United Arab Emirates. New Proof Silver Coins Released in Honour of Distinguished Poet

The esteemed poet Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais (1925 – 2000) was born one hundred years ago and on this occasion, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates in collaboration with the Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Foundation have issued silver commemorative coins.

The issuance of the commemorative coin aligns with UNESCO’s centenary celebration of the Emirati poet who is widely regarded as one of the most prominent poetic voices in the UAE and the Gulf region. Al Owais' name is closely linked to the prestigious Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Award, which has honoured dozens of Arab writers and creators since its establishment in 1987, and continues to recognise excellence in literature to this day.

Sultan Al Owais was born in the village of Al Hirah in Sharjah in 1925 to a cultured well-to-do family known for their love of literature and culture. The family includes other prominent poets, scholars and authors such as poet Salem Bin Ali Al Owais, historian Imran Al Owais and novelist Ahmed Ali Al Owais among many others. As the young Sultan was raised in a home where science and literature were appreciated, this greatly contributed to him becoming one of the UAE’s most prominent poets, earning him recognition both in the Gulf region countries and the entire Arab world. Sultan’s poems became widely known in many cultural and literary circles in Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. From 1947, He became acquainted with a great number of renowned Arab poets and authors, many of whom became his friends. He exchanged visits with many of these literary friends and dedicated many of his poems to them, hence becoming a cultural ambassador for his country and representing United Arab Emirate poets in many cultural events and festivals in the Arab world.

In 1993, Sultan authored published a complete collection of his most well-known poems with many scholars and literary critics studying and writing about his collection. This separate study was itself compiled in a book issued by the Emirates Writers Union under the title ‘Sultan Al Owais: A Merchant Who Fell in Love with Poetry’. His literary journey extended for more than three decades and is considered one of the leading poets in the UAE and the Arabian Gulf region. Revered as one of the leading poets in the UAE, he served as a bridge between two generations of writers and poets in the Arabian Gulf.

During his lifetime, he dedicated a part of his wealth to creating a trust for funding a cultural award bearing his name. The award he established, known as the ‘Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Award’, is considered to be one of the most prestigious cultural awards in the Arab world. The award also received royal ascent with an Emerati Decree dated the 21st March 1994 issued by the late H. H. Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Sultan Al Owais passed away on the 4th January 2000 and since this time, the date is marked each year in the UAE collectively and in the Emirate of Sharjah, his homeland.

The obverse side of the coin features an abstract front-facing portrait of Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais, placed near the top centre along with the inscriptions CENTRAL BANK OF THE UAE shown near the top rim in both Arabic and English text. Below the portrait is the text SULTAN BIN ALI AL OWAIS CULTURAL FOUNDATION in both Arabic and English. Below this text is the commemorative text CENTENARY OF SULTAN BIN ALI AL OWAIS in Arabic script, along with the years 1925-2025. To the left of the portrait is the coin’s denomination of 100 AED in Western characters and Arabic text. To the right is the denotation COMMEMORATIVE COIN in English and Arabic. The reverse side of the coin features calligraphic Arabic script of a poetic verse from the late Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais’s poetry which reads MY HOMELAND IS MY BLOOD, FLOWING BETWEEN MY WINGS, AS IF IT AND MY SOUL ARE THE SAME.

The consignment of proof silver coins will be handed over to the Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Foundation and will only be available for purchase at its headquarters. For additional information, please visit their website.