200 Zlotys Duke Mieszko I half length, Trial Strike

Trial strikes (próby) from the Polish People's Republic mint were produced in very limited numbers as pattern submissions or internal approval pieces, and the 1979 Mieszko I issue is no exception. Mieszko I, the first historically documented ruler of Poland, died around 992 AD — his reign is the conventional starting point of the Polish state itself, which made him a recurring subject for commemorative coinage during the PRL period. The Fischer catalog designation confirms this as a variant within a known proof trial sequence, distinct from the standard circulation strike approved for release.