Penning, Gotland, uncertain authority, circa 1140
Coin production on the island of Gotland began in around 1140. Gotland was independent of the mainland, and exactly where the coins were minted on the island is not known.
The first Gotland coins were two-sided pennings (with motifs on both sides). One side of the Gotland pennings shows a cross, either a trefoil cross or a wheel cross. The angles of the cross are usually decorated with spherical elements. The earliest, best-designed coins have a more or less legible inscription, sometimes only characters that resemble letters, and a few coins have runic inscriptions.
There were different coinage standards in different parts of Sweden at this time. For instance, one-and-a-half Gotland pennings was equivalent to one Svealand penning. The Gotland coinage standard was also applicable in Östergötland as Gotland was part of the Diocese of Linköping. 12 Gotland pennings were equivalent in value to one örtug.
)Object number: 104514_KMK
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