#Exhibit of the Month

The great ruler Stephen the Great, outstanding army commander and diplomat, was also concerned during his life with the economic prosperity of the country, supporting the development of crafts, trade and fairs. During his reign, groși and half groși minted in the dinar system were issued, a monetary system introduced in Moldova during the last reign of Petru Aron (1455-1457).

The coins were minted from silver of superior title, those that reflect stability in the economic life of the country at that time. Their masterful execution at the Suceava mint is among the beautiful artistic achievements during the reign of Stephen the Great.

During his reign, two types of issues were minted, for the two denominations: groși and half groși.

Type I issues have a split shield on the obverse; in the first quarter appears a rose surmounted by a cross and three fascias, in the second quarter. For the epigraph issues (groși), the image is accompanied by the circular legend with the name of the issuer: + STEFANVS VOIEVODA. On the other side appears the bour's head with a star between the horns accompanied by the heraldic furniture - the rose and the contoured crescent, placed to the right and left of the bour's head; circular legend: MOLDAVIE COIN.

On type II coins in the shield on the obverse appears a patriarchal cross (double) and the legend STEFANVSVOIEVOD or abbreviated STEFANVSVOIE. On the reverse, as in type I, the bour's head with heraldic attributes is preserved: rose right/crescent left and crescent right/rose left. A star or rose appears between the ox's horns. The legend accompanying the face with the bour head is MONETAMOLDAVI or abbreviated MONETAMOLDA.

The dating of Stephen the Great's coins is still under discussion. According to one opinion, type I issues were minted between 1457-1476, and type II between 1480/1481-1505 (Octavian Iliescu), and another 1465/1467-1475/1476 for type I and 1476/1479-1497 for type II (Ernest Oberländer-Târnoveanu).

The coins in this showcase were discovered during the archaeological excavations at Orheiul Vechi (Trebujeni, Orhei district) in the 6th and 7th decades of the 20th century:

1. Type I money issues, groși, silver
2. Type II money issues, groși, silver
3. Type II coin issue, half groși, silver

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Publications

Library „Tyragetia"

Ion Tentiuc

Contributions to the History and Archaeology of the Prut-Dniester Area: The Sites of Durlești and Molești

Series Biblioteca „Tyragetia” XXI, Chișinău, 2012, 288 p. ISBN 978-9975-80-667-1.

The monograph Contributions to the History and Archaeology of the Prut-Dniester Area: The Sites of Durlești and Molești includes the results of systematic archaeological investigations of important sites located in the central part of the Prut-Dniester region. The research carried out at Durlești and Molești has provided a rich and valuable archaeological material. Along with the remains of the Neolithic, which led to the identification of a new type of dwelling previously unknown in the East-Carpathian area, there were investigated several Getae dwelling and burial complexes of the 4^th - 3^rd centuries BC.

In addition, the research managed to substantially replenish the documentary sources for the study of the Early Middle Ages (5^th - 7^th, 8^th - 10^th, and 11^th - 13th AD); specifically identify the material and spiritual culture of the population belonging to the Romance population of the central part of the Prut-Dniester area; elucidate the problems concerned the Răducăneni culture - the delimitation of its chronological framework based on stratigraphic successions of cultural horizons and discovered remains; highlight the impact of external factors on the Răducăneni culture as a result of sedentarization of several groups of nomads. All this indicates the continuity of the local Romance population in the second half of the first millennium and the first centuries of the second millennium AD.

Scientific publication of the results of archaeological investigations conducted in the sites of Durlești-Valea Babei and Molești-Râpa Adâncă is one of the major achievements of the contemporary research. This paper enriches considerably the scientific information on the development of local communities from prehistory to the early medieval period.

The work is part of major research of the ancient and medieval history of the Prut-Dniester, East-Carpathian, and South-East European area, offering the researchers - history teachers, students, and all who are interested in our history - an important, scientifically valuable and very timely material for the study.