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Denier Bracteate - Siegfried III of Eppstein
| Issuer | Archbishopric of Mainz |
|---|---|
| Year | 1230-1249 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 0.21 g |
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| Obverse description | Facing enthroned archbishop in pontifical vestments, seated frontally on a low throne, holding a crozier with volute head in his left hand and a book (bible) in his right hand resting against his chest. Flanking the central figure on either side is a stylized church tower or architectural facade rendered in a Romanesque manner. The composition is executed in high relief typical of bracteate coinage, with the entire design enclosed within a beaded border. The overall style reflects the Rhenish ecclesiastical bracteate tradition of the mid-thirteenth century. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Blank incuse impression, as is characteristic of bracteate coinage struck from a single die on a thin flan, producing a mirror-image indentation of the obverse design on the reverse. |
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| Additional information |
Siegfried III von Eppstein served as Archbishop of Mainz during one of the most turbulent stretches of 13th-century German ecclesiastical politics, backing first Frederick II and then switching allegiance to the papal faction — a reversal that shaped imperial succession more than once. His archbishopric's minting activity reflects that instability: bracteates of this type circulated in a regional economy where ecclesiastical lords wielded monetary authority as a direct instrument of political leverage.
At 0.21g, these are among the most fragile survivors of the Rhenish bracteate tradition. The Löbbecke specimen, long a reference point for the type, passed through auction with surface condition that set expectations for the series.