“The Emir of the Catholics”

Abstract Focusing on numismatic material from the medieval Iberian Peninsula, this essay explores the hermeneutic potential of the concept of ‘cultural appropriation’ for the study of pre-modern processes of cultural exchange. In a first section, the text discusses current notions of ‘cultural appropriation’, many of which refer specifically to modern or contemporary societies. Abandoning epoch-specific premises, the essay proposes a more general semiotic reading of ‘culturally appropriated’ objects as ‘transcultural signifiers’ that interrelate the parties involved in cultural exchange and create entanglements of cultural orders and systems of meaning. The second section tests this specific understanding of ‘cultural appropriation’ on a series of numismatic takeovers from medieval Spain: in 1172, King Alfonso VIII of Castile began issuing gold coins in imitation of the established Almoravid dinar. While maintaining the outward appearance of the Muslim model, Alfonso changed the Arabic inscriptions on the coins to proclaim the superiority of Christian faith and rule. Comparison with other examples of imitative Muslim coinage issued by Christian rulers from the eighth to the twelfth centuries helps to assess this particular case of ‘cultural appropriation’, which in several respects defies current understandings of the concept.