Catalog
Pfennig Undetermined Friesach minting
| Issuer | Duchy of Carinthia (Austrian States) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1210-1230 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Pfennig (800-1500) |
| 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 | Frontal enthroned figure of a ruler or bishop, crowned and robed, depicted in a stylized Romanesque manner characteristic of early 13th-century Friesach-type pfennigs. The figure is shown facing, with arms extended or holding regalia, set within a beaded or rope-border inner circle. A partial Latin legend surrounds the central device, partially visible along the coin's irregular flan. The overall execution is typical of the hammered bracteate-influenced coinage of the Carinthian minting tradition. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Three patriarchal or Maltese crosses arranged in a row, each surmounted above a pair of facing busts or architectural elements, all set within a beaded inner circle. The design is characteristic of the Friesach pfennig type, reflecting the ecclesiastical heraldic vocabulary common to Carinthian and Styrian coinage of the early 13th century. The field is plain beyond the beaded border, and the overall composition is bold and symmetrical despite the irregularity of the flan. |
| 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 |
Friesach in Carinthia was the dominant silver-minting center in the eastern Alpine region from the late twelfth century onward, producing a currency so widely trusted that "Friesacher Pfennig" became a generic term for quality silver coinage across the German and Hungarian trade networks. Attribution within this series is notoriously difficult — the same die types circulated across multiple issuing authorities simultaneously, and the "Undetermined" classification here reflects genuine scholarly disagreement rather than incomplete research.