to me back in 1992 to compile just such a listing, which could be made available to collectors and dealers at a nominal cost. In order to keep the cost to a minimum, the first edition (1993) was without illustrations, inexpensively printed from laser output, and held together by saddle-stitch binding. At first I had intended that the second edition (completed in 1997, published in 1998) would include photographs of perhaps 800-1000 coins, but after reconsideration, I decided to issue the second edition without photos and prepare a separate photo supplement that hopefully will be published within six months after the second edition of the text. In this manner I could limit the cost of the text volume, and allow those who wish to have the photo supplement to order it as a separate publication.

Alas, my intention to complete the photo volume quickly vanished. At the end of 1997 I left for Oxford, England, where I worked as a researcher and part-time lecturer at the Ashmolean Museum, associated with Oxford University, where I stayed until the middle of 2000, although I periodically came back to California to devote about two weeks each time to my coin business. Upon the conclusion of my Oxford sojourn I concentrated on the long process of resuscitating the business. Doug Nicol had left in 1999 to return to Pennsylvania and establish his own trade in genealogy. In 2001, Joseph Lang, then searching for a job in the numismatic trade, convinced me to hire him. His contribution proved so successful that in 2004 we reorganized the business as a joint partnership between us, as it remains to this day.

As these years rolled by, it seemed logical that I should abandon the idea of a photo supplement and commit my time to a third edition, complete with photos. Although my original intention was to complete the work in 2004 or 2005, postponement became the rule of law. Finally, early in 2008 I committed myself to finishing the job, hopefully by end of 2008, but delay after delay entered the picture. At last, I finalized the descriptive text on 27 July 2009, and hope to have the introduction finished within a few weeks and a PDF version (without photos) posted online in September. Most of the photos have been completed, but I will wait for about another nine months before the hardcover printed and illustrated edition will appear. As for the PDF version, it remains uncertain whether that might become available, and if so, when.

The first edition of this Checklist was intended as a convenient record of Islamic coin types, within the geometric and chronological criteria described below, together with a subjective estimation of the rarity of each type. This second edition added further information, including, for each dynasty or sub-dynasty, an indication of the most frequently encountered mints and subtypes, as well as general information on quality of strike and average preservation. Metrological data were generally not provided, except where deemed essential for the classification of types. Like the first edition, the second edition was intended especially for the beginner and the more advanced general collector, but not for the specialist, who needs detail far beyond what can be included in a synoptic guide. But for the general collector, the Checklist could serve as a basic framework from which he or she can construct parameters for assembling a collection. It should also constitute a useful reference for dealers.

For the third edition, I have greatly expanded the descriptive information for individual types and subtypes, aspiring to present more details that might help the reader identify their coins. When the printed illustrated volume becomes available, there will be more than 1000 illustrated coins. Fortunately, the internet is now providing thousands more photos, over 32,000 at www.zeno.ru.

The author and manager of that superb website, Vladimir Belyaev, has applied my appropriate Checklist number to most of the photos, and I am immensely thankful for his efforts.

For more information on the book and its previous editions, see:
A Checklist of Islamic Coins (https://db.stevealbum.com/php/albumcat.php)

To read the complete book, see:
https://www.stevealbum.com/pdfs/ChecklistOfIslamicCoins3rdEdition2011Free.pdf

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