France 1555-L 1/2 teston

Heritage sale 3049, lot 32932

This specimen was lot 32932 in Heritage sale 3049 (Long Beach, September 2016), where it sold for $763.75. The catalog description^[1] noted, "Henri II 1/2 Testone 1555-L MS62 NGC, Bayonne mint. Unusually well struck for the type with every strand of hair well defined." The portrait is of Henry II (r. 1547-59). Milled coinage was experimental in the sixteenth century and would not be generally adopted in France until the reform of 1640-42. This type is listed in Duplessy for 1551-58 with a face value of 5 sols, 8 deniers tournois. It is much scarcer than the teston.

Recorded mintage: 78,285 (including the more common teston), one of the few common dates.

Specification: 4.79 g, .899 fine silver.

Catalog reference: Duplessy 984, Sb 4560.

Source:

• Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
• Roberts, James N., The Silver Coins of Medieval France (476-1610 AD), S. Salem, NY: Attic Books, 1996.
• Sombart, Stéphan, Franciae IV: Catalogue des Monnaies Royales Françaises de François Ier à Henri IV (1540-1610), Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 1997.
• ^[1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and David Michaels, Heritage World Coin Auction 3049, featuring the Ohio Valley Collection, the Redwood Collection and the F.P. Briand Collection, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2016.

Link to:

• 1555-A teston au moulin
• 1555-D demi-teston
• 1555-A teston au moulin
• 1555-H teston
• 1555-L teston
• 1555-M teston
• 1555-K henri d'or
• 1555 huit henri d'or à la Gallia
• 1556-M teston
• 1557-C demi-teston
• 1559-K teston
• Coins and currency dated 1555
• return to French royal coinage (to 1793)