Ive got various world coins, usual U.S. type set going and some roman and greek but I decided to get "My Feet Wet":foot-mouth: with a medieval coin. I know he's pretty common but I always liked the Leopold I design due to Zohar's posts. Since I couldnt afford a Thaler I chose a 15 kreuzer instead. Not sure if I will be acquiring more medieval coins soon, good ones are usually over my normal coin budget. AUSTRIA, Leopold I (1657-1705), 15 Kreuzer, 1664, Neuburg am Inn mint, mint master Bartholomaus Triangel, laureate, draped bust right wearing Order, rev., Crowned Imperial Eagle, Arms on breast, (Her.1029, KM 1220.2), Only Year Of Issue
That is very nice! If I was to get a Medieval coin that would be the one I would look for. (actually I have been looking for one.)
Sweet! Very Nice! Someday I'd like to pick up a couple Medievals myself. Exactly what years are concidered the Medieval period?
Technically, the medieval period begins in 476 with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ends around 1500 (a date roughly centered around events like the discovery of the New World in 1492 and Martin Luther's break from the Catholic church in 1517). After that, it's the "early modern" period which continues through to about 1800 (mostly defined by American's war of independence from 1775-1783).
Thank you for pointing that out. I was always under the (mis)understanding that it was until the mid 1600's......Learning everyday!
It should be noted that some Medieval designs survived into the early-modern period, like those of Hungary. And others, like in the case of Venice, remained unchanged almost all the way to what we consider the modern era of the late 1700s. So it's hard to pinpoint a cutoff point for those cultures. Someone should have issued a memo: "Hey guys, we just discovered the New World. It's a whole new era, so change your coin designs accordingly. kthxbi."
Don't forget that Byzantine coins from Constantinople were considered ancients even though they were being produded into the early 1400s. A bit OT though.
Nice coin, but as indicated, not medieval. 476 AD is given as the end of the Classical Era and the start of the Dark Ages (early medieval) because that is when the Roman Emperor Romulus Augustulus abdicated in favor of the German, Odoacer, who in fact was Flavius Odoacer , the Germans in Italy long having been Romanized. As noted the end of the Middle Ages can be a grey area, but I take 1453, the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks, but 1450 (Gutenberg's printing press) and 1492 (obvious) also work. That said, I, too did not get involved in the Middle Ages until lately. I always saw them as an age of religion and superstition, life-hating ignorance, and an overpowering Church with Inquisitions and the Divine Right of Kings. Then, I learned. Researching an article for The Celator I learned to see the vitality and affirmination of Life on Earth that was expressed in literature and paid for with innovative and expansive commerce. I learned that "divine right of kings" is a Protestant concept, best expressed by King James I of England (VI of Scotland). The "inquisition" was created to investigate heresies, not heretics -- there is a subtle difference -- and it did not reach its height in the Middle Ages at all, but hundreds of years later as the Reformation became the Age of Reason (so-called). All in all, the Middle Ages have much to offer. Hugues of Champagne: not a Stella or a Saint, but truly a silver penny that gave us the Troy Ounce, from the great fairs at the town of Troyes in the county of Champagne where a bard known as Chretian composed the Arthurian Legends and Shlomo Itzak set down rabbinical law, and the Templars stored their wealth to build the first great Cathedral.
I once collected only Ancient Greek and Roman coins but started to be bothered by the meaningless borders between the periods so now I'll buy anything that appeals to me as long as the coin was made before they invented machines and a very few things from the earlier period or what I'd call modern coins. Lately I seem to be buying more things between 800 and 1200 AD than the older things. 1664 seems too modern to me but the Leopold shown here is an attractive coin so maybe I'll consider getting one someday. I also found interest in things not from Europe. For me, this mostly has been things from Central and South Asia but it is a big world and you never know what will come next. Never be afraid to open up new interests.
Very nice coin That's a great portrait of Leopold. I have a 15 Krajczar, from Hungary, from 1678, not nearly as nice as yours, but interesting. I like how the titles are written on a scroll, which you can see the rolled up ends of. Very interesting coins to collect. obv: LEOPOLD.D:G.R.I.S.A.G.H.B.REX - laureate bust right. Roman numerals 'XV' below. rev: PATRONA.HUNGARIAE 16+78 - Radiating Madonna and child. -KB- on either side. Shield below.
Saturday I got a 3 & 6 Krajczar and the 6 Krajczar has the same reverse. It was either that or another eagle like the one in this thread. I liked the reverse of yours. Hope to get them by thursday.
Very cool, I look forward to seeing them when you get a chance to get some photos up. I really like the Madonna and Child reverse, sadly mine is a bit worn. I will be interested to see if your 3 and 6 krajczar have the titles written on scrolls like on my 15 krajczar. I have always liked the coins of this type, both from Hungary and Austria.
Ah, interesting... I guess maybe they only did that on higher denominations.... I don't really know very much about these coins. Do you have the seller photos of the coins? or would you rather wait untill you recieve them, and can post your own?
