Brabant 1575(h) 1/2 ecu
This specimen was lot 568 in Jean Elsen sale 148 (Brussels, September 2021), where it sold for €675 (about US$957 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Philippe II (1555-1598), AR demi-écu Philippe, 1575, Anvers. D/ B. cuir. à g. R/ Ecu couronné sur une croix de Bourgogne, entre deux briquets, portant le bijou de la Toison d'or. Rare Frappé sur flan large, avec quelques craquelures. Belle patine. Superbe. Provient de notre liste 122, février 1990, 226. (duchy of Brabant, Philip II, 1555-98, silver half écu Philippe of 1575, Antwerp mint. Obverse: armored bust left; reverse: crowned arms over a Burgundian cross, between two briquets bearing the jewels of the Golden Fleece. Rare, struck on a large flan, with some stress cracks. Nice patina, Extremely Fine.)"
This type represents a very early experiment with decimal coinage, over a century before Russia adopted her hundred kopeks = one ruble. The écu Philippe was issued in divisions of one half, one fifth, one tenth and one twentieth. The écu Philippe was struck 1572-85.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 16,77 g.
Catalog reference: G.H. 211-1a; Delm-51; W. 719; V.H. 301.
- 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 148: Monnaies, Médailles et Décorations, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2021.
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