Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Denier Bracteate - Mieszko III the Old Gniezno or Kalisz mint
| Issuer | Greater Poland, Duchy of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1138-1202 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| 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 | Round (irregular) |
| 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 | Central field dominated by a stylized fleur-de-lis or plant-like motif rising from a decorative base, rendered in a bold, archaic style characteristic of early Polish medieval coinage. Surrounding the central device are scattered letters and symbols arranged informally within the field, including what appear to be Romanesque-style letterforms. The coin is bordered by a beaded circle, typical of bracteate and denier issues of the Piast dynasty period. The overall design exhibits the crude but expressive craftsmanship associated with 12th-century Polish minting at Gniezno or Kalisz. As a thin hammered bracteate-style denier, the design is single-sided with the reverse showing only a mirror impression of the obverse. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | As a bracteate-style thin hammered coin, the reverse presents a faint incuse mirror image of the obverse design, with no independent design or inscription. The surface shows the characteristic thin, fragile fabric of early medieval Polish deniers, with traces of the central fleur-de-lis motif and surrounding letterforms visible in relief. No distinct legend or device is independently struck on this side. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Mieszko III ruled Greater Poland twice — expelled by his own nobles in 1177, he spent decades maneuvering back into power before reclaiming Kraków in 1199. These thin, single-sided bracteates were the dominant coinage technology in the region during that period, their fragility a direct consequence of the hammering process used on such pure, unalloyed silver blanks. The Gniezno and Kalisz attribution reflects genuine uncertainty; both mints were active under Mieszko, and the dies have not been conclusively assigned to either workshop.