Mieszko I Denar

This denar, struck around 970 under Mieszko I, is the earliest known coin from Polish lands, blending Scandinavian and German influences in its design.

That design features a simple cross on one side, likely a nod to Mieszko's Christian conversion, and a crude inscription on the other—possibly his name, though the lettering is often as clear as a whisper in a storm. These silver pieces were probably minted in what is now Poznań, using methods borrowed from neighbors to the west.

We don't know the exact mintage; records from that era are scarcer than hen's teeth. What we do have are a few surviving examples, mostly dug up from hoards.

Some numismatists quip that these coins were the original "Polish express"—small, efficient, and always on the move with traders.