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Denier Bracteate - Otto IV
| Issuer | Holy Roman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1208-1215 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 0.60 g |
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| Obverse description | Crowned emperor on horseback advancing to the right, rendered in high relief characteristic of bracteate coinage. The rider holds a banner-topped lance in his right hand and an imperial orb in his left, the orb positioned to the left of the horse. The horse is depicted in a stylized, prancing posture with raised forelegs. The entire composition is enclosed within a beaded inner circle, with traces of a circular legend visible in the outer field. The design displays the bold, shallow-relief die-work typical of early 13th-century German bracteate production. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Otto IV's position as Holy Roman Emperor was uniquely contested — excommunicated by Pope Innocent III in 1210 after breaking his territorial promises, he spent his final years as emperor fighting off the challenge of Frederick II with diminishing support from the German princes. Coins struck in his name after 1210 were issued under an authority that much of Christendom no longer recognized as legitimate.
Bracteates of this period were a regional Germanic phenomenon driven by seigneurial profit: lords recalled and re-struck thin single-sided coins annually, collecting a recoinage fee each cycle.