Umayyad Dirham (Minted in al-Bab, 114 AH) – Reign of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
<p>Al-Bab stands at the narrowest mountain pass linking the southern Caucasus with the plains north of the Caspian Sea. Historically it served as a strategic gateway for northern tribes toward Muslim lands, so the Caliphate fortified it and kept an administrative presence there.</p><p>This dirham comes from that fortified mountain gate in 114 AH, in the reign of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik, when tensions with the Khazars flared again on this front.</p>
114 AH