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| Issuer | Kingdom of West Francia (Carolingian Empire) |
|---|---|
| Year | 864-875 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | Central field bearing a plain Greek cross with equal arms, enclosed within a beaded inner circle from which the arms of the cross extend to meet the border. The four quadrants formed by the cross arms are filled with angular interlaced knotwork typical of Carolingian decorative convention. The surrounding legend reads PATNIA LIONE, identifying this issue as coinage of the palace. The lettering is bold and angular, consistent with ninth-century Frankish epigraphy, and the overall composition follows the standardized reverse type of the Palace coinage series instituted by the Edict of Pîtres (864). |
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| Additional information |
The Edict of Pistres, issued by Charles II (the Bald) in June 864, was one of the most sweeping monetary reforms of the Carolingian period — it centralized minting authority, suppressed unauthorized workshops, and designated a controlled list of permitted minting sites. The Palace mint was among those explicitly sanctioned, operating under direct royal supervision rather than delegated ecclesiastical or comital authority. This issue falls squarely within that reformed framework.
The Depeyr reference notes a variety, suggesting die variations exist within this type — not unexpected for a decade-long emission across multiple workshop hands.