Hroshyk - Vytautas "Columns" Countermark Group I

The countermarking of Jochid (Golden Horde) dangs with the Columns (Kolyumny) sign began in the early 1420s and continued (likely with interruptions) for just under half a century, later echoing as a remnant in Mstislavl. The first "anchor point" marking the beginning of Lithuanian countermarking is September 1421, when Bek-Sufi died—the "Solkhat Emperor" and Vytautas's protege on the throne of Crimea, the "minor sultanate"

Based on the types of Horde coins used as host bases for applying the Lithuanian countermarks, the latter are divided into 16 groups, among which Dangs of Öz Beg, Jani Beg, Tokhtamysh, Pulad, Sarai & Crimean khans, Tatar-Genoese aspers, Non-Horde, including Russian, coins and imitations etc.

Lithuanian countermarks featuring the Columns sign are divided into three main groups: those without dots inside the sign (Group I, presumably Severian), those with one dot (Group II, likely Kyivan), and those with four dots (Group III, Podolian). All of them began to be stamped onto eastern coins during the reign of Vytautas, whose princely emblem happened to be the Columns.

Group I

6252 — large сountermarked , a bar between the central and right towers.

6253 - сolumns Countermarked by a taraq-tamga.

6254 - large careless countermark with a large number of defects.

6255 - a countermark slanted to the right, a thick central tower. On known specimens, only the central part is fully struck.

6256 - miniature countermark.

6257 - a protruding horizontal line to the left of the central tower.

6258 - slits in the upper and middle parts of the Columns, a crack in the central one.

6259 - uneven design, the entire central tower is slightly tilted to the left.

6260.1 - blurry circles on the sides of the central tower. The first stage of the countermark's life.

6260.2 - the same, but with slight deformation, a thickening on the central tower to the right. Probably the second stage of the previous countermark's life.

6261 - the right tower is slightly extended beyond the base.

6262.1 - a crack in the countermark between the central and right towers. The second stage of the countermark's life.

6262.2

6263 - slits in the upper part of the Columns.

6264 - elongated left vertical line of the tower.

6265 - tall Columns tower.

6266 - tall Columns tower, a large number of cracks. Generic placeholder or probably a modified version of the previous countermark.

6267 - narrow long tower, the edges of the base curve upward. Later, a crack appears in the center.