Casimir IV Jagiellonian, Half-penny Cracow - letters TM - rarity

The oldest type of half-penny of King Casimir IV.

A very rare issue from 1456-1468 (falling largely during the Thirteen Years' War with the Teutonic Order). Characterized by the initials T (formerly attributed to minter Tomasz Trąbczyński) and M (probably mintmaster Stanisław Morsztyn) placed under the crown.

These half-pennies, the best in quality, were driven out of circulation after 1479, when the mint was taken over by Piotr Kurozwêcki. They were successively caught and melted down into much smaller and lighter halfpence with the Poraj coat of arms, popularly known as "thunderbolts."

Here we have a very nicely preserved and struck piece.

Silver, diameter 21 mm, weight 1.85 g.