Brabant (1343) 1/2 gros
This specimen was lot 705 in Jean Elsen sale 164 (Brussels, March 2026), where it sold for €100 (about US$139 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Jean III (1312-1355), demi-gros en billon noir, octobre 1343. D/ + MONETA: NOVA: RAB·ANTIE Écu écartelé de Brabant-Limbourg dans un double polylobe. R/ Croix pattée coupant la légende intérieure SAC-RI· I-NPE-RII. En fin de la légende extérieure: ANCIO au lieu de MARCIO. Très Beau. (duchy of Brabant, John III, 1312-55, half groat struck in black billon, October 1343. Obverse: quartered arms of Brabant and Liburg within a double polylobe; reverse: cross pattée cuts the interior legend, with that legend ending ANCIO instead of MARCIO. Very Fine.)"
Jean III succeeded to the duchies of Brabant and Limburg in 1312, when he was twelve years old. Altho neighboring Flanders was economically tied to Brabant, it was ruled by a separate dynasty. Jean's line fell extinct in 1406 and the duchy became a Valois appanage.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 1.6-2.3 g, billon, 23 mm diameter; this specimen 2,20 g.
Catalog reference: Ghyssens p. 13, 8; W. 348 var.
- Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 164: Monnaies du duché de Brabant et du royaume de Belgique, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2026.
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