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Denier - Lothair II Bordeaux mint
| Issuer | West Francia, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 954-986 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 1.32 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | A bold cross pattée occupies the central field, its flared arms extending nearly to the beaded inner circle, a design emblematic of Carolingian and post-Carolingian royal authority. The surrounding legend ✠ BVRDEGΛL, rendered in angular debased Latin capitals, identifies the mint city of Bordeaux. The beaded inner circle frames the cross cleanly, while the outer edge of the flan is characteristically irregular, consistent with hand-hammered production. The reverse type follows the standard Carolingian cross-and-mint-name formula established under the earlier Frankish kings. |
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| Additional information |
Lothair II ruled West Francia during one of the Carolingian dynasty's most turbulent periods of fragmentation, contending simultaneously with Ottonian pressure from the east and the creeping autonomy of his own magnates. The Bordeaux mint operated under conditions of increasingly local authority during this reign — the regional nobility had been absorbing comital and episcopal minting rights since the mid-tenth century, and the royal monopoly on coinage was, in practice, already eroding before Lothair's death in 986.
The Gariel and Morrison references place this firmly within a small documented group from the Bordeaux atelier, which is among the less-prolific royal mints of the period.