Verdun (1617) teston
This specimen was lot 1695 in Jean Elsen sale 141 (Brussels, June 2019), where it did not sell. The catalog description[1] noted,
"FRANCE, VERDUN, Evêché, Charles de Lorraine (1610-1622), AR teston, s.d. D/ B. à d. R/ Ecu couronné sous une mitre et une crosse. Très rare Fines griffes. Beau à Très Beau. (France, bishopric of Verdun, Charles of Lorraine, 1610-22, undated silver teston, obverse: bust right; reverse: crowned arms under a miter and a cross. Very rare, fine scratches, Fine - Very Fine.)"
Verdun, long a bishopric in the Empire, was coveted and finally seized by king Henry II of France in 1552. The bishops, scions of the house of Lorraine, were permitted to issue coins until the town was annexed to France by the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. This type is noted as very rare in the SCWC.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, 8.38 g; this specimen is 7,61 g.
Catalog reference: Flon 801, 12; coll. Robert 1149 var., KM 20.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 141, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils, S.A., 2019.
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