Three medieval counters from Mayence

Abstract

Three medieval counters from Mayence give evidence for the locations of princely domiciles in the city and contribute to a new aspect of cultural history. An example, decorated on both sides with figures and discovered on the Kästrich, can be dated to as early as the 9th Century for its decoration consisting of a semilunar snake with antithetic heads. It demonstrates that the first counters of this type were already produced in the Carolingian period. The fragment of a counter from Salian times with a geormetrically open-worked covering plate was discovered at the Flachsmarkt. Together with further excellent finds from the immediate vicinity it indicates the existence of a princely domicile. A counter from the Schlossplatz dating to the 11th or early 12th Century shows the relief of a naked bald head sitting on the railing of a boat with a raised club. It is the oldest medieval depiction of a fool having survived by chance.