Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Denier - Charlemagne Lyon mint, City gate
| Issuer | Unified Carolingian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 812-814 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A schematic representation of a city gate occupies the central field, depicted frontally with two flanking towers surmounted by globes and a central arched gateway, all rendered in the flat, linear style typical of Carolingian civic imagery. A small decorative motif, possibly a cross or rosette, appears in the exergue below the gatehouse. The architectural composition draws on late Roman numismatic tradition, symbolising the imperial city of Lugdunum (Lyon). The surrounding circular legend reads ✠ LVGDVNVM, identifying the mint city. The design is framed by a beaded border consistent with hammered silver coinage of the period. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
These final years of Charlemagne's reign saw the Lyon mint producing deniers under a reformed weight standard imposed by the capitulary of Frankfurt in 794, which fixed the penny at roughly 1.7g and later closer to 2g — a deliberate standardization meant to unify coinage across an empire stretching from the Elbe to the Ebro. Lyon's position as a major ecclesiastical and commercial center on the Rhône corridor made it one of the more active mints of the period. Charlemagne died in January 814, making this a terminal issue from the reign.