KBR Coins & Medals – 8th International Numismatic Conference
Coordinated Coinages
Exploring Monetary Collaborations
22 May 2027 – Royal Library of Belgium (KBR), Brussels
The 8th International Numismatic Conference organized by KBR Coins & Medals will take place on Saturday 22 May 2027 in Brussels. As in previous editions, the conference embraces a diachronic perspective, ranging from the earliest coinage in ancient Greece to the Late Middle Ages, and seeks to address questions that contribute to a broader historical understanding of monetary systems, beyond strictly technical numismatics.
Theme of the 2027 edition
For this edition, we focus on coordinated coinages — cases in which different political or administrative entities cooperated in creating, regulating, or circulating coinage.
Although coinage is often viewed as the sovereign expression of a single authority, historical reality shows numerous forms of monetary collaboration, ranging from shared standards to joint issues and delegated minting. Such practices could reflect political partnerships, economic interdependence, regional integration, or pragmatic solutions to resource constraints.
To illustrate this diversity, one may think of neighbouring cities adopting a common weight and fineness standard while maintaining distinct iconographies, allowing their currencies to circulate interchangeably within a highly connected economic region.
Another illustrative pattern is delegated or shared minting, in which one authority struck coins on behalf of another—either temporarily or as part of a more structural arrangement—thereby creating issues that embodied overlapping political or economic spheres.
This conference invites contributions that explore these and other forms of monetary cooperation. Possible angles include (but are not limited to):
- Shared monetary standards and the mechanisms behind their adoption
- Joint or coordinated issues within leagues, federations, or alliances
- Delegated minting or shared production facilities
- Overlapping monetary zones of circulation
- Economic, political or administrative mechanisms driving cooperation
- Long-term effects of coordination on regional integration and monetary landscapes
We particularly welcome contributions that situate these collaborations within broader historical, archaeological, or economic frameworks, and that reflect on their implications for the communities and power structures involved.
Submission guidelines
As in previous years, this will be a one-day conference, limited to 9 speakers, and including a competitive open call. The maximum duration of each presentation is 30 minutes. Applicants are invited to submit a provisional title and a short abstract (5-10 lines) by 1 October 2026. Accommodation costs (2 nights) are expected to be covered, subject to available funding.
Publication
The conference proceedings will be published in the Revue belge de Numismatique et de Sigillographie (2028). Final texts for publication are expected by 1 March 2028.
Contact
Both proposals and questions concerning the conference should be sent to:
Fran Stroobants – fran.stroobants@kbr.be