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Denier - Pepin the Short Herstal
| Issuer | Unified Carolingian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 751-768 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Reverse description | Within a beaded border, the reverse displays the mint monogram 'AR' for Herstal (Heristal), rendered in an angular, interlaced Carolingian script style. A small pellet is visible in the field at center, and a cross or stroke appears to the left of the monogram, serving as a decorative or separating device. The design is characteristic of early Carolingian hammered deniers, with the mint name presented as a ligature rather than a full legend. The flan is irregular, as is typical for hand-struck coinage of this period. |
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| Mint | Herstal |
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| Additional information |
Pépin III came to power through one of the more calculated coups in Frankish history: with papal blessing secured in advance, he deposed Childeric III in 751 and had himself anointed king — the first Frankish ruler to receive that rite. The Herstal mint had been active under the Merovingians, and Pépin's retention of it signaled continuity of administration even as dynastic legitimacy was being fundamentally rewritten. His coinage reform, pushed through in the 750s–760s, increased the weight standard of the denier and consolidated minting authority away from ecclesiastical and aristocratic mints toward royal control.
Morrison 46 places this piece within the transitional typology that bridges late Merovingian fabric with emerging Carolingian regularity.