Please Note: This is an authentic Antioch Templar Knights Crusader Era Treasure Coin, and you will receive the exact pendant in the photographs and description.
SEE COIN DETAILS BELOW FOR PENDANT SIZE
Precious and rare survivors of one of the most pivotal times in world history, The silver billon Deniers of Antioch are perhaps the most legendary of the Crusader States' hand-hammered coins. Antioch Deniers have the bold, flared-end cross pattee and Crusader's crescent on one side, the other side displays a Crusading King adorned in chainmail with a cross on his medieval helmet.
These Antioch Deniers are indeed legendary for their pictured Crusader - so much so that they have acquired the nickname "Helmet Heads."
One of the most fascinating elements of Antioch Crusader coins are the motifs of the Crescent and Star/Shining Sun. While the modern world sees these symbols as those of the Ottoman Empire and later Islamic countries, these symbols were not officially adopted by the Ottoman Empire until the second half of the 18th Century. At the time of the Crusades, they were ancient symbols used by the Byzantine Empire. Western Crusaders adopted these heavenly symbols as a sign of honor and sacrifice while fighting in the Holy Land. Later, when the survivors returned home, they displayed the Crescent and Shining Sun in their personal heraldic devices and seals in memory of their service. In fact, Richard I's (the Lionheart's) two seals both display these symbols as a testament to his vocation as a Crusader.
These coins, perhaps more than any other, embody the legendary art of the Medieval age with their stunning letter forms, bold crosses and the stylized rendering of the chain-mail adorned knight. This was a time of chivalry… and holding this precious relic of a past age conjures images of maidens, knights, round tables and the fabled stories we all remember. While a time of great trial and tragedy, it was also a time of bravery, sacrifice, and honor.
Robert's Notes: This coin is in stunning condition for its age. It displays the crescent, star and even tiny cross on the Crusader's helmet, and is a part of a hoard of Antioch deniers that is exclusive to Cannon Beach Treasure.
(Please note: this information and much more will appear on your customized Certificate of Authenticity.)
We are always asked this question... and it's a good one! This Antioch Crusader coin is one of them. The Knights Templar were initially created to protect pilgrims traveling back and forth from Europe to Jerusalem. This type of coin most certainly would have been in their pouches. An amazing survivor of the Pilgrim Trails of the Holy Land.
Crusader coinage came to be when the Western European Crusaders began to establish kingdoms along the route of the First Crusade. Antioch, which was then comprised of lands that are in present day Turkey and Syria, became a powerful Crusader state on the Mediterranean, and played a pivotal role during the Crusade Era. While coins were produced in several Crusader states, the hand-hammered silver billon coins produced in Antioch picturing a helmeted knight are some of the most prized.
What is Billon?
Billon is the term used to describe a silver coin with a lower percentage of silver than the "average" silver coin of the day - somewhere less than approximately 90% silver. This lower percentage of silver is combined with copper, which gives the coins strength and durability. Antioch Crusader Deniers are made of billon, and while they look like higher-percentage silver coins, some do have a slight golden-copper glow giving them a distinctive, warm hue.
When a coin is discovered in a land far from where it was minted, we always ask, “How did it get there, and who carried it?” And for these “Helmet Head” deniers, answers to these questions are fascinating ones.
As historians and numismatists, we see the 8th Century as one of the most important in European monetary history. Charlemagne (768-814), also called Charles the Great, and sometimes the “Father of Europe,” was King of the Franks, and the land over which he ruled became known as the Carolingian Empire. In just a few short years, he united most of Western Europe for the first time since the Roman Empire, and laid the foundations for modern France and Germany.
Charlemagne’s reign saw a substantial restoration of European political authority along with a complete redesign of its coins. During his reign, the hand-hammered medieval silver Denier came into being and it (along with the British silver penny) went on to dominate European currency for 500 years.
with your treasure coin purchase. Choose your chain and enter Coupon Code: CHAIN at checkout. (Does not apply to discounted clearance chains.)
with your treasure coin purchase. Choose your chain and enter Coupon Code: CHAIN at checkout. (Does not apply to discounted clearance chains.)
Questions? Confused? Looking for a gift? We're experts at matching treasure to people. Give us a call at 503.436.1626, join us on Live Chat, or drop us an email at treasure@cannonbeachtreasure.com.
Questions? Confused? Looking for a gift? We're experts at matching treasure to people. Give us a call at 503.436.1626, join us on Live Chat, or drop us an email at treasure@cannonbeachtreasure.com.
