Burgundy 1625 1/2 patagon
This specimen was lot 35091 in Heritage sale 3067 (Long Beach, September 2018), where it sold for $192. The catalog description[1] noted, "Spanish Netherlands: Burgundy. Philip IV of Spain 1/2 Patagon 1625 AU Details (Surface Hairlines) NGC, Dole mint. Fairly well struck for this crude type, with argent shimmering obverse features and a light reverse tone." Patagons were issued in the Spanish Netherlands and associated states (including the bishopric of Liège and Franche Comte) during the seventeenth century, where they competed with French écus, German talers and Dutch daalders and ducatons. The type shown here was struck in Flanders, Artois, Tournai, Brabant and Burgundy (shown here, struck 1625-27, 1634-38). Altho the half and quarter patagons are much scarcer than the patagons, they bring less at auction. The series is plagued by bad planchets and poor strikes, reducing their appeal to collectors. Burgundy isn't really a Dutch province (it's now part of France) but it was administered by Spain as part of the Burgundian inheritance until 1648. The mintmark is a cross or a rosette but the most obvious mark of origin is the legend "COM • BVRG • Zc".
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 14.05 g, 0.875 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM 14.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- 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]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, 2018 September 6-11 Long Beach Expo World Coins & Ancient Coins Signature Auction #3067, Dallas: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2018.
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