Norman tarì of Roger II of Sicily, with Arabic inscriptions, minted in Palermo. Now in the British Museum.
A pre-Norman Sicilian ruba'i/tarì in the name of Caliph Al-Mustansir. British Museum.
A pre-Norman Sicilian ruba'i/tarì in the name of Caliph Al-Hakim, 1005. British Museum.

A tarì (from Arabic طري ṭarī, lit. "fresh" or "newly minted money")[1] was the Christian designation of a type of gold coin of Islamic origin minted in Sicily, Malta and Southern Italy from about 913 to the 13th century.[2]

History

In the Islamic world, this type of coin was designated under the name ruba'i, or quarter-dinar, as it weighed 1.05 g (0.034 ozt) of gold.[1] The ruba'i had been minted by the Muslims in Sicily, unlike the Muslim rulers of North Africa, who preferred the larger dinar.[3] It became highly popular as it was smaller and therefore more convenient than the large-sized 4.25 g (0.137 ozt) dinar.[4]

The tarì were so widespread that imitations were made in Southern Italy (Amalfi and Salerno) from the mid-tenth century, which only used illegible "pseudo-Kufic" imitations of Arabic.[1][4][3] When the Normans invaded Sicily in the 11th century, they issued tarì coins bearing legends in Arabic and Latin.[5] Roger II of Sicily issued such coins, becoming the only Western ruler at that time to mint gold coins. Their composition was 161⁄3 carat gold (0.681 fineness) with some adjunction of silver and copper.[3] The tarì were also produced by the Hohenstaufens and the early Angevins.[6]

The tarì coins were generally minted from African gold obtained from Misrata or Tunis in Northern Africa in exchange for grain.[6]

Nowadays, the tari is a subunit (1/12) of the scudo, souvenir coins issued by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.

See also

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 Cardini, p. 26
  2. ↑ "ACR Numismatic Auction 19 (Page: 1) - en".
  3. 1 2 3 Matthew, p. 240
  4. 1 2 Grierson, p. 3
  5. ↑ British Museum, Islamic Art room
  6. 1 2 Blanchard, p. 196

Works cited

Media related to Tarì at Wikimedia Commons

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