Otto I, the Great - German king and Roman emperor

[Tejas]

I bought this unusually fine denar of Otto I, also called Otto the Great.

The coin is in unusually fine condition for these 10th century pennies. The legend OTTO IMPERATOR+ indicates that the coin was minted in 962 or shortly thereafter, when Otto had been crowned Roman Emperor. 

Otto hailed from a dynasty of Saxon rulers from northern Germany. His father Heinrich I (Henry the Fowler) was the first king of his dynasty. Otto ruled for 37 years. Otto's claim to the title of Emperor was bolstered by his success against the Hungarians (Magyars), who, for many decades, had conducted regular raids on German territory. Indeed, the Magyars were deemed to be much more dangerous than the Vikings, which also regularly threatened the northern coastal towns.

In 955, Otto inflicted a devastating defeat on the Hungarians at the battle of the Lechfeld. Otto's troops pusued the enemy and reportedly annihilated the Hungarian army, also capturing and executing their leaders. The battle was a turning point in Hungarian history, as it forced the Hungarians to become sedetary Christians. 

For the German identity the battle was also an important mile stone. For the first time, all German dukedoms united to fight an external enemy under unified leadership, which greatly boosted the sense of a common German identity. 

The coin was minted at the imperial mint of Cologne. The reverse legend reads: ST COLONIA A, which stands for Sancta Colonia Aggripina.  Note that Cologne bears the attribute Sancta (holy) much like Rome bears the attribute Aeterna (eternal). These attributes  underlined the special significance of these cities in the Holy Roman Empire.

Edited November 3, 2023 by Tejas

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

In hearing about Otto I am always reminded of the works of Liutprand of Cremona, an emissary sent by Otto to negotiate with the Byzantines - in this case the emperor Nicephorus. It's actually a pretty good read about the relations of Constantinople with the West, which in a word, was a strained one!

Internet History Sourcebooks: Medieval Sourcebook (fordham.edu)

[Al Kowsky]

2 hours ago, Tejas said:

I bought this unusually fine denar of Otto I, also called Otto the Great.

The coin is in unusually fine condition for these 10th century pennies. The legend OTTO IMPERATOR+ indicates that the coin was minted in 962 or shortly thereafter, when Otto had been crowned Roman Emperor. 

Otto hailed from a dynasty of Saxon rulers from northern Germany. His father Heinrich I (Henry the Fowler) was the first king of his dynasty. Otto ruled for 37 years. Otto's claim to the title of Emperor was bolstered by his success against the Hungarians (Magyiars), which for many decades had conducted regular raids on German territory. Indeed, the Magyars were deemed to be much more dangerous than the Vikings, which regularly threatened the northern coastal areas.

In 955, Otto inflicted a devastating defeat on the Hungarians at the battle of the Lechfeld. Otto's troops persuit the enemy and reportedly completely annihilated the Hungarian army, also capturing and executing their leaders. The battle was a turning point in Hungarian history, as it forced the Hungarians to become sedetary Christians. 

For the German identity the battle was also a turning point. For the first time, all German dukedoms united to fight an external enemy under unified leadership, which greatly boosted the sense of a common German identity. 

The coin was minted at the imperial mint of Cologne. The reverse legend reads: ST COLONIA A, which stands for Sancta Colonia Aggripina.  Note that Cologne bears the attribute Sancta (holy) much like Rome bears the attribute Aeterna (eternal). These attributes  underlined the special significance of these cities in the Holy Roman Empire.

 

 

Congrats on a great score ☺️!

[Tejas]

2 hours ago, Ancient Coin Hunter said:

In hearing about Otto I am always reminded of the works of Liutprand of Cremona, an emissary sent by Otto to negotiate with the Byzantines - in this case the emperor Nicephorus. It's actually a pretty good read about the relations of Constantinople with the West, which in a word, was a strained one!

Internet History Sourcebooks: Medieval Sourcebook (fordham.edu)

 

That is a really interesting source. I like how Luitprand decribes the East Roman Emperor Nicephorus:

"I was led before Nicephorus-a monstrosity of a man, a pygmy, fat-headed and like a mole as to the smallness of his eyes; disgusting with his short, broad, thick, and half hoary beard; disgraced by a neck an inch long; very bristly through the length and thickness of his hair; in color an Ethiopian; one whom it would not be pleasant to meet in the middle of the night; with extensive belly, lean of loin, very long of hip considering his short stature, small of shank, proportionate as to his heels and feet; clad in a garment costly but too old, and foul-smelling and faded through age; shod with Sicyonian shoes; bold of tongue, a fox by nature, in perjury, and lying a Ulysses."

The physical appearance is one thing, but could it be that he was dressed in a costly, but old, faded and foul-smelling garment?

[Tejas]

This coin was minted for Ludwig das Kind (Ludwig the child). Ludwig was the last king of Eastern Francia from the Carolingian dynasty. He had become king at the death of his father Arnulf of Carinthia in 900, when he was just six years old, hence his name. Ludwig was a sickly child and he died in 911 at the age of 17 or 18 in Frankfurt. His reign was overshadowed by frequent invasions by the Hungarians. In 907, his Bavarian army, led by the Marggrave Luitpold of Bavaria suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Hungarians. The Bavarian army was reportedly completely annihilated. Besides Marggrave Luitpold, the Archbishop of Salzburg Thietmar and the Bishops of Freising and Säben-Brixen, as well as 19 Bavarian Counts were killed in the battle.

Coins of Ludwig are very rare, especially in this condition. 

Obv.: LVDOVVCVS REX +

Rev.: ST COLONIA A

 

Edited November 3, 2023 by Tejas