Udalschalk II served as Bishop of Augsburg during the turbulent final years of the Staufen-papacy conflict, and his bracteate issues reflect the broader monetization of episcopal authority occurring across southern German dioceses in the late 12th century. Augsburg's mint rights, confirmed under imperial privilege, made the bishop one of the few ecclesiastical lords in Bavaria with the standing to strike independent coinage of this type.
Bracteates of this diocese are notoriously fragile — single-sided striking on thin flans leaves them prone to cracking along the edges, and the Steinh#60 variety is rarely encountered without at least minor peripheral damage.
Udalschalk II served as Bishop of Augsburg during the turbulent final years of the Staufen-papacy conflict, and his bracteate issues reflect the broader monetization of episcopal authority occurring across southern German dioceses in the late 12th century. Augsburg's mint rights, confirmed under imperial privilege, made the bishop one of the few ecclesiastical lords in Bavaria with the standing to strike independent coinage of this type.
Bracteates of this diocese are notoriously fragile — single-sided striking on thin flans leaves them prone to cracking along the edges, and the Steinh#60 variety is rarely encountered without at least minor peripheral damage.