1 Solidus In the name of Heraclius and Heraclius Constantine, Cross with flat ends, equal busts with unbroken legend

The Avars never operated a mint in any conventional sense. These solidi imitations were struck — likely in multiple workshops across the Pannonian basin — as diplomatic currency and prestige objects, produced from melted Byzantine originals or bullion extracted from the enormous tribute payments Constantinople made to keep the Khaganate from raiding the Balkans. At their peak, those payments reached 200,000 solidi annually.

The reference to Heraclius and Heraclius Constantine places the prototype in the 610s–641 range, but Avar imitative production continued for well over a century after the originals ceased. The "unbroken legend" subtype is a meaningful distinction — many Avar strikes show progressively garbled inscriptions as die-cutters worked further from legible exemplars.