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These Moroccan coins feature the so-called Seal of Solomon, often depicted as a hexagram, similar to the Star of David. The coins are dated respectively 1271 A.H. (1855) and 1290 A.H. (1873/4), minted by king 'Abd al-Raḥmān and his successor, Muḥammad IV of #Morocco.
The Seal of Solomon is the signet ring attributed to the Abrahamic king/prophet Solomon. It is said that Solomon used this ring to control the spirits and animals. The design as a hexagram is often depicted on medieval #Islamic banners, coins, drinking-cups or in mosques.
According to the Catalan Atlas (1375), the two Anatolian beyliks of respectively Karaman and Candar featured a Seal of Solomon on their flags. The symbol was popular among the Turkish beyliks, and was later used by the #Ottomans in their mosque decorations.
A coin minted by the Ayyubid emir of #Aleppo, al-Ẓāhir Gāzī, around 1204. The coin clearly features a Seal of Solomon.
A page from the mid-18th century #Ottoman prayer book Inʿām-i Sharīf feauturing a Seal of Solomon with the words "Muḥammad Muṣṭafā" in its centre. The right page features the supposed names of the Ahl al-Kahf, or Companions of the Cave.
The left page features the supposed names of Ahl al-Kahf, the right page features the Seal of Solomon.
The miḥrāb of the 16th century Jamālī Kamālī mosque in Delhi - #India. The miḥrāb features two Seals of Solomon and is beautifully decorated with Qur'anic texts.
Shield of #Moghul emperor Akbar feauturing the signs of the zodiac with the sun at its centre. Steel with gold damascening dated 1593 A.D. The Seal of Solomon is depicted near the sun.
This 1282 AH gravestone of a high-ranking #Ottoman official features two Seals of Solomon. Between them, the Arabic word al-Fātiḥah is written, the name of the first chapter of the Qur'an
@mohtmel asked me about the use of these Seals on this grave (on a previous, blurry version of this post). Well, the use is twofold. The Seal of Solomon was used on graves as a reference to Islam, to the faith and piety of the deceased and his loyalty to Allāh.
However, the Seal is known in popular belief as the prophet Solomon's sigil with which he commanded and summoned the Jinn. Some will therefore undoubtedly use it as a warden against evil, a talisman to protect against the Devil, similar to the Khamsa or Nazar charms.
More coins with a Seal of Solomon. 1st pic: Dirham struck in #Cairo by the Ayyubid sultan al-'Ādil Abū Bakr I (1196-1218). 2nd pic: Dirham struck in Cairo by the Ayyubid founder al-Nāṣir Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn (1174-1193). 3rd pic: Dirham struck in #Aleppo by al-Nāṣir Yūsuf (1236–1260)
A few posts about the national flag of #Morocco. So, I'm going to start from the point of view of two opposing statements. The 1st statement is often repeated by opponents of the Moroccan state, namely that the pentagram is an occultist symbol added by the french colonial power.
The 2nd statement is held by supporters of the Moroccan state, namely that the national flag is the result of the independent decision by the Moroccan king of the Alaouite dynasty and represents the Islamic heritage of the country. Well, it's neither and it's both.
The green pentagram on the Moroccan flag is indeed a representation of Solomon's Seal. The Seal is used in occultism, but is not an occultist symbol. As seen in this thread, it was used throughout the ages by Muslim states in their flags and emblems across the Islamic world.
On the other hand, this 5-pointed depiction of the often 6-pointed Seal was indeed added to the red flag in 1915 by king Yūsef of Morocco when his country was subject to the rule of #France. It was to only become the inland flag, as it's use at sea was prohibited.
1st pic: Tomb of #Mughal Emperor Humayun in Delhi, #India. 2 Seals of Solomon on the entrance īwān. 2nd pic: Seals of Solomon in the Qila-i-Kuhna Mosque in Purana Qila in #Delhi. The mosque was built by Sher Shah Suri, founder of the Sur Empire, around 1541.
The Catalan Atlas (1375) depicts a white flag with a red Seal of Solomon somewhere on the Barbary Coast near the towns of Ténès and Brischan in modern #Algeria. Those days the region was under control of the Zayyanid Kingdom of Tlemcen, though it may belong to a local emir.
The seal used by ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Muḥyiddīn during his Emirate of Mu'askar (1832-1847) while leading the resistance against the French in #Algeria, as seen in the book "L'émir Abdelkader, l'épopée de la sagesse" by Zaki Bouzid.
The Order of the Seal of Solomon is an order of knighthood of the #Ethiopian Empire, founded by emperor Yohannes IV in 1874 as the highest imperial honor. The Ethiopian House of Solomon claims descent from the king/prophet Solomon. His hexagram is clearly present.
Very informative piece on the use and symbolism of Solomon's Seal among the Moriscos in early modern #Spain. Shared by Spain's Muslims, Christians and Jews, the Seal is a device that expresses several various levels of meaning. Worth a read! http://www.academia.edu/1544509/_The_Seal_of_Solomon_from_magic_to_messianic_device_en_Ilona_Regulski_et_alii_Seals_and_sealing_practices_in_the_Near_East._Developments_in_administration_and_magic_from_Prehistory_to_the_Islamic_period_Orientalia_Lovaniensia_Analecta_219_Louvaine_Peeters_2012_pp._175-187
An illustration from #Italian scholar Luigi Marsili's "L'Etat militaire de l'empire ottoman" (Amsterdam, 1732). He describes the gold, silver and copper #Ottoman #coins. This copper coin in particular features a Seal of Solomon and was minted in #Cairo.
I updated my website entry for the Seal of Solomon. On the early Muslim exegetic narrations describing Solomon's signet ring, its development from Islamic symbol to occultist talisman and its current status in the MENA. Worth a read if you're interested! https://menasymbolism.com/2018/12/21/the-seal-of-solomon/
In the old #Kosovar city of Prizren, an lone minaret stands. Originally part of the Arasta #Mosque, built by Evrenos Yaʿqūb Bey in the 16th century, the tower survived the mosque's destruction in 1960. The Seal of Solomon is carved in stone in its structure.
The esteemed @ArmoryBazaar just uploaded this sawn-off bolt-action rifle, originally a Turkish Mauser Model 1890. Note that the #Ottoman Arabic inscription reads: Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf, and the numerals are 1309 (1891). Notice the two small hexagrams (Seals of Solomon).
@Aun74306860 had a hexagram as a kid. This Seal bears an Indian style image of a white horse, probably the prophet Muḥammad's mule Duldul. It has a Hand of Fāṭima atop its saddle. The names Allāh, Muḥammad, ʿAlī, Fāṭima, Ḥassan and Ḥussayn are written in each corner.
The back reads: "Naṣr min Allāh wa fatḥ qarīb", which means "Victory from Allah and an imminent conquest". This was certainly made in a Shia context, as according to Shia traditions, the Mahdī will appear in company of Duldul/a white horse. The names are those of Ahl al-Bayt.
The banner of the Republic of the Rif (1921-1926) features a green crescent with a green hexagram. The 2nd picture shows a banner captured by some #Spanish soldiers on 28 May 1926. Today, it increasingly appears in protest marches, most notably the recent #Rif mass protests.
The Republic was declared when the Rif in Northern #Morocco, led by ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Khaṭṭābī, revolted against the Spanish occupation. Solomon's Seal was popular in Northern Africa, and was before used as an emblem by another anticolonial fighter, ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Muḥyiddīn.
I would like to end the day on a rather controversial note. I'm honored and grateful that we discovered the Seal of Solomon together in all of it's aspects, be it on coins, flags or mosques. Now that we've established all that, I would like to focus a bit on the flag of #Israel.
With this thread in a thread, I would like to explore the use of the hexagram on Israel's flag on a mico-level and it's use as a Jewish identity on a macro-level. So, as we already extensively established, the hexagram as Solomon's Seal was very popular among #Muslims.
When did it become a symbol of #Judaism? Though the Seal of Solomon (it wasn't referred to as the Star of David) was sporadically used in Kabbalistic grimoires in Medieval mixed Muslim-Jewish areas, it's first application as an identification for Jews was in 14th century #Prague.
King of #Bohemia Charles IV prescribed for the Jews of that city a red flag with Solomon's Seal. A replica of a similar flag received by the #Jews of Prague in the 17th century can be found in the Altneushul Synagogue of Prague.
It was that 17th century in which the Central and Eastern European Jewish communities started to identify the Star of David, or "David's Shield" (Magen David) as they called it, with the hexagram and made it into a symbol for their people.
We fast forward to the 19th century (!), when the hexagram became a symbol for, initially, the #Zionist movement, and subsequently all Jews. It was indeed chosen to represent the First Zionist Congress in 1897, with 6 stars and a lion in it's center, designed by David Wolfsohn.
This was still fairly niche, the Zionist movement not being universally accepted among Jews. When did it actually become mainstream? Unfortunately enough during the darkest of moments in Jewish history, the #Holocaust. It was used by the Nazis to identify Jews.
The Nazis didn't initially have a general ruling on the sign they should use, but the yellow hexagram badge was introduced across all occupied areas from September 1941 on. With the establishment of #Israel in 1948, its flag with a blue Star of David was adopted on October 28.
So, in conclusion, is the flag of Israel actually Jewish? The answer is no, not really. As historian Gershom Scholem said: "The hexagon is not a Jewish symbol, much less "the symbol of Judaism.” None of the marks of a true symbol nor its manner of origin… apply to it."
The origins of David's Star/Solomon's Seal lie within the Muslim world, only to become a symbol for Judaism from the 19th century onward. Symbols however, tend to evolve, change and reinvent themselves over time. But I hope this gave you some insight regarding the Star of David.
The keys to Algiers, capital of #Algeria. They were seized by the French on the 5th of July 1830 and are now on display in the musée de l'Armée in Paris.Thanks @HistoryAlgeria for the info! For more knowledge on the history of that country, follow his awesome account.
The fact that the Seal of Solomon is engraved on the key is such a powerful symbol, a physical visualization of the wish to deter evil from entering the city and keep the devils and diseases out. It didn't, however, keep the French from seizing both the keys and the town.
Talismanic shirts covered in a variety of scripts. They parallel a group of similar #Ottoman shirts in the Topkapi Museum, dating from the 15th & 16th centuries, with the crescent and cypresses so common in 16th c. Ottoman styles. The Seal of Solomon is a common recurring image.
Another one, belonging to #Ottoman caliph Salīm II (r. 1566-1574). The silk tunic is covered with Quranic verses, Seals of Solomon and intricate patters with magical letters and numbers. Superstition was generally high among the Ottomans, leading to the wearing of such clothes.
For those of you wondering why some hexagrams in an Abrahamic context hold a dot in their center, @Amoghashiddi asked that question. For starters, no, Buddhism or Hinduism have (again) nothing to do with this. I feel that I've to explain this to often.
As for the dot in the middle, this is a religious occultist variation of the standard hexagram, in which the 6 points represent the 6 days of Creation and the middle 7th point is the day of Shabbat. This variation is called "The Star of Creation".
A similar symbol is the menorah, the seven-lamp ancient Hebrew lampstand, in which the seven lamps represent the seven days of Creation, the centre lamp representing Shabbat.
In later occultist symbolism, the hexagram and menorah came to represent the seven classical planets: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun (centre), Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.
Several editions of the famous #French Larousse dictionaries feature a wrong depiction of the state flag of #Morocco. The 1922 edition (left) and 1934 edition (right) both depict the flag bearing a green hexagram, giving rise to a lot of theories on the flag's actual symbolism.
Officially, however, a 1915 public declaration confirms that the state flag of #Morocco bears a green pentagram on a red background, as adopted by king Yūsef when his country was subject to the rule of #France. No mention is made of a hexagram.
An early 9th century #Abbasid wood panel beautifully decorated with a Seal of Solomon and other carvings. Probably from #Baghdad, this panel functioned as a talisman, as was common on architectural surfaces in #Muslim art. Currently at the MET Museum - New York.
A beautiful 18th century #Ottoman brass drinking cup posted by @OttomanArchive. To have the Seal of Solomon on the bottom of a drinking cup was quite common among Muslims. In the Arabian Nights, Sindbad presented Hārūn al-Rashīd with such a cup, on which the Seal was engraved.
So @AliBaroodi posted some pictures of a burned out khān-like building in the heart of Old #Mosul. You can seea Seal of Solomon with dot in the middle (see aforementioned explanation). Below it is a fleur-de-lis cross with arms of equal length.
A manuscript of Hayton of Coricos' Fleur des histoires de la terre d'Orient, 14th century, depicts #Mamluk knights chasing their #Mongol enemies during the Second Battle of Ḥomṣ (1281). The Mongols are seen brandishing a red banner with two Seals of Solomon.
Although the Mongol army consisted mainly of #Armenians and #Georgians, it's possibly that the artist used a random #Muslim symbol to represent the Mongol hordes. Another theory is that these Mongols were already very influenced by Islamic culture and flew a Muslim flag.
A 9th c. #Abbasid bowl with decoration in the Museum of Oriental Art - #Rome. This type is one of the oldest examples in the Islamic world of an imitation of the much-valued T'ang Chinese porcelain. The decorative motif in the centre is a Seal of Solomon. Thx @HistoryAlgeria!
This bowl could be considered typical of #Mesopotamian pieces painted in blue cobalt only on a creamy white base. Indeed, Mesopotamia was the centre of Abbasid culture and power ( #Bagdad). The six-pointed Seal of Solomon extremely common decorative element in #Islamic art.
A French manuscript from the 13th c. (circa 1200) depicts #Christian and #Muslim knights clashing during the 2nd Siege of Antioch -Bibliothèque Nationale de #France. A #Seljuk knight has a red shield with a blue Seal of Solomon. A red banner with white crescent is also featured.
A beautifully decorated 19th c. #Ottoman gunman's patch box so kindly posted by @Ballandalus. The intricate beauty of the gold, silver and turquoise interplay is only enhanced by the central Seal of Solomon so delicately incorporated. Currently at the MET Museum - New York.
One has to admire the eye for detail @RunTheMouth has, when he noticed this lightly worn Seal of Solomon on this shirt of mail and plate of #Mamluk sultan al-Ashraf Sayf al-Dīn Qāytbāy (d. 1496), posted by @Ballandalus (MET Museum - New York). Thanks!
A 13th c. manuscript illustration showing an Emirate of #Granada army readying itself to besiege a #Castilian castle. A Muslim warrior has a shield with several Seals of Solomon. From "Cantigas de Santa Maria", a collection of poems written during the reign of Alfonso X.
The imperial standard of #Ethipian Emperor Haile Selassie (1892-1975) features St George on a background of the typical tri-colour scheme green, yellow and red. In each corner, there is a Seal of Solomon. During #Selassie's funeral, his coffin was covered by this flag.
Like with the Order of Solomon I wrote about, it should be noted that the former ruling Imperial House of the #Ethiopian Empire claims lineal descent from #Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. This so-called Solomonic dynasty lasted until 1974, and used visual symbols like the Seal.
A beautiful late 15th c.-early 16th c. #Ottoman water flask (matara in #Turkish) made out of tombak, a brass alloy with high copper content. In the center, you can see a Seal of Solomon, not uncommon on #Medieval #Muslim drinking cups, flasks and other containers.
A peculiar case is the flag of Zalengam, a proposed state for the Kuki people of Southeast #Asia. The Kukis, several tribes within #India, #Bangladesh, and Myanmar, live dispersed across international borders. The Kuki National Organization strives for an independent state.
Their flag strangely enough features a Star of David, although the majority of Kukis are #Christian. Only a minority of #Jewish Kukis claim descendance from the Israelite Tribe of Menasseh and formed the so-called Bnei Menashe with other Jews from the Chin and Mizo peoples.
Since most of this group were largely Christian prior to the 1950s, they adopted Messianic Judaism, the idea that #Jesus is the Messiah. Hence, Kuki nationalists took the hexagram as a representation of both #Judaism and #Christianity, and concretely the Messiah.
The Hala Sultan Tekke, or Umm Ḥarām #Mosque, is a mosque/mausoleum near the Cypriot city of Larnaca. During the 18th c., the #Ottomans built the mosque around the tomb of Umm Ḥarām, a 7th c. Companion of the prophet Muḥammad who deceased at the site.
The mosque also contains the tomb of Khadīja ʿĀdila, the grand-daughter of Rashīd Pāsha and wife of Ḥussayn ibn ʿAlī, who was exiled at the island . You can see the mosque's miḥrāb decorated with Seals of Solomon. Thanks @AlexPetrelis for providing the pictures :) #Cyprus
A Seal of Solomon appearing on an 11th c. talismanic scroll of #Egyptian origin. Centuries before block printing was used in #Europe, it was used in the Muslim world to produce miniature texts consisting of prayers, incantations and Quranic verses that were kept in small boxes.
The calligraphy style of this amulet is kufic. This scroll is currently at the MET Museum. There actually exists a difference of opinion among the earliest #Muslim scholars on the permissibility of wearing amulets with inscriptions from the Qur'an and prophetic incantations.
Regimental insignia of the 4th #Tunisian Tirailleurs Regiment (4th RTT), an infantry regiment of the #French Army of #Africa since 1884. Their motto can be read on the insignia: "fī amān Allāh", or "under God's protection". It combines a red crescent with a gold Seal of Solomon.
The badge on the left has an elephant added. Indeed, the 4th RTT was dispatched in 1949 first to #Cambodia and then to South #Vietnam, where they served until 1955. They also famously participated in the Battle of #Verdun (1917) and the Battle of Belvedere (1943).
#Druze soldiers of the #Israel Defence Forces' Minorities Unit in 1948. They hold their ethno-religious flag, four horizontal stripes (respectively red, yellow, blue and white) and a green hoist triangle, but on which appears a Star of David.
Some Muslim scholars commented on the exact inscription featured on Solomon's signet ring. Ibn Rajab al-Ḥanbalī mentions a prophetic narration in his "Aḥkām al-Khawātim" on the engraving found on Solomon's ring. Most scholars of ḥadīth, however, regard this narration as false.
This narration was reported by Jābir bin ʿAbdillāh that the Prophet said: "The seal on Solomon son of David's ring reads: 'There's no god but God, and Muhammad is His messenger.'" The origin of the hexagram is unknown, but variations of hexagram with shahada have been found.
For more info on Seal of Solomon markings on Ottoman rifles, check out this piece I wrote for @Silah_Report https://silahreport.com/2020/04/19/stars-and-rifles-part-1-ottoman-hexagram-proof-marks/
