ABSTRACT
The end of the seventh century in the Middle East was marked by considerable changes in the fiscal and monetary system. The expansion of mining, coin production, and the famous reforms of Caliph Abd al-Malik played an essential role in the transformation and growth of agrarian and urban economies. These transformations acted as powerful stimuli for imperial investments, affecting the redistribution of wealth in society and monetisation of the economy, which reached an unparalleled level. In the second half of the seventh century, monetary changes also contributed to generating economic growth. Late Roman Syria and Sasanian Iraq had benefited from their own monetary systems. The archaeological exploration of agricultural landscapes from Late Antiquity to early Islam in the Middle East has been the focus of numerous studies from the middle of the twentieth century. After 700, the urban economy in the Middle East experienced substantial growth and underwent structural changes.
