Eagle groschen - Meinhard I / Albert II Meran

The eagle groschen of Tyrol represents one of the earliest groschen-type coins struck north of the Alps, issued under the joint rule of Meinhard I and his brother Albert II following their inheritance of Tyrol in 1253. The brothers governed the county cooperatively until Albert's death in 1269, after which Meinhard consolidated sole control and began the political maneuvering that would eventually see him named Duke of Carinthia in 1286.

The Tyrolean mint at Meran was the productive center of this coinage, positioned along major transalpine trade routes where a reliable silver currency had genuine commercial utility.