Catalog
Denier - Pepin the Short Venasque mint
| Issuer | Unified Carolingian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 751-768 |
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| Diameter | 17 mm |
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| Obverse description | Central field occupied by a large royal monogram composed of the interlaced letters R, P, and N, abbreviating REX PIPINUS (King Pepin), surmounted by a horizontal bar. The monogram is rendered in bold, deeply struck relief characteristic of early Carolingian hammered coinage. The entire design is contained within a border of large beads, clearly visible around the coin's circumference. No additional legend surrounds the monogram. |
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Pépin le Bref never ruled from Venasque — the mint there operated under ecclesiastical authority, tied to the bishops of Carpentras whose seat gave the town its administrative weight in the Comtat Venaissin. These small southern issues were struck as Pépin consolidated Frankish power following his deposition of Childeric III in 751, the coup legitimized by papal anointing at Soissons — the first Frankish king to receive that sanction. The Venasque attribution remains a point of scholarly friction; Morrison's corpus distinguishes it from nearby Provençal issues partly on die axis and monogram form rather than any documentary mint record.