Denier Bracteate - Frederick I Altenburg

Frederick Barbarossa held the imperial diet at Altenburg in 1165, elevating the town to an imperial residence and minting center — a political gesture as much as an administrative one, binding the Saxon territories more tightly to Hohenstaufen authority after years of conflict with Henry the Lion. Bracteates from this mint reflect that brief window of direct imperial engagement with the region.

The Löbbecke reference traces to the celebrated collection auctioned in 1905, which remains a foundational source for Hohenstaufen bracteate attribution. Bonh#1175 places this piece within a tightly defined die group specific to the Altenburg series.