Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XXV 22-23 Sep 2022
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Merovingians, Childeric II AV Tremissis. Massalia (Marseille) mint, AD 662-675. [C]HILDIRICVS R, cuirassed bust to right, wearing diadem with cross; reversed P before / MASILIE CIVITATIS, cross on base, M-A across fields within pelleted circle. MEC I -, cf. 408 (denomination and obv. control); Numista #328422 var. (control mark); cf. Belfort 2547. 1.04g, 14mm, 12h.
Near Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; particularly with this control symbol - no other examples on CoinArchives.
From a private European collection;
Acquired from cgb.fr.
The period of Merovingian rule saw the kingdom of the Franks, which covered most of modern-day France and Germany, divided into four distinct but supposedly united territories: Austrasia, Neustria, Burgundy and Aquitaine. The decision to split the kingdom was taken after the death in 511 of the founder of the Merovingian dynasty Clovis I to allow his four sons to rule simultaneously, one region for each son, however it appears to have ultimately resulted in the fracturing of relations between subsequent rulers and the waning of their power.
When the subject of the present coin Childeric II became king of Austrasia as a child in 673, the role of the Frankish kings had devolved to be less one of authoritative rule and more one of figurehead for the kingdom, with the real responsibility of leadership falling to the so-called 'maior domus', the highest-ranking palace official. Indeed, the succession of Merovingian kings from the mid-6th century to the mid-8th century have become known as the 'rois fainéants', characterising their inability or unwillingness to take up the responsibilities of their office.
Childeric's accession to the rule of Austrasia coincided with that of his brother Theuderic III to the rule of both Neustria and Burgundy, as had become convention within the Merovingian dynasty. His brother's rule was short-lived however: illustrating how fractured and unsettled relations between the Frankish territories were, a group of Burgundian nobles invited Childeric to become their king in Neustria and Burgundy instead, to which he agreed, invading and overthrowing his brother and removing the 'maior domus' to replace him with his own from Austrasia. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the circumstances of his own rise, Childeric himself was assassinated by a group of disaffected lords in 675.
Near Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; particularly with this control symbol - no other examples on CoinArchives.
From a private European collection;
Acquired from cgb.fr.
The period of Merovingian rule saw the kingdom of the Franks, which covered most of modern-day France and Germany, divided into four distinct but supposedly united territories: Austrasia, Neustria, Burgundy and Aquitaine. The decision to split the kingdom was taken after the death in 511 of the founder of the Merovingian dynasty Clovis I to allow his four sons to rule simultaneously, one region for each son, however it appears to have ultimately resulted in the fracturing of relations between subsequent rulers and the waning of their power.
When the subject of the present coin Childeric II became king of Austrasia as a child in 673, the role of the Frankish kings had devolved to be less one of authoritative rule and more one of figurehead for the kingdom, with the real responsibility of leadership falling to the so-called 'maior domus', the highest-ranking palace official. Indeed, the succession of Merovingian kings from the mid-6th century to the mid-8th century have become known as the 'rois fainéants', characterising their inability or unwillingness to take up the responsibilities of their office.
Childeric's accession to the rule of Austrasia coincided with that of his brother Theuderic III to the rule of both Neustria and Burgundy, as had become convention within the Merovingian dynasty. His brother's rule was short-lived however: illustrating how fractured and unsettled relations between the Frankish territories were, a group of Burgundian nobles invited Childeric to become their king in Neustria and Burgundy instead, to which he agreed, invading and overthrowing his brother and removing the 'maior domus' to replace him with his own from Austrasia. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the circumstances of his own rise, Childeric himself was assassinated by a group of disaffected lords in 675.