Ghent 1489 2 mite
This specimen was lot 1048 in Jean Elsen sale 159 (Brussels, June 2024), where it sold for €260 (about US$334 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"VLAANDEREN, Gent in opstand tegen Maximiliaan (1488-1492), biljoen dubbele mijt, 1489. Vz/ + PHS DEI GRA DVX B' CO' FL' Leeuwenschild. Kz/ + IN DOMINO CONFIDO I489 Kort kruis met in het hart een lelie. Zeldzaam. bijna Prachtig. (county of Flanders, Ghent in rebellion against emperor Maximilian, 1488-92, billon double mite of 1489. Obverse: lion on shield; reverse: short cross with a lily at the center. Rare, about extremely fine.)"
This example is catalogued as billon (debased silver) but appears to be pure copper. This type was issued during one of Ghent's many revolts against outside authority. Ghent was already declining in importance when the rebellion started but never recovered her position after Philip II devastated it in 1584. Her harbor silted up and trade shifted to the north. Roberts comments, "The mite of Flanders was valued at 1/24 gros or 1/8 of an English penny.... The mite of Brabant was valued at only 1/36 gros, making its 4-mite piece 1/3 of a penny."
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: copper or billon, this specimen 0,93 g.
Catalog reference: G.H. 151; Martiny, Gent, 151; VH 182; Levinson II-120.
- Levinson, Robert, The Early Dated Coins of Europe, 1234-1500: An Illustrated Catalogue and Guide to dated medieval coinage. Clifton, NJ: Coin & Currency Institute, 2007.
- Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
- 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]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 159, Collection Harry Dewit, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2024.
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