Coin find from Græsli

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The Græslivogel

The coin find of Græsli ( Norwegian Græslifunnet ; also Gressli written) in Tydal in the Fylke Trøndelag in Norway made in 1878 when potato crops at a site at which a flattened Roese was. The largest deposit found in Norway at that time contained 2253 medieval silver coins , some silver pieces and the Græslivogel ( Norwegian Græsli / Gresslinåla ), a gold-plated silver bird figure.

Coin from Olav Kyrre from the find
Coins

The discovery consists largely of the oldest Norwegian coins. Among the coins were 1209 Norwegian from the time of Olav Kyrre (Olav the Quiet; 1067-1093), but also eight coins from the time of Harald Hardråde (1045-1066), 38 German and two each Danish, Anglo-Saxon (imitations) and others , unrecognizable coins. The Græslifund is the most important source of Olav Kyrre's extensive minting activity. Before 1060, almost exclusively foreign coins were found in Norwegian treasures. Between 1060 and 1320 it is almost exclusively Norwegian. After that, the proportion of foreign coins increases again. The coins of Harald Hardråde and Olav Kyrre were minted in Odense and transported to Norway.

The coin image ( obverse ) of Olav Kyrre's coins was developed by royal medalists who based themselves on Norwegian, Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon coins. Gradually, this turns into primitive, animal, almost abstract figures. On the back ( reverse ) by Olav Kyrres coins there is always a cross. In addition, there is an inscription that occasionally provides information about who made the coin.

The gilded bird-shaped buckle found with the coins is made in the Ringerike style . In the late 1000s, bird-shaped buckles were mass-produced in Scandinavia. The quality was varied, but the Græslivogel, made around 1085 AD, is elegant craftsmanship.

In 1881 Laurentius Borchsenius Stenersen published a meticulous description of the find. The coins were mainly acquired by the University of Oslo's Coin Cabinet . In 1978 a memorial stone with the inscription Græslifunnet and an enlarged copy of the Græslivogel was erected at the site.

See also

literature

  • Svein H. Gullbekk: Pengevesenets Fremdvekst and Fall i Norge i middelalderen. Museum Tusculanum Press, Copenhagen 2009, ISBN 978-87-635-0571-0 .
  • Laurentius Borchsenius Stenersen: Myntfundet fra Graeslid I Thydalen. Gundersen, Kristiania (= Oslo) 1881.

Web links

Commons : Græslifunnet  - collection of images, videos and audio files