Savoy 1640 4 scudi d'oro Fr-1071
This specimen was lot 1417 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2022), where it sold for $18,000. The catalog description[1] noted, "Fantastic 4 Scudi d'Oro of Carlo Emanuele II. ITALY. Savoy. 4 Scudi d'Oro, 1640. Torino Mint. Carlo Emanuele II. PCGS MS-64. Obverse: CHR FRAN CAR EMAN DVCES SAB, jugate draped busts of Carlo and Cristina, his mother and regent, right: Reverse: P P PEDEMON REGES CYPRI, crowned and garnished coat-of-arms. This beautiful near-Gem example gives good luster and is free of any major contacts. A golden hue is sometimes interrupted by licks of orange tone. A touch of a soft strike, but existing nonetheless in a state of preservation that has been unmatched by any other PCGS example. Seldom encountered in this elite condition, this gorgeous representative is destined for an fine cabinet of the connoisseur." This scarce issue is one of a series of gold coins minted by the regent for her son Charles Emanuel, including four and eight scudi (Fr-1070). None of the silver or gold coins of Savoy of the seventeenth century can be called common. In 1714, the duke's successful participation in the War of the Spanish Succession garnered him the island of Sicily, which he traded for Sardinia in 1720. The duke was known as the king of Sardinia until his descendants claimed the throne of unified Italy in 1860. The SCWC lists numerous varieties of four scudi for 1640 (KM 172.1, 172.2, 193, 194, 195, 196) but does not distinguish between them.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 13.22-13.55 g, gold, 34 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM 172.1, MIR 738 c. Fr-1071.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- 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]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The 2022 NYINC Sale: World and Ancient Coins, featuring the Mark and Lottie Salton Collection and the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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