Item number: A1842

Year: AD 1526

Material: Silver

Size: 15.7 x 15.3 x 0.5 mm

Weight: 0.55 g

Manufactured by: Kremnica Mint

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2024

This is a denár silver coin issued in AD 1526 in the name of King Louis II of Hungary. On average, 96 silver denárs equalled 16 groschen, which equalled 2 thalers or 2 guldiner, equivalent to 1 forint.

The obverse of the coin features the coat of arms of Louis II at its centre. The small central shield displays a crowned, spread-winged Polish eagle, symbolising the Jagiellonian dynasty, as his grandfather was King Casimir IV Jagiellończyk of Poland. Supporting this shield is a larger quartered coat of arms. The upper left quadrant, adorned with multiple horizontal stripes, represents the Árpád dynasty, the founders of the Kingdom of Hungary. The upper right quadrant features the Hungarian double cross, a symbol of the rulers of Hungary. The lower left quadrant bears a crowned leopard’s head, facing forward, representing Dalmatia, which corresponds to present-day Croatia and Bosnia. The lower right quadrant displays a crowned, rampant lion, signifying the Kingdom of Bohemia. The coat of arms is encircled within a border. A beaded circle separates the outer legend, inscribed with the Latin abbreviation “LVDOVICVS R VNGAR,” with floral motifs interspersed between the words, expanding to Ludovicus Rex Hungariae, meaning “Louis, King of Hungary.” The date “1526” is inscribed above, indicating the year of issuance.

The reverse features a full-length seated depiction of the Virgin Mary, wearing a crown and holding the Christ Child in her right arm. On either side of the figure, the letters “K B” are inscribed, representing the Kremnica Mint (Kremnica, or Körmöcbánya in Hungarian). The letter “K” denotes the mint itself, while the letter “B” is the mark of the mintmaster Bernhard Behem. After AD 1540, the mint’s coinage consistently bore the “KB” mintmark. A beaded circle separates the outer Latin inscription, “PATRONA VNGARIE,” with floral ornaments interspersed between the words, meaning “Patron Saint of Hungary.”

The Kremnica Mint was established in AD 1328 in present-day Slovakia and is one of the oldest continuously operating mints in Europe. Due to the region’s rich gold deposits, it became a significant minting centre for the Kingdom of Hungary during the medieval period. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, it produced large quantities of florins (Florins/Forints) and ducats (Ducat), renowned across Europe for their high purity and consistent quality. During the Habsburg era (16th–19th centuries AD), the mint continued producing coinage for the empire and underwent mechanisation in the 19th century, becoming a major minting facility of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Following the establishment of Czechoslovakia in AD 1918, it became the official mint of the new state, and after Slovakia’s independence in AD 1993, it continued producing national currency. Since AD 2009, it has been responsible for minting euro coins. Today, the Kremnica Mint remains in operation, producing Slovak currency, coins, and commemorative medals for multiple countries.

The first King of Hungary, Saint Stephen I (reigned AD 1000–1038), initiated the minting of denár silver coins, which were of high quality and widely recognised in international trade. In the 14th century, King Charles I (Károly Róbert) enacted monetary reforms, introducing the gold forint (Forint), modelled after the Florentine florin (Fiorino d’oro), and implemented the garas (Garas) as subsidiary coinage. In the 15th century, King Matthias Corvinus (Hunyadi Mátyás, reigned AD 1458–1490) implemented further monetary reforms, establishing a stable currency system and, for the first time, incorporating the image of the Virgin Mary on Hungarian coinage, which became a fundamental element of Hungarian monetary design. Under the Habsburg monarchy, Leopold I (I. Lipót) standardised coinage across the Holy Roman Empire, officially introducing the kreuzer (Kreuzer) as the primary circulating currency in Hungary. In AD 1753, the Austrian-Bavarian Monetary Convention formalised a standardised Konventionstaler system, in which the kreuzer replaced the denár as the primary subsidiary currency in Austria and its controlled territories. Following the reign of Maria Theresa (AD 1740–1780), denárs ceased to be minted. In AD 1816, the Austrian National Bank (Österreichische Nationalbank) was established, further reforming the monetary system. This system remained in place until AD 1857, when Austria adopted the silver standard under the Vereinsthaler system, leading to the gradual replacement of the kreuzer, which transitioned from silver to copper. In Hungarian territories under Habsburg rule, the kreuzer remained in circulation until AD 1892, when it was ultimately replaced by the krone.

Louis II (Louis II, or in Hungarian, II. Lajos, AD 1506–1526) was a king of Hungary and Bohemia from the Jagiellonian dynasty (reigned AD 1516–1526). His reign witnessed the decline of the Kingdom of Hungary, the growing threat of the Ottoman Empire, and the kingdom’s eventual fragmentation. From his accession in AD 1516, when he was 11 years old, he faced internal noble conflicts and severe financial difficulties, leaving him unable to reform the kingdom’s defence system. In AD 1521, the Ottoman forces under Sultan Suleiman I captured Belgrade, resulting in the collapse of Hungary’s southern defences. This coin was issued in AD 1526, the same year in which Louis II led his forces against the Ottoman invasion. He suffered a decisive defeat at the Battle of Mohács (Battle of Mohács) and perished while attempting to flee, drowning on the battlefield at the age of 20. His death plunged Hungary into political turmoil, leading to its division into three regions: the Ottoman-controlled areas, Habsburg-ruled Royal Hungary under the Holy Roman Empire, and the Ottoman-backed Principality of Transylvania.

物件編號: A1842

年代: 公元1526 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 15.7 x 15.3 x 0.5 mm

重量: 0.55 g

製造地: 克雷姆尼察鑄幣廠

來源: 福君錢幣 2024

這是一枚公元1526年，以匈牙利國王拉約什二世之名發行的代納爾銀幣。平均而言，96銀代納爾等於16格羅申(Groschen) 等於2塔勒(Thaler) 或2金格羅申(Guldiner)等於1福林(Forint)。

銀幣的正面中央為拉約什二世之紋章，中央小盾徽為戴冠展翼的波蘭鷹，代表波蘭的雅蓋隆王朝，其祖父為波蘭國王卡齊米日四世·雅蓋隆契克(Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk)。承托小盾徽的較大盾徽分為四個象限，左上部分的多條橫帶，代表創立匈牙利王國的阿爾帕德王朝；右上部分為代表匈牙利統治者的匈牙利雙十字；左下部分為戴冠的豹首，正視前方，代表達爾馬提亞地區，其位於今克羅埃西亞與波士尼亞境內；右下部分為戴冠人立的雄獅，代表波希米亞王國。盾徽以圓圈環繞。以繩圈相隔，外圍環繞拉丁簡寫「LVDOVICVS R VNGAR」，詞間以花型紋飾相隔，即拉丁文「Lvdovicvs Rex Hvngariae」，即「路德維希(拉約什，匈牙利國王」。上方之「1526」，為發行年。

銀幣的背面中央則是聖母瑪利亞全身坐像，頭戴冠冕，右手環抱聖子。人像兩側「K B」，為克雷姆尼察(Kremnica, 或匈牙利語Körmöcbánya)鑄幣廠的標記「K」，與鑄幣局局長貝恩哈德·貝赫姆(Bernhard Behem)的標記「B」，公元1540年後該鑄幣廠之鑄幣標記固定為「KB」。以繩圈相隔，外圍環繞拉丁文「PATRONA VNGARIE」，詞間以花型紋飾相隔，意為「匈牙利主保聖人」。

克雷姆尼察鑄幣廠(Kremnica Mint)成立於公元1328年，位於今斯洛伐克，是歐洲歷史最悠久且持續運營至今的鑄幣廠之一。該廠因當地豐富的金礦資源而成為中世紀匈牙利王國的貨幣生產中心，公元14至16世紀大量鑄造弗羅林/福林金幣(Florins/Forint)與達克特金幣(Ducat)，以高純度與穩定品質於歐洲聞名。哈布斯堡王朝時期(公元16至19世紀)，該廠持續為帝國生產貨幣，並於公元19世紀工業化後引進機械化技術，成為奧匈帝國的重要鑄幣基地。捷克斯洛伐克於公元1918年成立後，該廠成為官方鑄幣機構，公元1993年斯洛伐克獨立後繼續生產該國貨幣，自公元2009年起負責歐元硬幣的鑄造。目前仍在運營，除生產斯洛伐克貨幣，亦為多國提供貨幣與紀念幣，並製造紀念章與獎牌等金屬工藝品。

匈牙利的首位國王，伊什特萬一世(公元1000-1038年在位)，任內始鑄代納爾(Dénár)銀幣，這些硬幣質量上乘，在國際貿易中廣受認可。公元14世紀，查理一世(Károly Róbert)實施貨幣改革，引入了仿照佛羅倫薩金幣(Fiorino d’oro)的金福林(Forint)，由於金福林價值較高，作為輔幣的格羅申(Garas)也被引入。公元15世紀，匈雅提·馬加什一世(Hunyadi Mátyás，公元1458-1490年在位)進行貨幣改革，確立了一套穩定的貨幣制度，並首次在貨幣上引入聖母瑪利亞的形象，使其成為匈牙利貨幣設計的核心元素之一。在哈布斯堡王朝統治時期，利奧波德一世(I. Lipót)推行神羅境內貨幣統一，正式引入克羅斯作為匈牙利流通貨幣。公元1753年，奧地利-巴伐利亞貨幣公約的簽訂，確立了一套統一的公約塔勒體系。克羅斯取代代納爾，成為奧地利及其控制地區的小額輔幣。瑪麗亞·特蕾莎(公元1740-1780年在任)後，不再鑄造代納爾。公元1816年奧地利國家銀行(Österreichische Nationalbank)正式成立。此貨幣體系一直維持到公元1857年奧地利採用銀本位「同盟塔勒」(Vereinsthaler)體系，克羅斯才逐步被取代，由銀改銅，在哈布斯堡帝國統治的匈牙利地區，克羅斯的使用甚至持續至公元1892年，最終被克朗取代。

拉約什二世(Louis II，或匈牙利語II. Lajos，生卒公元1506-1526年)是雅蓋隆王朝的匈牙利與波希米亞國王(公元1516–1526在位)，其任內經歷了匈牙利王國的衰落、鄂圖曼帝國的威脅，與王國的解體。自公元1516年，年方11歲的拉約什二世即位以來，他面對貴族內鬥與財政困難，無力改革國家防禦體系。公元1521年，鄂圖曼土耳其帝國的蘇萊曼一世攻陷貝爾格勒，匈牙利的邊防崩潰。公元1526年，此硬幣發行，同年，拉約什二世率軍抵抗鄂圖曼進攻，在摩哈赤戰役(Battle of Mohács)中慘敗，他本人在戰場上溺亡於逃亡途中，年僅20歲。他的去世導致匈牙利王國陷入混亂，隨後被分裂為鄂圖曼控制區、神聖羅馬帝國/奧地利統治的哈布斯堡匈牙利，以及鄂圖曼扶持的外西凡尼亞公國。