France 1596-L 1/4 ecu
This specimen was lot 2263 in Jean Elsen sale 160 (Brussels, November 2024), where it sold for €80 (about US$101 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"FRANCE, Royaume, Henri IV (1589-1610), AR quart d'écu, 1596 L, Bayonne. 2e type. D/ Croix feuillue. R/ Ecu de France couronné, entre II-II. Très Beau. (kingdom of France, Henry IV, 1589-1610, silver quarter écu of 1596, Bayonne mint, second type. Obverse: floriate cross; reverse: crowned arms of France divide the value. Very fine.)"
This specimen was struck by the hammer during the reign of Henry IV, founder of the Bourbon dynasty (1589-1793). It is a product of the Bayonne mint. This was the largest silver coin regularly struck in France prior to the introduction of milled coinage in the 1640's. It had a face value of fifteen sols tournois.
Recorded mintage: 203,585[2].
Specification: 9.71 g, 0.917 fine silver, 27-29 mm diameter, this specimen 9,24 g.
Catalog reference: Sb-4686, Dupl-1224; Ci. 1517; Laf. 1066.
- Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
- Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
- Sombart, Stéphan, Franciae IV: Catalogue des Monnaies Royales Françaises de François Ier à Henri IV (1540-1610), Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 1997.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 160, Collection de deniers liegeois et Collection de monnaies d'or francaises, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2024.
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