½ Gold Ecu - Henry IV

Henry IV's gold coinage was struck under considerable political strain — he had converted from Protestantism to Catholicism in 1593, famously (if apocryphally) remarking that "Paris is worth a mass," and the subsequent years of his reign saw the French monetary system slowly stabilizing after decades of civil war had badly disrupted mint output. The Edict of Nantes followed in 1598, and with it came a period of relative calm that allowed the royal mints to function with greater regularity.

The demi-écu d'or was produced at multiple French mints during this period, each distinguished by its mint mark — attribution to a specific facility is essential for accurate cataloging, as output varied dramatically by location.