Brabant 1572(h) 1/5 ecu
This specimen was lot 658 in Jean Elsen sale 161 (Brussels, March 2025), where it sold for €110 (about US$143 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Philippe II (1555-1598), AR cinquième d'écu Philippe, 1572, Anvers. D/ B. cuir. à d. R/ Écu couronné sur une croix de Bourgogne, entre deux briquets, portant le bijou de la Toison d'or. 1572 sur 1571. Petites taches de vert-de-gris. (duchy of Brabant, Philip II, 1555-98, silver fifth écu Philippe of 1572, Antwerp mint. Obverse: armored bust right; reverse: crowned arms over a Burgundian cross adorned with the jewels of the Golden Fleece, 1572/1 overdate. Minor stains of verdigris, very fine.)"
This type represents a very early experiment with decimal coinage, over a century before Russia adopted her hundred kopeks = one ruble. It was struck at Antwerp and Maastricht 1562-67, 1571-72, 1575-77 and 1580-82.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 6.85 g, 0.833 fine silver, 30 mm diameter, this specimen is 6,60 g.
Catalog reference: G.H. 212-1b; W. 722; VH 306.
- Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
- 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 161, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2025.
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