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1/4 d'écu - Henri IV - 5e type
| Issuer | France |
|---|---|
| Year | 1590-1610 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | Dy royales#1230, KM#28 |
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| Reverse description | Crowned shield of France bearing three fleurs-de-lis, flanked on either side by the Roman numerals II, forming the designation II·II to indicate the quarter-écu denomination. The crown surmounts the shield in the upper field. The mint mark of Saint-Lô (letter C) appears in the exergue or as a workshop mark within the legend. The circumferential legend reads SIT·NOMEN·DOMINI·BENEDICTUM, a standard pious inscription employed on French royal silver coinage of this period, struck in Latin capitals. |
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| Reverse lettering | SIT·NOMEN·DOMINI·BENEDICTUM·C ( marque d`atelier de Saint-Lô ) |
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| Additional information |
Henri IV's quarter-écu coinage was minted under conditions of near-constant disruption. The king spent the first years of his reign fighting to actually control the country he had inherited, and mint operations across France reflected that instability — some facilities struck for the League, others for Henri, and output was intermittent at best. The 5th type introduced a revised design to distinguish legitimately royal coinage from the competing issues struck in his name by towns and mints of uncertain loyalty.
Specimens from provincial mints — Bayonne, Rennes, Bordeaux — often show rougher workmanship than Paris issues, a direct consequence of workforce disruptions during the Wars of Religion.