When Alfred ruled over the West Saxons in the 9th century, Vikings raided Britain, his homeland. Alfred forged an alliance between numerous small realms and drove out the invaders. You can see his picture on this silver penny.
This stater is attributed to the Parisii tribe. In ancient times, today’s Paris was not yet a centre of art. However, inspired by Greek coins, Celtic engravers found their very own form of expression at the end of the 2nd century BC.
Without Julia Domna, Septimius Severus would not have been able to found a dynasty. His wife did not only bore him two sons. She also made her mark in politics. Aristocratic ladies were especially inspired by her hairstyle. Our aureus shows how complicated it was.
Today you can try your hand at a cistophorus. The silver coin was named after its motif – a basket with a snake. This “cista mystica” was part of the Bacchus cult and is depicted on the early version of this denomination from Asia Minor.
On 8 February 1998, Italians were invited to vote by telephone on the motif of future 2 euro coins. And the people voted: Dante Alighieri, who is indisputably considered Italy’s most important poet.
Today’s puzzle is a 1641 Louis d‘or by King Louis XIII of France.
For centuries, coins faced serious competition: by cowries.
Today we have a first for you! This denarius of 44 BC was the first coin to feature a living Roman: Gaius Julius Caesar. He mentioned two good reasons for it: the star refers to the descent from Venus, the laurel wreath to Caesar’s achievements as a general.
In 1493, Bern started minting guldiners. This one is from 1494. The Bernese heraldic beast (a bear) is depicted beneath the imperial eagle, the emblem of the Holy Roman Empire, in order to demonstrate that the city was not subject to anyone except the emperor himself.
The city of Metz, too, minted silver coins of the popular tornesel type. They depict St Stephen, to whom the city’s cathedral is dedicated. However, the building was still under construction when our piece was minted at some point after 1406.
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