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  • Who was ENMA?
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    Who was ENMA?

    History of Denar Emma
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    Iconic coins with the unknown queen

    For researchers and collectors of bohemian denars, coins with the inscription ENMA REGINA and CIVITAS MELNIC represent iconic coins. For a long time they were shrouded in mystery. Several generations of numismatists and historians have wondered who the unknown queen was at the bohemian royal court of the 10th century, who minted silver denars at her seat in Mělník, modeled after the bohemian prince.

     

    Only recently has it been possible to identify “Enma” as the West Frankish queen Emma, the wife of King Lothar I. (954-986). She was born around 948 into the family of King Lothar II. of Italy (931-945-950) and Saint Adela of Burgundy. After the violent death of Lothar II., mother and daughter were interned by members of the political opposition at the northern Italian castle of Garda on Lake Garda.

     

    Thanks to her marriage, Emma went to a German royal court

    Politically active Adela found an influential supporter in the person of the German King Otto I., who with his successful military invasion of Italy not only secured freedom for mother and daughter, but he even married Adela in 951, thus expanding his estate to the Kingdom of Italy. Thanks to her marriage, Emma went to a German royal court, through which she was later married to the penultimate West Frankish monarch.

     

    At the West Frankish royal court, Emma defended the interests of the German Empire, even during the later rule of her half-brother Otto II. (961–973–983), with whom she shared mother, as well as during the reign of her nephew Ota III. (980–994–1002). Her position in the West Frankish court was therefore often very volatile. After the death of Lothar I., she did not find common ground with the heir to the royal throne and her own son Louis V. (986-987).

     

    She was married to a powerful bohemian prince

    After 986, she was unable to defend her position in the emerging Kingdom of France, so with the help of the German imperial court she was married to a powerful bohemian prince. She was about forty years old at the time. For both newlyweds, marriage was a convenient solution. Emma gained a secure background with her residence in Mělník and Boleslav gained political prestige by marrying the Frankish queen.

     

    The famous Wolfenbüttel Codex

    Historians only disagree as to whether Boleslav’s youngest son and future Prince Oldrich was the son of queen Emma or whether he was born from Boleslav’s previous marriage. Before 1006, Emma commissioned the famous Wolfenbüttel Codex. It preserves the oldest depictions of St. Wenceslaus. One of them depicts Emma as a donor of a work, kneeling at the feet of St. Wenceslaus under the supervision of Christ himself.

    Denar Emma Mělník

    Sold in Auction # 26 for 9 500 eur.

    Autor

    Person-front
    Tomáš Smělý

    Auction Specialist

    Tomáš is an auction guarantor for Celtic, Greek, and Roman coins, as well as Czech medieval coins and Habsburg coins until 1657 (with the exception of Transylvanian and Hungarian coinage), and also a guarantor for foreign coins up to the middle of the 17th century.

    He became acquainted with numismatics thanks to his grandfather, who, once retired, devoted his free time to collecting coins. During his grandson’s frequent visits, he introduced him to his modest collection and led him to read numismatic literature. Since then, Tomáš has been heavily involved in numismatics, even at an academic research level. He regularly lectures at conferences in the Czech Republic and abroad, and publishes scholarly articles. He is considered one of the leading experts in Central European Celtic coinage and Czech coinage of the 16th and early 17th centuries.

    V prípade, že máte ďalšie otázky týkajúcich sa zberateľstva alebo investícií, pošlite nám ich namarketing@machochlapovic.com.

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