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Denier Bracteate - Ulrich IV of Heidegg
| Issuer | Reichenau Abbey |
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| Year | 1160 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Facing bust of Abbot Ulrich IV of Heidegg rendered in low relief in the Romanesque style, depicted with a frontal visage framed by stylized hair or mitre, set within a double beaded inner circle. Two small pellets or annulets are visible flanking the bust in the field. A partially legible Latin legend runs along the outer border of this uniface bracteate strike. The overall design is characteristic of southern German ecclesiastical bracteates of the mid-twelfth century, with bold but schematic facial features typical of the period. |
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| Mint | Reichenau Abbey Mint |
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| Additional information |
Reichenau Abbey's coinage authority derived from an imperial mint privilege, but by the mid-twelfth century the abbey's temporal administration had increasingly passed into the hands of appointed secular advocates — the Vögte. Ulrich IV of Heidegg held that advocatial role, and his appearance on abbey coinage reflects the blurred line between ecclesiastical and lay power that characterized imperial church governance under the Hohenstaufen. The bracteate format itself was spreading rapidly through the German-speaking lands at precisely this moment, replacing the older two-sided denier as mints sought thinner, wider flans that rewarded the period's sophisticated die-cutting.