I recently found out about the hexagram, a coin struck from melted down church silver in the 600's AD during a desperate time in the Byzantine Empire. I also came across a story of Athens melting down golden statues of Nike to mint coins in 407/406 BC. These stories caught my interest and I was wondering if anyone knew of any other coins made from melted down metal like this or had a good resource for finding more? I appreciate any information you can provide!
I think it was the Roman emperor Maximinus, the 8-foot tall Thracian in the third-century, who got a bad rep for robbing temples of precious metal to pay his legions.
Palladas, a 4th century AD pagan writer mentions the follis. He is alluding to the stripping down and melting of temple treasures, like a statue of a god being melted down and converted into currency. "Having become Christian, owners of Olympian palaces dwell here unharmed; for the melting pot that produces the life-giving follis will not put them in the fire."
Having been in the manufacturing industry for several years, we melted / reused metals to make common objects. We all know that precious and semi- precious metals have been melted down and reused in coins, jewelry, and other objects. Over the several thousands of years Humans have been metal-making, (precious and utility), it would be curious as to how many times metals over the thousands of years that have been remelted / repurposed to make the next object.
Another coin allegedly made from melted church vessels. Alexius made these hastily to combat the Normans in 1081. He ended up losing that battle. Alexius I/ Transitional AR Histamenon Nomisma 1081 to 1082 AD Obvs: ::KЄRO ΛΛЄϞIω IC XC, Christ bearded and nimbate wearing tunic and kolobion. Holds gospels in left hand Revs: ·ΔIMITI ΔϵCΠTH, St. Demetrius standing 3/4 facing presenting labarum to Alexius which holds sword and grasps shaft of labarum. 27x29mm, 4.17g. Thessalonica mint Ref: Sear 1904, DOC 4.1
In 1682 Louis XIV, king of France, ordered a plain silver furniture for his new palace of Versailles. Tables, mirrors, other kind of furniture were made of plain silver, it was something unique (and a bit insane) called "la Grande Argenterie". There were tables of 350 kilograms, mirrors of 425 kg. A total of 20 tons of silver. He had it all melted in 1689 to strike silver coins and finance the war... During the French Revolution, starting from 1791, many if not most French copper coins were made of "métal de cloche" (bell metal). Most church bells had been seized by the government and melted to make coins. This coin, for ex. (not mine) :
