Jan Olbracht's half groschen

Jan Olbracht's pennies were minted only in the Kraków mint. Most catalogs divide them into two basic varieties: 

A) popular - with the coat of arms "Poraj" (called the "rose" or "thunderbolt") of Piotr of Kurozwęki and a small crown;

B) much rarer - with a circle (sometimes referred to as the letter "O") in the place of the coat of arms and a large crown.

Piotr Poraj Kurozwęcki died in 1498, so it is assumed that after this period, until the death of Jan Olbracht (1501) half groschen with a "circle" was minted.

However, it was noticed that between variants 1 and 2 there is an even rarer "intermediate" variant - namely with a small crown and a typeface as in variant 1, but with a "circle" under the crown. Probably these coins were minted within a short period of time - after the mint was taken over by a new (unknown) mint maker, and before the introduction of new, much more precise stamps with a "large crown".

To sum up, there are currently 3 types of Jan Olbracht's half groschen:

1) popular - with the coat of arms "Poraj" by Piotr from Kurozwęki and a small crown:

2) an intermediate and at the same time the rarest variety - with a circle in the place of the coat of arms and a small crown:
 

3) with a circle in the place of the coat of arms and a large crown:

The variety No. 1 is the most common variety, the variety No. 3 appears on the market much less often, while the intermediate varieties - No. 2 are the rarest.

All these varieties can be found in our offer - welcome!