France 1643-A 1/12 ecu

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from the Mountain Groan Collection
France 1643A 1-12 ecu rev DSLR.jpg
Künker Auction 441, lot 4985

The first specimen is a douziéme d'écu (1/12 écu) struck in Paris at the end of the reign of Louis XIII (r. 1610-43). It is a product of a major reform of French coinage which attempted to abolish hammered coinage once and for all. In this the regime was not successful, but large quantities of these handsome coins were released 1641-43 and the type is reasonably available today. All are Paris mint except for a small issue from Lyon in 1643. The last hammered quarter écu listed is dated 1652. The second specimen was lot 4985 in Künker sale 441 (Osnabrück, March 2026), where it sold for €3,400 (about US$4,677 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,

"FRANKREICH, KÖNIGREICH Louis XIII, 1610-1643. 1/12 Ecu d'argent 1643 A, Paris. Dickabschlag (Piéfort) in Silber; Mit Randschrift: * LVDOVICO XIII MONETAE RESTITVTORI RR Sehr schön. Erworben bei der Degussa, Frankfurt am Main. (kingdom of France, Louis XIII, 1610-43, twelfth écu of 1643, Paris mint, piedfort strike in silver, lettered edge. Very rare, very fine.)"

Recorded mintage: 2,854,001 (rose, shown here) plus 8,190,972 (dot).

Specification: 2.28 g, 0.917 fine silver, 20 mm diameter, plain edge, designed by Jean Warin and Isaac Briot. The second specimen is 9,10 g.

Catalog reference: KM 131, Dr/4 № 130, Dr/2 № 109. The second specimen is Duplessy (similar to 1352); Gadoury 46 (R5).

Source:

  • Droulers, Frédéric, Répertoire General des Monnaies de Louis XIII à Louis XVI (1610-1792), 4e édition. Paris: AFPN, 2009.
  • Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
  • Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
  • Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Royales Françaises, 1610-1792, 5me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2018.
  • [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Frühjahrs-Auktion 441: Orders and Decorations from the Estate of Wilhelm, Duke of Bavaria (1752–1837), among others | Coins and Medals from the Middle Ages and Modern times, particularly Denmark, Habsburg, Norway, and Saxony, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2026.

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