Papal States 1770 testone
This specimen was lot 72065 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, June 2021), where it sold for $660. The catalog description[1] noted, "ITALY. Papal States. Testone (30 Baiocchi), 1770//Year 2. Rome Mint. Clement XIV. PCGS MS-62 Gold Shield. Seldom seen at auction, let alone certified in Mint State, this is the finest certified by PCGS. Well struck with areas of gold and blue toning on the reverse." This type is listed in the SCWC for 1770 and 1773, one of the few multiyear types listed therein. It was struck for pope Clement XIV (1769-74). The testone was thirty baiocchi, while the piastra, the Italian equivalent of the German thaler, was 105 baiocchi. The 1773 issue is dated in Arabic numerals.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 7.93 g, silver, 0.917 fine.
Catalog reference: KM-1020; Berman-2931.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- Berman, Allen G., Papal Coins, South Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1991.
- [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.
- Francesco Muntoni, Le Monete del Papi e Degli Stati Pontifici, 4 vols. Rome: P & P Santamaria, 1973.
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