1 Giorgino - Francesco I d'Este

Francesco I spent much of his reign navigating the impossible geometry of mid-seventeenth century Italian politics — courting France, fearing Spain, and perpetually scheming to expand Este territorial holdings. The giorgino denomination itself was a small-change workhorse of the northern Italian billon tradition, named ultimately for Saint George, and Francesco's issues circulated throughout a duchy that was simultaneously building one of the most aggressive mercenary armies in the peninsula.

MIR 795 covers a span of nearly three decades, during which die workmanship varied considerably across the Modena mint.