Bread for Tarsus
In the 3th cent., Asia Minor was famine-stricken. The city of Tarsus scored a coup that made the emperor leave the grain necessary for survival to it at a cheap rate. A coin tells of how that was achieved.
Entries by Ursula Kampmann
The People of Zurich and their Money 1: The Celts’ First Contact with Greek Money
Our series ‘The People of Zurich and their Money’ takes you along for the ride as we explore the Zurich of times past. In this first chapter, we’ll be eavesdropping on a conversation from the 3rd century BC between a Celtic farmer and his wife. Much like a good DVD, this conversation comes with a sort of ‘making of’ – a little numismatic-historical backdrop to help underscore and illustrate this conversation.
Human faces, part 38: Henry VIII and the second of his six wives
That Henry VIII had an entire collection of wives in his lifetime is not news. But can you remember all of them? In this episode of “Human faces”, we will tell the story of his second wife, Anne Boleyn.
Human faces, part 39: The price of power
Possessing colonies with vast resources of silver, Spanish king Philip II could have helped his kingdom to enormous economic prosperity. But even the largest treasure of silver could not realise Philip’s power-hungry fantasy of proselytizing half of Europe.
How much for a castle?
What do you think, how much did it cost to build a castle in the Middle Ages? What would it cost to build the exact same castle today? And how much of a small town’s income would the costs have taken up? This article gives you the answers to these questions.
Human Faces Part 8: A Body is Kidnapped
Why is it that for centuries – or rather thousands of years – the head has served as the motif for the side of a coin? And why has this changed in the last 200 years? In this part of the series it is once again about Alexander the Great – at least about his body.
The Mints of San Francisco: Part 2 The New Mint
Gaining access to the San Francisco Mint is not that easy. And it is outright prohibited to take photographs, strictly speaking. We can still provide you with interesting insights: old and new photographs of one of the world’s biggest mints.
Numismatic miniatures from the North: Part 4 – Treasure Island. Treasures, treasures and even more treasures
More than 700 treasure cases with around 180,000 coins have been discovered on the island of Gotland. The trader-peasants buried the earnings from their adventurous travels in the ground, where they were found by their descendants.
Human faces, part 31: The Condottieri, winners in every war
From dishwasher to millionaire, or: from mercenary to Duke of Milan. Francesco Sforza did the impossible and founded one of the most influential families in Renaissance Italy.
Human faces, part 30: The Hercules of Ferrara
Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? And why did that change in the last 200 years? In today’s episode, we’ll tell you the story of an Italian prince who admired Hercules so much that he named his son after him.
