Matthias Corvinus spent much of the early 1460s consolidating royal finances after the chronic debasement that had plagued Hungarian coinage under his predecessors. The billon obol — already a marginal denomination by weight — was part of a broader recoinage effort tied to his campaigns against Frederick III of Habsburg, which drained the treasury even as silver revenues from the Hungarian mines were being restructured under royal control.
At 0.36 g, these pieces wore quickly and were frequently clipped in circulation. Survivors in any legible condition are scarcer than the catalog numbers suggest.
Matthias Corvinus spent much of the early 1460s consolidating royal finances after the chronic debasement that had plagued Hungarian coinage under his predecessors. The billon obol — already a marginal denomination by weight — was part of a broader recoinage effort tied to his campaigns against Frederick III of Habsburg, which drained the treasury even as silver revenues from the Hungarian mines were being restructured under royal control.
At 0.36 g, these pieces wore quickly and were frequently clipped in circulation. Survivors in any legible condition are scarcer than the catalog numbers suggest.