Despot Lazar Djurdjevic Brankovic (1421 – 20 February 1458) a 15th-century Serbian nobleman. Silver "4 lines" coin. 14mm, 0.7g.
Obverse: Serbian legend in 4 lines: ГНb БΛαГ ОΛЗbα РБb (SIR PIUS LAZAR).
Reverse: Lion marching to the left with stars around. Sigla in the form of a star or a flower on his face.
Reference: Unpublished.
Comment: Extremely rare and scarce unknown and unpublished until now example of Despot Lazar Brankovic. Lion is similar to his fathers coins but with obvious differences being bigger, bigger head and with longer tail.
He was the third son of Đurađ Branković and his wife Eirene Kantakouzene. He was succeeded by his older brother, despot Stefan Branković. Lazar died on 20 February 1458. George Sphrantzes recorded the date but not the cause.
Grgur was the eldest son of Serbian Despot Đurađ Branković and Eirene Kantakouzene. In 1439, after the Ottomans captured Smederevo, the capital of the Serbian Despotate, they appointed Grgur as governor of his father's captured estates. Because he plotted against the Ottomans, they dismissed him and put him in prison in April 1441. In May 1441 the Ottomans blinded Grgur and his brother Stefan. In 1458, during struggle for the throne of the Serbian Despotate, Grgur resurfaced claiming it for himself or his son. In 1459 he retreated to Hilandar Monastery, where he took monastic vows. Grgur died in Hilandar on October 16, 1459. Also viewed as a very last Serbian ruler in medieval times.
So the date of the minting is 1456-1459.
