France 1603-Mor 1/4 ecu
This specimen was lot 73320 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, November 2023), where it sold for $168. The catalog description[1] noted, "FRANCE. 1/4 Ecu, 1603. Pau or Morlaas Mint. Henry IV. PCGS EF-45. Struck for Bearn. An enticing and seldom encountered type, this example represents the only such occurrence in the PCGS census, and sports an alluring gunmetal gray tone." Both Pau and Morlaas struck this type in the reign of Henry IV. The coins bear the arms of France, Navarre and Béarn but no mintmark. However, the Pau issue was milled while the Morlaas product was hammered. For this date, Sombart[2] reports ten from Morlaas and two from Pau.
Recorded mintage: 114,246 from Morlaas plus 108,567 from Pau.
Specification: 9.71 g, 0.917 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Sb 4706, Dupl-1240; KM-1.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- 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.
- [2]Sombart, Stéphan, Franciae IV: Catalogue des Monnaies Royales Françaises de François Ier à Henri IV (1540-1610), Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 1997.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, November 2023 World Collectors Choice Online Auction - Ancient & World Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2023.
Link to:
- 1602-L quart d'écu, croix feuillue de face
- 1602 quart d'écu du Béarn, Morlaàs mint
- 1603-H quart d'écu
- 1603-K quart d'écu
- 1603-L quart d'écu
- 1603-R quart d'écu, écu de face
- 1603-T quart d'écu
- 1603-Z quart d'écu du Dauphiné
- 1603-9 quart d'écu
- 1603 quart d'écu de Navarre, St. Palais mint
- 1605 quart d'écu du Béarn, Morlaas mint
- Coins and currency dated 1603
- return to French royal coinage (to 1793)