DOI article:
Miazga, Beata; Paszkiewicz, Boris: The metal content of selected Polish and Brandenburg coins from the 14th and 15th centuries
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.49247#0155
THE METAL CONTENT OF SELECTED POLISH AND BRANDENBURG COINS...
The Poznań penny is not completely intact. The data concerning the fineness are also
completely different: whereas the Krakow penny had a fineness of 465/1000 on the
surface, the fineness of the Poznań penny was 887/1000 on the surface and 688/1000
in the interior. It is hard to explain why such great differences exist concerning the
interior of the coins. With regard to the surface, they are probably due to the coins
having been enriched with silver (blanched) at both mints.
AN UNCERTAIN COIN
Among the coins under discussion, we have one more coin from the 14lh century
that we can regard as Polish, but we cannot be precise about its origin (no. 11). It is
a penny that is not known in the literature, with a meticulously depicted eagle on
one side and an indecipherable figure - due to a minting error - on the other. It is
possible that there is a helmet with a fan-shaped crest there. The shape of the eagle
is definitely 14th-century. The Krakow penny of Wenceslas II (0.38 g, 13.0 mm) is
somewhat similar,46 as is the mysterious coin found in a castle near Krnov (0.14 g,
12-12.4 mm).47 In both cases, however, the eagle was crowned and the reverse types
were different. In terms of size, the mysterious coin in question is closer to the coin
from Krnov, but in terms of weight it rather corresponds to the Polish pennies from
Krakow or Poznań from the first half of the 14th century. The silver content measured
on the surface - which ranges between 742/1000 and 622/1000 - varies significantly.
This coin can be regarded as being similar in many ways to our no. 3 coin, the Greater
Poland parvus, or to nos. 4 and 5, the Krakow pennies discussed above.
HELLERS OF THE SILESIAN MONETARY SYSTEM
Our next coin, no. 12, belongs both to the coinage of the Polish Crown and
to that of Silesia, for it is a heller of Wschowa Land, which was part of Silesia.
Though it remained under Silesian Law, Wschowa Land belonged to the King of
Poland after it was separated from the Duchy of Głogów. Thus, our coin here was
struck in accordance with the Silesian standard. This Wschowa heller, dated to the
reign of Vladislas Jagiełło (following the minting privileges that Jagiełło gave to
Wschowa in 1404), was undoubtedly blanched, which can be seen with the naked
eye; hence, the difference in the fineness of the silver: 369/1000 on the surface
and 243/1000 (once all the elements with measurable amounts were recognized as
making up 100%) in the interior. The latter amount can be regarded as the measure
of the true amount of silver in the coin. This amount was actually closer to a heavily
debased Polish coinage than to the contemporary hellers of duchies of Silesia, which
46 PASZKIEWICZ 2001: 43-44.
47 IDEM 2014.
151
The Poznań penny is not completely intact. The data concerning the fineness are also
completely different: whereas the Krakow penny had a fineness of 465/1000 on the
surface, the fineness of the Poznań penny was 887/1000 on the surface and 688/1000
in the interior. It is hard to explain why such great differences exist concerning the
interior of the coins. With regard to the surface, they are probably due to the coins
having been enriched with silver (blanched) at both mints.
AN UNCERTAIN COIN
Among the coins under discussion, we have one more coin from the 14lh century
that we can regard as Polish, but we cannot be precise about its origin (no. 11). It is
a penny that is not known in the literature, with a meticulously depicted eagle on
one side and an indecipherable figure - due to a minting error - on the other. It is
possible that there is a helmet with a fan-shaped crest there. The shape of the eagle
is definitely 14th-century. The Krakow penny of Wenceslas II (0.38 g, 13.0 mm) is
somewhat similar,46 as is the mysterious coin found in a castle near Krnov (0.14 g,
12-12.4 mm).47 In both cases, however, the eagle was crowned and the reverse types
were different. In terms of size, the mysterious coin in question is closer to the coin
from Krnov, but in terms of weight it rather corresponds to the Polish pennies from
Krakow or Poznań from the first half of the 14th century. The silver content measured
on the surface - which ranges between 742/1000 and 622/1000 - varies significantly.
This coin can be regarded as being similar in many ways to our no. 3 coin, the Greater
Poland parvus, or to nos. 4 and 5, the Krakow pennies discussed above.
HELLERS OF THE SILESIAN MONETARY SYSTEM
Our next coin, no. 12, belongs both to the coinage of the Polish Crown and
to that of Silesia, for it is a heller of Wschowa Land, which was part of Silesia.
Though it remained under Silesian Law, Wschowa Land belonged to the King of
Poland after it was separated from the Duchy of Głogów. Thus, our coin here was
struck in accordance with the Silesian standard. This Wschowa heller, dated to the
reign of Vladislas Jagiełło (following the minting privileges that Jagiełło gave to
Wschowa in 1404), was undoubtedly blanched, which can be seen with the naked
eye; hence, the difference in the fineness of the silver: 369/1000 on the surface
and 243/1000 (once all the elements with measurable amounts were recognized as
making up 100%) in the interior. The latter amount can be regarded as the measure
of the true amount of silver in the coin. This amount was actually closer to a heavily
debased Polish coinage than to the contemporary hellers of duchies of Silesia, which
46 PASZKIEWICZ 2001: 43-44.
47 IDEM 2014.
151