This little guy is tough to photograph, but I kinda like the crudeness of design in these Bulgarian issues: Bulgaria Ivan Shishman, r. 1371-1393 (1382-1393) Trnovo mint, AR Groši Type IV, 14.29mm x 0.66 grams Obv.: Nimbate bust of Virgin Mary orans, nimbate bust of infant christ in front, M left, Θ right; Rev.: Standing Tsar wearing stemma with pendilia, holding crossed scepter. Monograms for ‘Shishman’ and ‘Tsar’ in fields Ref.: MSCB Bulgaria 11.1.4, De Wit 3912
A new acquisition for my Kashmir set/obsession.... Jaga Deva..1199-1213 AD.....19mm/5.70gr...Die axis 12 o'clock. Obverse...Ardochsho (Lakshmi) seated cross-legged facing in lalitasana (with right leg folded under and left leg hanging down), holding diadem in right hand and long-stemmed lotus in left hand, legend in Sharada script, to the left: 'Ja', to the right 'ga'. Reverse...Highly stylized King standing facing, sacrificing at an altar to the left. Bottom right legend in Sharada script 'Deva'.... Ex-William Spengler collection. MNI..195-96..
I recently picked up a voided long cross penny of Henry III from the mint of Ilchester. It's one mint closer to completing my goal of one coin from each mint that issued voided long cross pennies. I still have some rare mints such as Wilton, Hereford, and Shrewsbury, but am slowly getting there.
I mentioned before I am trying to educate myself on German coins a bit more. I bought a number of coins issued in Frankfurt am Main and intended to do a write-up, but the summer got away from me. Here’s one with a satisfying size to it: HRE - Frankfurt am Main The City of Frankfurt am Main (1429-1540) AR Turnos, 23.56 mm x 2.65 grams Obv.: ○MONETA ♣︎NOVA. Eagle left wearing crown, head breaking the inner circle, within 14 arches enclosing lis Rev.: ᛭SIT♣︎NOM’♣︎DNI’♣︎DEI♣︎NRI♣︎BENEDICTV’ outside, ᛭TVRON’♣︎FRANC’ inside, around short cross Ref.: JuF 166b, cf. de Wit 2155, cf. Saurmache 1061
That's a very nice coin @FitzNigel I wish I was more familiar with German coins. Its an area I would love to collect at some point in time. My newest addition is a multiple dirham from the Samanid Empire. I was really drawn to the size of the coin. At 46mm and 14.60g it has a great feel that is hard to judge from the photo. I'll have to take a photo of it next to an English penny to give and indication of size.
There has to be a better way to date these. Perhaps this from 1522? https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=8033274
I based the date off Joseph and Fellner as best as I could make out the text (I don’t know German). Do you know if the other texts cited in that example get more specific, and how they determined the date?
I don't really know much about German coinage and its reference books, not even about the German tournois. I went with that example on the basis of lettering and overall look, legend and privy marks.
Just in case you need a full ID, it's Nuh b. Mansur, 976-997, citing the governor al-Harith b. Harb, Kurat Badakhshan mint, no date. Album 1469.2. Nice example. Yes, I know it's Friday
I guess they got it from Joseph and Fellner. On p. 37 of their catalogue, they argue that the turnosen no. 166–168 are contemporaneous with the guilders no. 134–145, which can be dated to 1500–1511. This is indicated by the identical letter style on these coins. The argument appears sound, and the respective dating seems to have been adopted by most coin dealers and auction houses. Here is a scan of the respective passage in German:
thank you! I have the book, but missed this detail (as I said, I don’t know German, so was bumbling around trying to figure it out…)
Thank you @dltsrq I was struggling with it. Do you happen to knowa good online source for information on Islamic coins? Here is a photo of the multiple dirham next to a penny of Henry II on the left and a groat of Edward III on the right.
By far the most important online resource for Islamic Coins is the zeno.ru database. I consulted it last night to confirm my reading of your coin. The standard printed reference for Islamic coins is Steve Album's Checklist of Islamic Coins, now available as a free pdf download at the author's website. Since most Islamic coins are purely inscriptional, there is no way to get around the need for a basic understanding of numismatic Arabic. To that end, I recommend Arabic Coins and How to Read Them by Richard Plant.