Catalog
Denier - Salomon III et roi Louis IV
| Issuer | Bishopric of Constance |
|---|---|
| Year | 900-911 |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | The obverse field bears the name of Bishop Salomon III arranged in two horizontal lines of Latin legend, reading SALO above MON, within a plain border. The inscription is rendered in the crude, uneven letterforms characteristic of early medieval Carolingian ecclesiastical coinage. No effigy or figurative motif is present; the entire design is typographic in character. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A plain cross with equal arms occupies the central field, enclosed within an inner beaded or grenetis circle. The circular legend naming the Carolingian king runs around the outer field between the grenetis and the coin's irregular rim. The cross motif is a standard feature of Carolingian ecclesiastical deniers, evoking royal and religious authority simultaneously. |
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| Additional information |
Salomon III served simultaneously as Bishop of Constance and Abbot of St. Gall from 890, making him one of the most powerful ecclesiastical figures in East Francia during a period when Carolingian central authority was collapsing under Magyar raids and internal fragmentation. The coin dates to his tenure under Louis the Child, the last Carolingian ruler of East Francia, who came to the throne in 900 at roughly six years old. Real power rested with magnates like Salomon himself.
Kluge's Karolingische Münzen catalogue places this among the rarer episcopal issues of the period.