CRUSADERS. Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. Jerusalem Pilgrim Coinage, 12th century. Denier (Silver, 18 mm, 0.85 g, 1 h), Jerusalem. ✠ S[...]Λ[...]I[...]VΔ (blundered '✠ SAN AEREA' ('Holy Area' in Latin) Cross pattée within dotted circle. Rev. Façade of the al-Aqsa Mosque with central tower surmounted by large cross flanked by two spheres, each with a pellet-in-crescent; below, three arch entries. CCS 49. Metcalf, Crusades -. Wäckerlin -. Extremely rare and of great historical interest. Holed and with light deposits, otherwise, very fine.
After the conquest of Jerusalem in 1099, the famous al-Aqsa Mosque was renamed into Templum Solominis (the Temple of Solomon) and used as a royal palace by the Kings of Jerusalem. In 1120, King Baldwin II granted the Temple Mount to the newly founded order of the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ, the famous Knights Templar. The Templars did not strike their own coinage, but the present pilgrim token, which was presumably manufactured under the auspices of the Grand Master, provides a direct link to the earliest history of their Order, as well as to one of the most famous religious buildings in the world