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Denier - Louis III Palace mint
| Issuer | Louis III (King of West Francia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 879-882 |
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| Composition | Silver |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse displays a plain long cross with slightly expanded terminals at its centre, dividing the field into four equal quadrants, a standard Carolingian type derived from Carolingian monetary reform. The cross is contained within a beaded inner circle, beyond which runs the circumscription PALATINA MONET, introduced by a cross pattée, identifying this piece as coinage of the royal palace mint. The legend letters are rendered in the angular, somewhat irregular Carolingian capitals typical of ninth-century West Frankish workshop production. The fields are flat and unadorned, with the beaded border serving as the sole decorative framing element. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Louis III ruled West Francia jointly with his brother Carloman II following the death of their father Louis the Stammerer in 879 — a succession that required negotiated recognition from the Frankish magnates before either brother held firm authority. The Palace mint designation here reflects issues struck under direct royal supervision rather than at a named episcopal or comital center, a distinction that carried deliberate political weight during a reign consumed by Viking incursions, including the celebrated Frankish victory at Saucourt-en-Vimeu in 881.
Louis died in 882 from injuries sustained after his horse struck a doorway — he was chasing a young woman on horseback. He was eighteen.