Denier Bracteate - Sophia of Brabant

Sophia of Brabant pressed her son Heinrich's claim to the Thuringian landgraviate after the Ludowingian male line died out with her brother Heinrich Raspe in 1247 — touching off a succession conflict with the Wettin Margraviate of Meissen that dragged on for decades. These bracteates were struck as instruments of that contested authority, asserting territorial lordship over Hesse while the military and legal fight continued. The coins are thin enough to be fragile by design, a feature of the bracteate tradition rather than any production shortcoming.