Post your latest medieval!

[JeandAcre]

Très, Très Cool, @panzerman.  Right, the coins have a decidedly superficial resemblance to Indian fanams, variously running to, what, vaguely a millennium to over a half millennium later.  But with an outrageous level of historical arcanity (well, for Westerners --that can include at least three continents, if it wants to), and corresponding rarity.

I had to Wiki the kingdom, and found this article.  Not just good for the genre; a veritable scholarly tour-de-force.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Srivijaya

What stood out first, from here, was the profoundly fun convergence of cultural dynamics and geography, even for a kingdom which was so prominently based on maritime trade.  From the quickest perusal, the prevailing Buddhism came from northwest India, rather than China.  ...No, I can only wish I was better acquainted with the bracing cultural complexity of Southeast Asia, and points south.  It's fun to think of how Aksum /Axum, in its heyday as a maritime power as late as the the 6th c. (they were Christian; only reason there's no 'CE' after that), had sustained contact with western India, following routes (and, likely, currents) in use at least as early as Roman times.

A search of the forum didn't turn up anything for 'Srivaraya,' but I can bet money I don't have that there are whole threads in the 'Non-Western' subforum that can greatly amplify the context.

Edited November 19, 2023 by JeandAcre

[Prieure de Sion]

On 11/14/2023 at 2:48 PM, Prieure de Sion said:

The Aethelred Penny somehow came to me today... 😉 - I couldn't say no, like I so often do sometimes.

 

 

 
Aethelred II (Aethelred the Unready), House of Wessex; Reign: Aethelred, Kings of All England; Moneyer: Oswulf; Mint: London; Date: 978/1016 AD; Nominal: Penny (long cross type); Material: Silver; Diameter: 20mm; Weight: 1.65g; Reference: Seaby 1151; Reference: North 774; Reference: Hildebrand 288; Obverse: Draped and cuirassed bust left; Inscription: +AEDELRAED REX ANGLO; Translation: Aethelred, King of England; Reverse: Long cross voided with each limb terminating in three crescents; Inscription: +OSVLF MO LVND; Translation: Os(w)ulf, moneyor (at) London.

 

 

 

I got today my Aethelred and make a short video - if you like want watch it 🙂 

 

 

 

[Ursus]

2 hours ago, Prieure de Sion said:

I got today my Aethelred and make a short video - if you like want watch it 🙂 

Lovely coin!

My last bracteate for 2023 is below. A common high medieval type from Augsburg, yet in very attractive condition. Künker recently sold some twenty examples of this coin (Berger 2640) as well as Berger 2632 via their ebay profile. I managed to snatch this one for a good price. The fact that all the coins they offered had a similar patina makes me assume Künker got their hands on a small hoard.

Prince-Bishopric of Augsburg, under Udalschalk von Eschenlohe or Hartwig II von Hirnheim, AR bracteate, ca. 1184–1208. Obv: bishop facing, raising both hands, pellets above hands. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 22mm, 0.67g. Ref: Berger 2640; Slg. Bonhoff 1903; Slg. Wüthrich 313; Steinhilber 61.

[Ursus]

I will post my top ten for 2023 in the next couple of days, and they will contain a fair number of medieval bracteates. This recent purchase is my inofficial no. 11.

I have searched for a medieval bracteate from the royal mint at Frankfurt for quite some time due to the historical significance of that city. Unfortunately, many of the attainable coins from this mint are of rather mediocre artistic quality. This one is attractive enough in my eyes. Furthermore, it was struck at an interestic point in German history, during the turbulent times following the death of Frederick II:

Frankfurt am Main, royal mint, AR bracteate, c. 1260/70 AD. Obv. crowned bust facing, holding lily sceptre and imperial orb; below, arch. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 22mm, 0.35g. Ref: Berger 2371–3; Slg. Bonhoff 1529.

Edited December 21, 2023 by Ursus

[Ursus]

Not pretty but at least rare: I picked up this little bracteate from Mainz as part of a lot last November. It took me a while to take pictures and properly attribute it. 

Archbishopric of Mainz, under Dietrich I. von Erbach, AR bracteate (Hohlringheller), c. 1434–459 AD, Bingen mint. Obv: arms of Mainz and Erbach in shield Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 14mm, 0.24g. Ref: Link 87, Slg. Walther 139.

 

 

[Hughie Dwyer]

This is my first time over in the 'Medieval' section of NumisForums! 😄 Such a time period is not really my collecting area, but it is still an era that really interests me!

This coin I've had this coin for over a year now - so it's not really 'new' - but I'll post it anyways.

Thanks for looking!

[ChrisB]

I recently added this one. I probably paid too much. Not scarce but exceptional condition. 

 

1250-86 Augsburg Bracteate of Hartmann Von Dillingen

.71g

[Prieure de Sion]

I don't actually post that much anymore - but I don't want to withhold this coin. When many people think of a bracteate, they think of a small, delicate coin. Not so this bracteate with a diameter of around 42mm. I am very excited about the beautiful specimen.

Friedrich II, Vogt of Oldesleben (1189-1216 AD); Reign: Sacrum Imperium Romanum (HRR Holy Roman Empire); Mint: Frankenhausen; Date: c. 1210/1215 AD; Nominal: Brakteat (Bracteate); Material: BI Silver; Diameter: c. 42mm ; Weight: 0.64g; Reference: Berger -; Reference: Leschhorn 4374; Reference: Fd. von Seega 382; Reference: Slg. Bonhoff 1234; Reference: Slg. Löbbecke 802; Obverse: Count riding on the right with raised sword, shield and banner, six-pointed star in the field on the right.

 

 

[seth77]

2 minutes ago, Prieure de Sion said:

I don't actually post that much anymore - but I don't want to withhold this coin. When many people think of a bracteate, they think of a small, delicate coin. Not so this bracteate with a diameter of around 42mm. I am very excited about the beautiful specimen.

Friedrich II, Vogt of Oldesleben (1189-1216 AD); Reign: Sacrum Imperium Romanum (HRR Holy Roman Empire); Mint: Frankenhausen; Date: c. 1210/1215 AD; Nominal: Brakteat (Bracteate); Material: BI Silver; Diameter: c. 42mm ; Weight: 0.64g; Reference: Berger -; Reference: Leschhorn 4374; Reference: Fd. von Seega 382; Reference: Slg. Bonhoff 1234; Reference: Slg. Löbbecke 802; Obverse: Count riding on the right with raised sword, shield and banner, six-pointed star in the field on the right.

 

 

I steer clear from these because I am afraid of the damage they might suffer en route but wow, what an extraordinary coin.

[JeandAcre]

@Prieure de Sion, huge thanks for coming back for this one!  It's Brilliant.  ...And I'm hoping you have occasion to do this again, maybe sooner than later.

Both esthetically and for the contexts, these earlier, much larger module ones have always been my favorites. Granted, I only have one that approaches this diameter, already posted an embarrassing number of times.

But your example instantly evokes the ones of Philipp von Schwaben (heir of Friedrich Barbarossa; only 'King of the Romans' (think the later Roman Imperial 'Caesar') vis.  Emperor before his assassination in 1208).  I used to forlornly trawl for one of these, before giving up.

https://www.kuenker.de/en/archiv/stueck/109247

[Hrefn]

Those look more like a shield boss than a coin.  @Prieure de Sion, does that really only weigh 0.64 grams?

[Prieure de Sion]

17 minutes ago, Hrefn said:

Those look more like a shield boss than a coin.  @Prieure de Sion, does that really only weigh 0.64 grams?

Yes… it feel and look more like a thin paper of metal - not like a solid metal coin. 

I have no idea it’s possible use this coin 1200 AD for daily use and payment. It was so fragile. 

[Prieure de Sion]

33 minutes ago, JeandAcre said:

huge thanks for coming back for this one!  It's Brilliant.  ...And I'm hoping you have occasion to do this again, maybe sooner than later.

Thanks 😉 

[Coinmaster]

Very strange indeed, it doesn't seem very practical at a market. Perhaps it was used as give aways?

[Prieure de Sion]

10 minutes ago, Coinmaster said:

Very strange indeed, it doesn't seem very practical at a market. Perhaps it was used as give aways?

Very good and interesting question for the medieval experts here...

[Prieure de Sion]

1 hour ago, JeandAcre said:

And I'm hoping you have occasion to do this again, maybe sooner than later.

Ok, because it's you @JeandAcre - I still have one. Only for you 😉 

However, "only" a Brakteat about 34mm diameter, but I think it's a nice tint. Of course, that's always a matter of taste.

 

Heinrich der Löwe (Henry the Lion), Herzog of Sachsen, Herzog of Baiern (1129-1195 AD); Reign: Sacrum Imperium Romanum (HRR Holy Roman Empire); Mint: Braunschweig; Date: c. 1142/1180 AD; Nominal: Brakteat (Bracteate); Material: BI Silver; Diameter: c. 34mm; Weight: 0.72g; Reference: Berger 588; Reference: Denicke 23; Reference: Welter 81; Obverse: Lion on the right with linear tail tassel.

 

 

 

[Hrefn]

An example of this issue was posted by @Prieure de Sion a few months ago.  I ran across this one at a local coin show and impulsively snapped it up. 

Description shamelessly cribbed from PdeS:  BRAUNSCHWEIG-LÜNEBURG, William or Henry the Long, 1195-1213-1227. Bracteate Lüneburg lion n. r., in front a cross, behind a globe, below lily with two leaves Berger 478 ff; Coll. Bonhoff 113 (under Otto the Child)

[Ursus]

On 3/11/2024 at 10:01 PM, Coinmaster said:

Very strange indeed, it doesn't seem very practical at a market. Perhaps it was used as give aways?

You're right, it doesn't seem practical. Hoard finds nonetheless indicate that these were used for everyday financial transactions. For example, a clay pot containing 1308 coins was found near Erfurt in 1994 (published as Gudrun Noll/ Hans Otto Pollmann: Der Erfurter Braketatenschatz, Erfurt 1997). Most were large bracteates of the "mounted knight"-design used by different local dynasts and mints in Thuringia. Among them were 12 bracteates minted for Friedrich II at Frankenau. Although a slightly different type, these are very similar in size and design to the one posted by @Prieure de Sion.

The hoard was buried shortly after 1200, maybe in context of the civil war caused by the German throne dispute. Archeologists interpret the hoard as the savings of a single individual, maybe a person active in the cultivation and trade of woad that constituted the main line of commerce in the region the coins were found.

1303 of the coins in the Erfurt hoard are bracteates, 5 are two-sided pennies. 880 of the bracteateas are whole coins, 391 were halved, and 32 quartered in order to produce smaller change. The coins show different degrees of wear. They can be attributed to 38 different mints. 90% of the coins come from the region of Thuringia, the rest from different mints further away from Erfurt.

All of this indicates that despite their fragility and somewhat impractical design, the large Thuringian "mounted knight"-bracteates circulated in local trade just like "normal" coins did in other German regions in the 12th/13th centuries.

Edited April 8 by Ursus

[Ursus]

Here is a recent aquisition that I finally had time to phograph and research. A small bracteate minted by the Abbey of St. Gall in northeastern Switzerland. Its general make is typical for 13th/14th century bracteates from the region around Lake Constance. The design showing the Lamb of God is fitting for a monastic mint:

Abbey of St. Gall, AR bracteate (“ewiger Pfennig”), c. 1295–1350 AD. Obv: Lamb of God l. holding banner with a cross. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 20mm, 0.38g. Ref: Berger 2579; HMZ 1-474; Slg. Bonhoff 1820; Slg. Wüthrich 282–3.

Edited April 14 by Ursus

[JeandAcre]

@Ursus, I've never ventured into these later, ecclesiastical Swiss bracteates, but have always found them esthetically compelling.  (Including the ones with the profiles.)  This one is magnificent; a worthy example of a particularly iconic design.

[Ursus]

This little bird landed in my collection. I was especially inclined towards this coin since it is from where I Iive:

Freiburg im Breisgau, civic issue, bracteate penny ("vierzipfliger Pfennig"), struck after 1387 AD. Obv: eagle's head l. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 17mm, 0.19g. Ref: Wielandt: Breisgau 48c; Slg. Wüthrich 64; Slg. Bonhoff 1790; Berger 2436.

Although this type is sometimes described as a halfpenny (hälbling) because of its low weight, it constitutes a full penny. A 1387 agreement of different cities in the Upper Rhine region simply established very light standard. Coins from Freiburg struck prior to 1387 look similar but are at least 50% heavier:

Freiburg im Breisgau, civic issue, bracteate pfennig ("vierzipfliger Pfennig"), c. 1320–1387 AD. Obv: eagle's head l. Rev: negative design (bracteate). 18mm, 0.30g. Ref: Wielandt: Breisgau 48b; Slg. Wüthrich 63; Slg. Bonhoff 1788; Slg. Ulmer 249; Berger –.

 

Edited April 17 by Ursus

[Annes Kabel]

Harthacnut Penny, 1.03g, Scandinavian imitation in the style of a Hiberno-Norse long cross, Lund mint. A crude but recognisable imitation of an Hiberno-Norse, Phase 1, Class B penny. Extremely rare coin in near perfect condition, apart from a few peckmarks on the reverse. 

[JeandAcre]

A-Mazing.  Harthacnut 1)imitating Hiberno-Norse pennies in 2)Denmark (right, vs. England) just blows my mind.  And you've got what, to my mind, is the absolute ideal for peck marks; noticeable (for what I always lke to call the added dimension of social history --Yeah, these are Vikings here!) but optimally unintrusive.  All around, it's Just Absolutely Brilliant.  

...For dramatic contrast, I was very (...very) happy to fall into even this example of a Hiberno-Norse original of Dublin.  --Yes, replete with the (otherwise restrained) double-striking, which puts an extra eye on his forehead.  All I have for this is Spink, Scotland, Ireland and the Isles [etc.] (2015; #6103), which doesn't include the classes.  But it's the first issue in Sihtric's name, after an initial two with variously blundered renderings of AEthelred. 

[ChrisB]

It was kind of an impulse buy. The only coin in my collection from the Fatimid empire. Picture and description from the seller. The ruler, al-'Aziz billah, has a fascinating history, worth a google search.

 

 

Fatimids. al-'Aziz billah. AH 365-386 / AD 975-996. AV Dinar (23mm, 4.17 g, 12h). Misr mint. Dated AH 365 (AD 975/6). Nicol 699. VF. Rare.

[Ursus]

And another small and square bracteate, this time an episcopal issue from Basel. This recent acquisition was a chance purchase. I already had a slightly different type struck by Bishop Johann II Senn von Münsingen (posted below), but I'm not above adding variants to my medieval collection.

Prince-Bishopric of Basel, under Johann II Senn von Münsingen, AR bracteate ("vierzipfliger Pfennig"), 1335–1365 AD. Obv: head of a bishop wearing mitre l., pellet above; crosier to l.. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 17mm, 0.20g. Ref: Wielandt: Basler Münzprägung (1971), 111; HMZ 1–252; Slg. Wüthrich 26; Slg. Bonhoff 1769; Berger –.

Prince-Bishopric of Basel, under Johann II Senn von Münsingen, AR bracteate ("vierzipfliger Pfennig"), 1335–1365 AD. Obv: head of a bishop wearing mitre (three pellets at each side) left, between B-A, ring above. Rev: incuse design (bracteate). 17–20mm, 0.33g. Ref: Wielandt: Basler Münzprägung (1971), 117; HMZ 1–255; Slg. Wüthrich 31; Slg. Bonhoff 1771; Berger 2415–6.