Orange 1658-A 1/12 ecu
This specimen was lot 71015 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, June 2021), where it sold for $360. The catalog description[1] noted, "FRANCE. Orange. 1/12 Ecu, 1658-A. Guillaume-Henri de Nassau. PCGS AU-58 Gold Shield. A fairly SCARCE type, this alluring minor presents some alluring toning near the peripheries and exhibits just a hint of light handling. A few die and planchet flaws are noted at the prince's eye." This type (KM 90) is listed for 1657, 1661 and 1665. It seems to have been struck at Paris. The Principality of Orange was an enclave in the kingdom of France in the Rhone valley, ruled by the dukes of Nassau. The title passed to the Stadtholder of the Netherlands who remained a French ally so long as the Dutch were struggling with the Spanish. At the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648, the Spanish recognized Dutch independence and now William had to contend with Louis XIV, a much more formidable adversary. The French occupied Orange in 1672 and annexed it in 1713. The coinage ended in 1667. This twelfth écu or five sols matches a very similar French coin.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 2.29 g, 0.917 fine silver, 19-20 mm diameter, plain edge.
Catalog reference: Boudeau-1013; cf. KM-90 (date unlisted).
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The June 2021 Collector's Choice sale: World and Ancient Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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