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Denier Bracteate - Mieszko III the Old Gniezno or Kalisz mint
| Issuer | Greater Poland, Duchy of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1138-1202 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Kop#69 |
| Obverse description | Prince on horseback advancing right, rendered in bold relief in the primitive Romanesque style characteristic of Polish bracteates of the Piast period. The rider is depicted in profile, seated upon a striding horse, with schematic limbs and body rendered in high relief against the flat bracteate field. A partial Latin legend in retrograde or irregular characters is distributed around the equestrian figure. The entire design is enclosed within a beaded border, partially missing due to the irregular flan shape typical of hammered bracteates of this emission. |
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| Mint | Gniezno or Kalisz mint |
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| Additional information |
Mieszko III ruled intermittently — expelled from Kraków twice, constantly maneuvering against his Piast rivals — and his bracteates reflect a fractured political reality rather than stable regal production. These thin, single-sided strikes were the dominant Polish coinage form in the twelfth century, their fragility a practical consequence of the hammering technique applied to blanks too thin to bear a full double-sided die. Attribution to Gniezno or Kalisz remains unresolved; both were major centers of his actual power base in Greater Poland during his longer periods of control.