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Maille - Anonymous Ypres
| Issuer | Flanders, County of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1180-1200 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Denier (Denariu) (1⁄12) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | A plain cross pattée divides the field into four quadrants, each containing a distinct symbol or decorative motif characteristic of Flemish anonymous deniers of the late 12th century. The quadrants display schematic floral, crescent, and pellet ornaments arranged symmetrically around the central cross. The cross itself is bold and extends to the inner beaded border, which runs along the irregular flan edge. The design is executed in the crude hammered style typical of contemporary Flemish municipal coinage. The letters I-P-R-A, denoting IPRA (Ieper/Ypres), are disposed one per quadrant around the cross. |
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| Additional information |
Ypres rose sharply as a commercial center in the late twelfth century, its cloth trade generating enough transactional volume to demand local small change independently of comital authority. These anonymous mailles, attributable to no single count, filled that gap — product of a civic economy outpacing its political administration. The absence of any issuing name was not oversight but deliberate ambiguity, sidestepping feudal coinage rights that were, in this period, actively contested across Flemish towns.
The Vanhoudt G2433 reference places this squarely within a transitional phase before Philip of Alsace's monetary reforms tightened comital control over Flemish minting.