Denier Bracteate - Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion ruled Saxony and Bavaria simultaneously for decades before his catastrophic falling-out with Frederick Barbarossa led to his exile in 1180 — the very year this type ceases. The bracteate coinage of his reign was produced at Brunswick and represents one of the earliest extensive bracteate series from a German territorial lord, predating the Thuringian and Meissen issues that would later dominate the form.

Welter 13b and Denicke 13a designate subtly different die states; collectors should note that Berger's numbering does not always align cleanly with Welter's, and the two catalogues occasionally assign the same physical coin type to different reference numbers.