Brabant (1524-29) 2 mite
This specimen was lot 711 in Jean Elsen sale 159 (Brussels, June 2024), where it sold for €140 (about US$180 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Charles Quint (1506-1555), Cu double mite, s.d. (1524-1529), Anvers. D/ K couronné. R/ Croix pattée, petit lion en coeur. Rare, particulièrement dans cette qualité. Très Beau. (duchy of Brabant, Charles V, 1506-55, undated copper double mite, circa 1524-29, Antwerp mint. Obverse: crowned "K"; reverse: cross pattée with a small lion at the center. Rare, esecially in this quality, very fine.)"
At this time, the Hapsburgs were consolidating their hold on the Low Countries, a process that would not be completed until emperor Charles V obtained the holdings of the bishop of Utrecht in the 1520's. Unfortunately, at the same time, Protestantism was spreading in the Netherlands, ripping apart the Hapsburg's hoped-for unity.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: copper, this specimen is 1,00 g.
Catalog reference: G.H. 196-1; W. 692; VH 232.
- van Gelder, H. Enno, and Marcel Hoc, Les Monnaies des pays-Bas Bourguignons et Espagnols, 1434-1713, Amsterdam, J. Schulman, 1960, with supplement of 1964.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 159, Collection Harry Dewit, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2024.
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