Denier - Otto III and Adelaide bust

Otto III inherited the imperial throne at age three following his father Otto II's death in Rome in 983, leaving his mother Theophanu and later his grandmother Adelaide as regents. The joint bust coinage — unusual for the period — reflects the political reality of that regency rather than any established dynastic convention. Adelaide, who had been empress under Otto I, exercised genuine authority during these years and her inclusion on the coinage was a deliberate assertion of that legitimacy.

Struck at Pavia under Ottonian administrative control, these deniers circulated through northern Italy and across the Alpine trading routes. The type was discontinued once Otto III assumed personal rule around 995.