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Denier Bracteate - Béla IV
| Issuer | Hungary |
|---|---|
| Year | 1173-1270 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Denier (997-1310) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | As a true bracteate, the reverse presents the incuse mirror image of the obverse design, showing the crowned equestrian falconer figure in negative relief. The impression is the natural consequence of the single-die hammered bracteate striking technique, in which the design is punched through the thin silver flan, producing an indented negative on the opposite side. Surface detail is less crisp than the obverse, with the broad, flat field framed by a raised rim. No additional design elements or inscriptions are present on the reverse. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
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| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Béla IV's reign is defined almost entirely by the Mongol invasion of 1241–42, which devastated Hungary so thoroughly that contemporaries estimated the kingdom lost half its population. The fiscal and administrative machinery of the court was effectively dismantled, and coinage production became fragmented and irregular as the king spent years in exile before reasserting control. Bracteate deniers of this period are consequently erratic in fabric and strike quality — not as a function of craftsmanship, but of institutional collapse.
The multiple Huszár references reflect genuine uncertainty about die attribution across the type.