Savoy (1538)-T ecu d'or Fr-342
This specimen was lot 1062 in Jean Elsen sale 141 (Brussels, June 2019), where it sold for €8,500 (about US$11,265 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ITALIE, SAVOIE, sous occupation française, François Ier (1515-1547), AV écu d'or au soleil, s.d. (1538), Turin (T final au revers). 2e type. 3e émission. Différent MV (Marc Varemberg). D/ Ecu de France couronné, sous un soleil. R/ Croix fleurdelisée portant un quadrilobe en coeur, cantonnée de deux F couronnés. De la plus haute rareté. Très Beau. (Italy, duchy of Savoy, under French occupation, Francis I, 1515-47, undated gold shield of the sunburst, Turin mint, second type, third emission, privy mark MV. Obverse: crowned arms of France beneath a sunburst; reverse: floriate cross with a quadrilobe at the center, cantonned with two "F's" and two lilies. Extremely rare, Very Fine.)"
The écu d'or was tariffed in France at 36 sols, 3 deniers tournois in 1515 and raised to 40 sols tournois in 1519. A demi-écu d'or also exists.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 3.49 g, .958 fine gold, this specimen 3,41 g.
Catalog reference: Fr-342, CNI 21, -; Dupl-771A; Laf. 636.
- Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 141, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils, S.A., 2019.
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