Denier - Henri V Mayence

Henri V's tenure as Holy Roman Emperor began in open rebellion against his own father, Heinrich IV, whom he forced to abdicate at Ingelheim in 1105. The Mainz mint was among the most productive episcopal mints in the empire, and deniers struck under Henri V reflect the period's bitter Investiture Contest — the decades-long struggle between emperor and papacy over who held the right to appoint church officials. The settlement came only with the Concordat of Worms in 1122, three years before this issue's type period closes.