1/4 Scudo - Conrad II

The quarter scudo series issued under the perpetual doge Conrad II reflects the peculiar constitutional fiction Genoa maintained for centuries: "Conrad" was not a living ruler but an idealized reference to Conrad I, the Holy Roman Emperor who granted Genoa its imperial privileges in the 10th century. The Republic cycled through this nominal authority deliberately, insulating its coinage from the dynastic instability that plagued neighboring states.

The thirty-two year span of this type overlaps the worst of Genoa's banking crises following Spanish sovereign debt defaults — Philip III repudiated debts in 1607, again in 1627, hitting Genoese creditors hard each time.