Denier 814-840 AD FRANKISH EMPIRE - CAROLINGIAN DYNASTY - FRANCE - LOUIS I THE PIOUS, 814-840 - n.d. , Quentovic . This royal toll, at its height, amounted to ten percent in the town of Quentovic. The tax was clearly one of the most importan

weight 1,21gr. | silver Ø 20mm.

obv. Tetrastyle temple with cross in the centre and on the roof, two dots
beside the temple, and three dots beneath, surrounded by the legend
XPISTIΛNΛ REIIGIO
rev. Short cross with one dot in three corners and three dots in one corner,
within dotted circle. In outer circle the legend ✠ HLVDOVVICVS IMP

This coin type, with the “mintmark” three dots is generally attributed
to the Mint of Quentovic. Very rare.

Quentovic was a Frankish emporium in the Early Middle Ages that was located on the European continent close to the English Channel. From what we know today, Quentovic was founded by a Neustrian king in the early 6th century.It was one of the two most prominent Frankish ports in the north (the other being Dorestad). In the Carolingian period, Quentovic was still one of the principal Frankish trading posts for English trade, specifically to the southeastern county of Kent.There is significant evidence that, during this time, the authority over the port was tightened. Merchants were forced to pay indirect taxes on most goods, in contrast to the fact that in most other places of the empire, merchants were exempt from paying taxes. The only places that the Frankish kings forced them to pay was in the alpine passes and the two ports of Dorestad and Quentovic. This royal toll, at its height, amounted to ten percent in the town of Quentovic. The tax was clearly one of the most important incomes of the time for the Franks. Without the taxes at the ports, Charlemagne would have had a difficult time funding his enormous army. Quentovic was also the port from where Frankish ambassadors left to conduct diplomacy with King Offa of Mercia. During Charlemagne′s reign, a number of monasteries wanted to own warehouses in or around Quentovic. These recorded monasteries include: St-Vaast, St-Riquier, St-Bertin, St-Germain-des-Prés, St-Wandrille, and Ferrières. When Frankish monasteries wanted goods that could not be found in the surrounding area, they would seek the supplies through trade. Many historians have argued that by the second half of the 9th century Quentovic was in decline. The Edict of Pistres in 864 is the last written reference to Quentovic. Probably it was abandoned in the 11th century.The town no longer exists, but until recently it was thought to have been situated near the mouth of the Canche River in what is today the French commune of Étaples. Archaeological discoveries led by David Hill in the 1980s found that the actual location of Quentovic was east of Étaples, in what is now the commune of La Calotterie.
Although the side with the cross, which bears the emperor′s name, is traditionally considered the obverse, I believe that this may not have been the intention in medieval thinking. After all, Christ and the Christian faith were the supreme power and ranked above secular rulers. In that context, it is much more logical and plausible that the side with the church building and the inscription "Christiana Religio" should be considered the obverse. It also makes more sense in terms of the imagery. cf. Morrison-Grunthal 491 & 498 | cf. Depeyrot 807 (and see notes at no.1179) |
cf. Prou 1037 | cf. Gariel XLIII, 13 |  cf. Nouchy 5C  RR
vf/xf

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