Early Czech Coins Exhibition At National Museum

A collection of early Czech silver coins found in the Czech Republic is exhibited at the National Museum in Prague. Many of these coins were discovered during reconstruction works at Prague Castle.

The exhibition is named “Unique Bohemian and Moravian Silver Treasures from around the Year 1000”. It is open for public at the New Building of the Prague’s National Museum that is located near Wenceslas Square. It will be held until May 9, 2010.

The exhibition’s curator Luboš Polanský commented: “They are treasures from the beginnings of Czech minting. The era we’re talking about is from the middle of the 10th century to the first third of the 11th century. We have the oldest Czech coin of all, which was made in the Prague mint around the year 960 under Duke Boleslav II, who in those days ruled a great Czech empire from the deep forest in the border area to today’s Ukraine.”

Mr. Polanský explained: “They are very rare. They are some of the oldest copies of Bavarian and Schwabian coins. And one of the most valuable is similar to the coins of the English king Ethelred II and to one of the first coins of the Hungarian king Stephen I.”

Silver coins put on display at the Prague’s National Museum exhibition were most likely never present in pockets or purses of common people. Almost certainly, they were used by rich merchants in their deals and also they could be used by slave traders, because there one of the main slave traffic routs went through.