Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Obolo - Ponce Hugo IV
| Issuer | County of Empuries |
|---|---|
| Year | 1230-1269 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | A sword depicted vertically in the central field, with the hilt at the base. A circular Latin legend is inscribed around the design, contained between two concentric circles forming the border. The overall style is characteristic of medieval Catalan hammered coinage, with somewhat crude yet expressive die engraving. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | ⋮COMES EMPR (Translation: Count of Empuries) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Hugo IV ruled Empúries during a period when the county was sliding into sustained financial and political dependency on the Crown of Aragon. These small billon fractional pieces were struck to service local market transactions at a time when Empúries lacked the resources to maintain a competitive silver coinage — the billon content reflects fiscal constraint, not minting preference. The county would effectively lose autonomous monetary authority within a generation of Hugo's death.