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Denier - Henry II Mainz mint, arabic inscription
| Issuer | Holy Roman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1002-1024 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Central field displays a stylized architectural or cross-like device composed of pellets and geometric forms arranged symmetrically, typical of Ottonian-Salian pfennig coinage. The design features a cross motif with pellets at intersections and in the angles, rendered in low relief characteristic of hammered silver coinage of the period. The surrounding circumscription reads + HEINRICVS, identifying the issuer as Emperor Henry II. The flan is irregular and slightly convex, with weak areas of strike consistent with early eleventh-century German mint production. The overall design follows the stylized, abstract architectural type common to Mainz imperial deniers of this reign. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | + HEINRICVS (Translation: Henry.) |
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| Additional information |
Henry II, crowned emperor in 1014, authorized a remarkable series of deniers at Mainz that carried Arabic Kufic inscriptions — a direct consequence of the intensive silver trade flowing through the empire from Islamic dirhams. Merchants and moneyers working along established trade routes had grown so accustomed to Arabic coinage that imitative legends carried genuine commercial credibility in certain markets.
Kluge Kar#76 is among the better-documented of these Ottonian-era imitative types, though the specific Arabic text is garbled rather than semantically coherent — copied by craftsmen who could not read it.