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1 Ducat - Alexander VI Giovanni Battista Orsini Legate
| Issuer | Papal States - Bologna Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 1500-1503 |
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| Composition | Gold (.999) |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Saint Peter is depicted standing facing, his right hand raising the key of Heaven and his left arm cradling the Gospel. The figure is flanked on either side by heraldic shields: one bearing the papal arms and the other the arms of Giovanni Battista Orsini, legate of Bologna. The bold reverse legend BONONIA DOCET arcs across the field, invoking Bologna's celebrated role as seat of the oldest university in Europe. The composition is typical of the dignified civic-ecclesiastical imagery employed on Bolognese ducats of the period. |
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| Reverse lettering | BONONIA DOCET (Translation: Bologna teaches) |
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| Additional information |
Giovanni Battista Orsini served as papal legate to Bologna under Alexander VI, a posting that came with the right to strike coinage — a privilege Bologna's governors wielded jealously throughout the papal period. Orsini's legateship coincided almost exactly with Cesare Borgia's systematic campaign to consolidate control over the Romagna, which put Bologna under intense political pressure and made the continuity of local mint authority a matter of some significance.
Alexander VI died in August 1503, fixing the terminal date of this type precisely.