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1/2 Scudo - Pius VI Holy Mother Church - Ornate shield
| Issuer | Papal States |
|---|---|
| Year | 1775-1777 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Orientation | Coin alignment ↑↓ |
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| Obverse description | Central device features the elaborate armorial shield of Pope Pius VI, quartered with the Braschi family arms, surrounded by richly engraved acanthus-leaf and scrollwork mantling. The shield is surmounted by the papal tiara flanked by the crossed keys of Saint Peter. The circular legend around the periphery reads PIVS·VI·PONT MAX·ANNO·I·, separated by decorative stops, with a toothed border encircling the entire design. The engraving style is characteristic of the refined Baroque craftsmanship of the Hamerani workshop at the Rome Mint. |
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Pius VI ascended to the pontificate in February 1775 after a conclave that had dragged on for nearly five months — one of the longest of the eighteenth century. This half scudo belongs to his earliest coinage, issued before the financial pressures of his ambitious building projects in Rome had begun to strain the papal treasury in earnest. His reign would eventually see the forced loans and currency debasements of the 1780s and 1790s, but these early strikes were produced to the traditional fineness without compromise.
The CNI XVII attribution and the Biaggi reference together confirm this as a well-documented type with at least three die marriages tracked across the Munt sequence, nos. 20–22.