The Arabic calligraphy at the top of the standard reads, "نَصرٌ مِنَ اللَّـهِ وَفَتحٌ قَريبٌ وَبَشِّرِ المُؤمِنينَ يَا مُحَمَّد" (nasrun mina'llāhi wa fatḥhun qarībun wa bashshiri'l-mu’minīna yā muḥammad), translated as "Victory from Allah and an eminent conquest; and give good tidings to the believers, O Muhammad." The text comes from verse 61:13 of the Quran, with the addition of "O Muhammad", since the last part of the verse addresses the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Within the four crescents are the names, from right to left, beginning at the top right, of the first four caliphs – Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali – whose rule of the Islamic state after Muhammad is referred to as the Rashidun Caliphate. The two-bladed sword represents Dhu'l-Fiqar, a famous sword in Islamic history, belonging first to Muhammad and then Ali. To the left of the sword's hilt is a small hand. Between the two blades of the sword is a six-pointed star. The star may be confused with the Star of David, a Jewish symbol. However, in medieval times, this star was a popular Islamic symbol known as the Seal of Solomon and was widely used by the Beyliks of Anatolia. The seal was later used by the Ottomans in their mosque decorations, coins and the personal flags of the pashas, including Hayreddin Barbarossa.[15] One of the Turkish beyliks known to use the seal on its flag was the Jandarids. According to the Catalan Atlas of 1375 by A. Cresques, the flag of the Karamanids, another Anatolian beylik, consisted of a blue six-edged star.
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