Caption

Denarius of Boleslaw III Krzywousty (prince of Poland; 1107–1138). Obverse: in a beaded border, a knight in chain mail thrusting a spearhead into the jaws of an upside-down dragon. Reverse: in a triple beaded border, an isosceles cross topped with spheres (three of them with one dot); between its arms radiate two spheres (smaller ones closer to the center, larger ones — one with a dot); one quarter near the center contains an additional dot. Allegorical imagery: dragons, knights, fight between good and evil; motifs include spearhead (issue mark), equal-armed cross, chain mail, crosses. Associated figures: Adalbert (Saint; ca. 956–997). Romanesque style. Date ca. 1125–1138. Poland, Kraków. Coin; diameter 12.3–12.8 mm; weight 0.43 g.

Credit line

Photo12/Liszt Collection

Reference

LZT26A63_203

License type

Rights managed

Available size

27.0Mb (1.1Mb) / 10.2in x 10.2in / 3071 x 3071 (300dpi)

Keywords

Denarius Boleslaw III Krzywousty prince Poland 1107–1138 Obverse beaded border knight chain mail thrusting spearhead jaws upside-down dragon Reverse triple beaded border isosceles cross topped spheres three them dot arms radiate two spheres smaller ones closer center larger ones quarter near center contains additional dot Allegorical imagery dragons knights fight good evil motifs include issue mark equal-armed cross chain mail crosses Associated figures Adalbert Saint ca 956–997 Romanesque style Date ca 1125–1138 Kraków Coin diameter 12.3–12.8 mm weight 0.43 g small round metallic object worn uneven surface sits plain white background showing raised textured design standing human figure holding long diagonal staff spear irregular shapes shallow engravings figure object mostly silver-gray darker gray shadows subtle hints off-white highest points.