Leszek the White last senior duke of Poland (1202-27) or his successors

Cracov mint

  NOTE: The coin was certainly made before the Mongol invasion in 1241. Its affiliation to the minting of Prince Leszek the White is hypothetical.

 OBVERSE: The rarest of the bracteates of Leszek the White, with a very interesting, unique depiction of a praying bearded man, wearing a characteristic Jewish pointed cap, with a Hebrew invocation in the rim.

 NOTE: Analysing the Old Testament, it is possible to read that the Jews came out of Egyptian slavery with their hand ‘raised’ as a gesture of thanksgiving and of freedom and triumph, resulting from trust in Yahweh and submission to His will. This may be, following Stanislav Suchodolsky, a representation of an Old Testament hero (Moses, Aaron, etc.), especially since the legend TOWA BRACHA   means ‘GOOD BLESSING’ and is not associated with any particular person. There are also other interpretations. Some see in the figure of the Jew a rabbi or the administrator of the mint.

Diameter   15 MM, weight  0, 11 G

 - ex Rzeszowski Dom Aukcyjny, auction 22, lot 460. April 2025. 

 Literature:

- B. Haczewska, B. Paszkiewicz, Skarb z XII-XIII wieku z Krakowa (drugie zbliżenie)-nieznane brakteaty polskie, „Zapiski Numizmatyczne”, t. 5: 2004, s. 87. Nr 8.

- D. Gorlińska, Żydzi w administracji skarbowej polskich władców czasu rozbicia dzielnicowego, Kraków 2015, s. 143.

Colección : POLAND - THE BEGINNINGS OF MINTING (UNTIL THE END OF 12TH CENTURY)