1/2 Carlino - Felipe III

The carlino — and its fractional divisions — occupied an awkward position in Neapolitan commerce during the Spanish viceregal period, too valuable for small daily transactions yet too light for major exchange. Naples under Felipe III was plagued by chronic shortages of small silver, a problem the viceroy's administration addressed patchily through successive emergency emissions rather than systematic reform. This piece belongs to that extended, loosely supervised production window spanning a full decade.

MIR 216/8 distinguishes this variety within a series where die quality and mint supervision varied considerably from year to year.