Dombes 1652 ecu Dav-3830
This specimen was lot 99047 in Heritage sale 61253 (Dallas, January 2022), where it sold for $2,640. The catalog description[1] noted,
"France: A Comparatively High-Grade Representative of This Rare One-Year Type. Dombes. Anne Marie Louise d'Orleans Ecu 1652 XF Details (Cleaned) NGC, Trévoux mint. Struck in the name of her father, Gaston d'Orleans. A highly rare one-year type most usually found in very heavily circulated states with pronounced flan adjustments. Though lightly cleaned in the distant past, this specimen stands far above the majority of its peers, both sides showing clean die polish lines in the fields and a careful measuring of the legends. For the sake of comparison, we would note that the example preserved in the Grundy Collection--an assemblage known for its attention to quality--graded as a mere VF30 by comparison. As a type, particularly interesting for its portrayal of Gaston in a very similar guise to King Louis XIII, Gaston's brother, in an effort to help facilitate their circulation. Ex. Künker Auction 21 (August 2013, Lot 284); Künker Auction 180 (January 2011, Lot 512)."
Gaston, duc d'Orleans, was the younger brother of king Louis XIII. He was a lifelong troublemaker but so long as the king was unable to produce an heir, his life was safe, no matter how many treasonable conspiracies he was involved in. The Dombes region lies south of Franche Comte and west of Savoy and was a fief of the Montpensier family, whose heiress Gaston married in 1626. He struck coins for the region until his death in 1660 and the province reverted to the French crown on the death of his daughter in 1693. The SCWC lists this type for 1652 along with an extremely rare double louis d'or.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 27.45 g, 0.917 fine silver, plain edge.
Catalog reference: Dav-3830, PdA-5184, Dupl-2985, Boudeau-1080, Divo-179.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Davenport, John S., European Crowns, 1600-1700, Galesburg, IL, 1974.
- [1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, The Brittany Collection of French Coins Showcase Auction #61253, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2021.
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