Tag Archive for: History

The Princes of Solms

In early Modern times the Hesse noble house of Solms faced like many other nobles financial problems. The imperial service and own coin issues were their way of solving that issue. Even though some members of the family had not been granted the minting privilege at all …

Another forger in north Hampshire?

On 5 August 2012 a late iron age coin punch was discovered by a metal detectorist near Andover, north Hampshire. Its function is unclear, it may be a trial or apprentice piece – or even an ancient forgery.

A mint for the Comstock Lode in Carson City / Nevada

Only for a few years the US Mint struck gold and silver coins at its branch in Carson City. Only 57 types of gold coins originated there. Auction house Gadoury is now able to offer an impressive number of these rarities in their forthcoming auction.

Brandenburg and 200 years of Confessio Augustana

The scene Andreas Vestner has recorded on a silver medal produced by order of Karl Wilhelm Friedrich of Brandenburg-Ansbach is impressive to see: The Chancellor of Saxony is reading out the Augsburg Confession. But why did the ‘Wild Margrave’ of all people commission this medal?

Medieval Sicily Part 3: Arab Influence

The Arabs didn’t just rule Sicily. They had such an impact on its art and culture that this influence continued to have an effect long after the expulsion of the Muslim masters. This episode tells of what Europe owes to them.

Egypt and Alexandria. A brief numismatic survey: part V

Join us on our trip through the history of Egypt and its capital Alexandria by its coinage. In the final episode you become a witness to the revolt of Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, and Alexandria’s transition into late antique times.

How Malta Came under the British Flag

On March 12, 2015, the auction house Künker auctions off an unusually rare testimony of the Maltese history. The small silver ingot in the weight of 30 tari from 1800 is the last currency produced on Malta.

Human faces, part 47: The frivolous Vreneli

Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? Discussions about the precise nature of these heads could be highly entertaining as the example of the Swiss Vreneli demonstrates.

Human Faces Part 12: Augustus, Peacemaking Emperor or Mass Murderer?

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? This chapter of the series ‘Human Faces’ looks at Augustus and his new image following the Civil War.

Human faces, part 32: Murder in Milan

After the brutal murder of the Duke of Milan, only one question is on the mind of Milan’s aristocracy: who will follow in his office? The seven-year-old son? Quite surprisingly, the succession is settled peacefully. Peaceful, but not uneventful, thanks to the dowager duchess…