Denier Bracteate

Bracteates of this weight class — below 0.4 g — represent the extreme thin-flan tradition pushed furthest in the central German minting regions during the late Hohenstaufen collapse, when fragmented territorial authority meant dozens of minor ecclesiastical and secular lords were striking their own issues with minimal standardization. The single-sided technique, produced by striking a thin silver blank against a leather or lead cushion, left the reverse as a mirror impression — functionally illegible, purely incidental.