The oldest Polish coin was for the longest time said to be this denarus issued by Mieszko I. In the 1990s, the Polish numismatist Suchodolski, based on the fact that the coin was being found in slightly younger troves, announced that, in fact, it was much younger dating to the times of Mieszko’s grandson, Mieszko II. (It also misspelled the name Mieszko as MTZLCO).
Here is that coin (let’s call it Type 1):
Here is another example. In each case notice the strange “E” symbol in addition to the cross.
Here is a drawing of the same.
And another version of one of the sides.
An alternative, now also pushed forward in time to Mieszko II’s rule, was this coin (with the name now spelled MISICO) – let’s call it Type 2:
Here is another version of it.
Finally, a drawing of the coin.
Given the prominent swastika on it (which corresponds to the “E”s and crosses in the first type), a rather non-Christian symbol at least as of that age, I am not convinced unless… this was a coin that had something to do with the pagan rebellion that took place in Poland at the end of Mieszko II’s reign.
In any event, Professor Suchodolski now claims that the following denarius – attributed to Bolesuav the Great (Mieszko I’s son and the father of Mieszko II) – is the oldest Polish coin (dated to about 992). The coin features an inscription BOLIZLAVO DUX. A “Byzantine” (indeed!) cross is featured in the back.
And here are some details in a picture.
There are three known copies. The first discovered and described by Tadeusz Wolański (about whom I wrote here and here as well as here and here). At the time, most claimed that Wolański faked the coin. However, two other samples were discovered at Rajsków (near Kalisz) and at Garsk (in Pomerania).
Of course, the question is what is depicted on it. There are blades or branches and in the middle of these there sits an arrow pointed upwards. Or if you will, there are seven branches and the arrow caps the middle one. Suchodolski claimed a Christian explanation of a “Tree of Life” with the arrow symbolizing the Word of God right in the middle thereof but, again, I am not so sure..
In any event, the realization that this may be the oldest Polish coin made the Polish Central Bank issue the following commemorative coin with a five złoty (zuoty) (which means effectively “golden” like a Dutch gulden or guilder) denomination.
And what about that “E” above or that looks like a fork? Well, check out these Kievan Rus coins featuring the trident or tryzúb (тризуб).
On potential Ukrainian-Polish connections see here. For the potential meaning of the trident see here and here.
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