Jester's Challenge #172

1jester · November 25, 2003 5:07AM

Welcome to Jester's Challenge, an interactive history lesson.

Inspired by many others here on the Darkside forum, I'd like to present what I hope will turn into a great learning experience for all of us. Many members on this World and Ancient Coin Forum have done a formidable job of sharing with us many fascinating and historically important coins. Since looking at coins is also one of my greatest pleasures, I'd like to try to follow in that time-honored tradition and submit for your pleasure and entertainment some world coins I've come across in my short lifetime.

I will pick out a coin on a regular basis, and post it along with the challenge to you to name the coin, its provenance, denomination, metallic content, mintage, any distinguishing characteristics or noteworthy features, and its value. The more information, the better. I'd like as many people as possible to participate, regardless of how little knowledge you might have on the subject. I appreciate comments on every aspect of the coin, including its history, or its role in human history, or info on similar coins in its series, etc. I myself don't presume to know 1/1000 of what you collectively know, hence my challenge to all of you to share your knowledge with the rest of us. Hopefully this exercise will encourage thought, discussion, and most importantly, more friendship.

Thanks for your participation!!!

Here is the one hundred seventy-second selection:

spoon · November 25, 2003 5:19AM

Jan Kazimier of Poland

but that one was minted for Lithuania, right? is it a denar?

1jester · November 25, 2003 5:44AM

It's not a denar, but rather a copper shilling called a "boratynek". They are relatively common, but expensive if in very high grades. This one appears to have been sitting in the elements for a while, as most extant have. They were minted in many different places, including in Ujazdow (in the old castle) in Warsaw. I don't know where this one was minted, because I haven't figured out the mint mark below the horse. It looks like some mint master's initials. I'll have to dig through my Kopicki catalogs to decipher it. I don't know if it's rare or not, but it's not common to have this mint mark.

spoon · November 25, 2003 5:52AM

Interesting.. I'm still learning about this stuff. Thanks

1jester · November 25, 2003 5:54AM

Notice the die alignment! It's strange. But typical for medieval Polish coins.

theboz11 · November 25, 2003 7:12AM

nice coin, where's the lion?

Jester's Challenge #172

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