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<p>[QUOTE="Orielensis, post: 3792740, member: 96898"]That's actually a good type and not in too bad condition. Most that I have seen have, apart from chipped edges, much more damage to the design than yours. Nice!</p><p><br /></p><p>If I may recommend a way of safely storing and handling your coin: what I like to do is to put bracteates in a clear round plastic coin capsule (like <a href="https://www.lighthouse.us/coin-capsules.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.lighthouse.us/coin-capsules.html" rel="nofollow">this</a>) and place a small piece of a cotton pad (like you use for removing makeup) underneath the bracteate. This way, the bracteate, gently tucked between the capsule and the cotton pad, stays safely in place and doesn't rattle around in the capsule, which can lead to serious damage.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Thanks for the compliment! And yes, collecting bracteates is sometimes a bit more difficult than collecting more common medieval and ancient coins. Neither demand nor supply is very high for these coins, and there are only few auction houses and dealers with expertise in bracteates. I have made good experiences with Olding, Teutoburger Münzauktionen, and WAG (all in Germany, shipping to California never was a problem). In the US, Allen Berman is a very knowledgeable and strongly recommended dealer specializing in medieval coins. The two Freiburg coins I posted above came from him, for example.</p><p><br /></p><p>When scarcer or unusually well-preserved bracteates are offered at auction, there often is a chance that you'd have to wait at least a couple of years until a comparable coin is up for sale again. This is different from, let's say, Athenian tetradrachms or most Roman denarii, where collectors can compare multiple examples on the market and usually somewhat agree on what constitutes a good price for a specific type. With bracteates, on the other hand, it all depends on how much you want a specific coin and whether there is someone with deeper pockets who wants it more. Unfortunately, the latter happens to me astonishingly often.</p><p><br /></p><p>That said, it's still possible to collect bracteates on a budget. Many of the more common but very attractive Magdeburg types, for example, can with some luck be found for about $50–$100. About the same is true for the square-ish types from Switzerland and the Breisgau. One only needs to look out for these and have some patience.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>That's a beautiful historic publication with great illustrations of Magdeburg bracteates. In many ways, these copper plates are superior to the photographs in Berger's standard catalogue from the 1990s!</p><p><br /></p><p>There is a coin-related story connected to the construction of Magdeburg cathedral you mentioned. To promote and finance the reconstruction of the church, which had been destroyed in a fire in 1207, Albrecht von Käfernburg in 1220 acquired the supposed cranium of St. Maurice, the patron saint of the city. The new relic was also meant to raise income by attracting pilgrims and donations. Albrecht minted a series of three bracteates showing the recently acquired relic, two of which I have posted above. These coins constituted an early form of advertising: they were meant to spread the news about the skull relic and promote a pilgrimage to Magdeburg. There is a third relic type that I am actively looking for – unfortunately, it's quite rare, though.</p><p><br /></p><p>And you are right, there apparently are no bracteates from the Low Countries. As far as I know, the westernmost bracteates were struck in Oldenburg, about 40 miles from today's Dutch border. Here is a little map showing the spread of bracteates (taken from Svensson: The Bracteate as Economic Idea and Monetary Instrument, 2013):</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1013322[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Thanks for the kind words! <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Orielensis, post: 3792740, member: 96898"]That's actually a good type and not in too bad condition. Most that I have seen have, apart from chipped edges, much more damage to the design than yours. Nice! If I may recommend a way of safely storing and handling your coin: what I like to do is to put bracteates in a clear round plastic coin capsule (like [URL='https://www.lighthouse.us/coin-capsules.html']this[/URL]) and place a small piece of a cotton pad (like you use for removing makeup) underneath the bracteate. This way, the bracteate, gently tucked between the capsule and the cotton pad, stays safely in place and doesn't rattle around in the capsule, which can lead to serious damage. Thanks for the compliment! And yes, collecting bracteates is sometimes a bit more difficult than collecting more common medieval and ancient coins. Neither demand nor supply is very high for these coins, and there are only few auction houses and dealers with expertise in bracteates. I have made good experiences with Olding, Teutoburger Münzauktionen, and WAG (all in Germany, shipping to California never was a problem). In the US, Allen Berman is a very knowledgeable and strongly recommended dealer specializing in medieval coins. The two Freiburg coins I posted above came from him, for example. When scarcer or unusually well-preserved bracteates are offered at auction, there often is a chance that you'd have to wait at least a couple of years until a comparable coin is up for sale again. This is different from, let's say, Athenian tetradrachms or most Roman denarii, where collectors can compare multiple examples on the market and usually somewhat agree on what constitutes a good price for a specific type. With bracteates, on the other hand, it all depends on how much you want a specific coin and whether there is someone with deeper pockets who wants it more. Unfortunately, the latter happens to me astonishingly often. That said, it's still possible to collect bracteates on a budget. Many of the more common but very attractive Magdeburg types, for example, can with some luck be found for about $50–$100. About the same is true for the square-ish types from Switzerland and the Breisgau. One only needs to look out for these and have some patience. That's a beautiful historic publication with great illustrations of Magdeburg bracteates. In many ways, these copper plates are superior to the photographs in Berger's standard catalogue from the 1990s! There is a coin-related story connected to the construction of Magdeburg cathedral you mentioned. To promote and finance the reconstruction of the church, which had been destroyed in a fire in 1207, Albrecht von Käfernburg in 1220 acquired the supposed cranium of St. Maurice, the patron saint of the city. The new relic was also meant to raise income by attracting pilgrims and donations. Albrecht minted a series of three bracteates showing the recently acquired relic, two of which I have posted above. These coins constituted an early form of advertising: they were meant to spread the news about the skull relic and promote a pilgrimage to Magdeburg. There is a third relic type that I am actively looking for – unfortunately, it's quite rare, though. And you are right, there apparently are no bracteates from the Low Countries. As far as I know, the westernmost bracteates were struck in Oldenburg, about 40 miles from today's Dutch border. Here is a little map showing the spread of bracteates (taken from Svensson: The Bracteate as Economic Idea and Monetary Instrument, 2013): [ATTACH=full]1013322[/ATTACH] Thanks for the kind words! :)[/QUOTE]
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