Besancon 1543 carolus
This specimen was lot 1130 in Aureo y Calicó sale 447 (Barcelona, March 2025), where it sold for 110 € (about US$143 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted, "1543. Carlos I. Besançon. 1 carlos. Nice. Original luster. Rare in this condition. EBC [extremely fine]." Besançon was the chief city of the Franche Comté, or Free County of Burgundy. Franche Comté was part of the Burgundian inheritance which passed to the Hapsburgs in the 1490's and thence to Philip II of Spain on the abdication of Charles V in 1556. Besançon, being an imperial free city, was not directly involved in these transfers but was invaded and annexed to France by Louis XIV as a result of the Thirty Years War. Her coinage ceased in 1673. This type is listed for 1537-70, 1575, 1579-87 and 1597.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 1.39 g, silver, 18 mm diameter, this specimen 1.13 g.
Catalog reference: Roberts-7005, KM MB6, Vti. 688.
- [1]Sisó, Teresa, Eduard Domingo and Lluís Lalana, Subasta Numismatica 447, Barcelona: Aureo y Calicó, 2025.
- Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
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