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1/2 Thaler - Hildebrand Jost
| Issuer | Bishopric of Sion |
|---|---|
| Year | 1624 |
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| Composition | Silver |
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| Obverse lettering | ✿ · HILTEB ✿ IODOCVS ✿ EPS ✿ S ✿ C ✿ ET ✿ P ✿ V · 1624 |
| Reverse description | Full-length frontal figure of Saint Theodore (Theodulus), patron saint of the Diocese of Sion, standing in episcopal vestments and holding a sword in his right hand and a crozier in his left. At the saint's feet, a crouching diabolical figure is depicted holding a bell, referencing the legend in which the saint compelled the devil to carry a bell from Rome to Sion. The circular Latin legend names the saint and identifies him as Bishop of Sion, separated by rosette stops. |
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| Additional information |
Hildebrand Jost's tenure as Bishop of Sion was defined almost entirely by a protracted constitutional conflict with the Seven Dizains — the sovereign districts of Valais — who systematically stripped episcopal temporal authority through the 1620s, culminating in the Caroline declaration of 1628 that effectively reduced the bishop to a spiritual figurehead. This half thaler was struck squarely in the middle of that struggle, when Jost still held enough practical authority to commission coinage but the outcome was already uncertain.
He eventually appealed to Rome and spent years in exile pressing his case before the Holy See.