1/2 Lira - Victor Amadeus II

Victor Amadeus II extracted the Kingdom of Sicily from Spain through the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, then was forced to swap it for Sardinia in 1720 under Austrian pressure — a humiliating trade he accepted rather than lose everything. These 1717–1718 issues fall squarely in the Sicilian interlude, struck while he still held that prize. The Duchy of Savoy was simultaneously modernizing its mint administration during this period, and the high fineness of .917 reflects deliberate policy to maintain credibility in northern Italian commercial markets increasingly skeptical of debased coinage from rival states.