Catalog
Denier - Sobeslaus Slavník
| Issuer | Slavník Dynasty Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 985-995 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Within a beaded inner circle, a stylized hand or flame-like motif rises above a crescent or architectural base, flanked by the letters M and V in the field; the design is rendered in a bold, archaic hammered style characteristic of early Bohemian coinage. A circular Latin legend surrounds the inner circle, reading SOBESLAVS M V, with letters separated by crosses or pellets as word dividers. The overall composition is set within an irregularly shaped flan typical of late tenth-century Bohemian deniers. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
The Slavníks were the most powerful Bohemian noble family outside the Přemyslid dynasty, controlling a substantial territory centered on Libice nad Cidlinou and operating their own mint — a rare privilege that made coins like this a direct assertion of dynastic independence. That independence ended violently in September 995, when the Přemyslids massacred the Slavník clan at Libice, effectively wiping out the family and consolidating Bohemian power under a single ruling house. Sobeslaus, one of the few Slavník members to survive, did so only because he was abroad at the time, serving in the retinue of Holy Roman Emperor Otto III.