2 Mark Sweden

What surprises many is that the 2 Mark coin, despite its unassuming size, was often minted from silver sourced from Sweden's own Bergslagen mines, helping fuel the lucrative Hanseatic trade networks.

These coins, produced sporadically between 1370 and 1520 under various Swedish monarchs, typically bore a simple cross or royal initials on one side. Struck on irregularly shaped planchets, they reflected the era's rudimentary minting techniques, which prioritized functionality over finesse. A craftsman might hammer out dozens in a day, each varying slightly in weight and purity.

Exact mintage figures are lost to time; records from that period burned in later fires or simply never existed. Still, examples show up in digs across Scandinavia, hinting at their everyday use in markets from Stockholm to Bergen.

One dry note: Historians and collectors alike puzzle over why such coins were so easily counterfeited, perhaps because even the originals looked a bit suspect.