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1 Lion - James II 2nd Coinage, 1st Issue
| Issuer | Scotland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1451-1460 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse description | Saint Andrew, patron saint of Scotland, depicted full-length facing the viewer, crucified upon a saltire cross that extends to the inner circle, his robes rendered in fine drapery folds. A large fleur-de-lis occupies each of the two lateral spandrels formed by the arms of the saltire, providing bold heraldic symmetry. The entire composition is contained within a beaded inner circle, beyond which the devotional legend in uncial Latin runs continuously around the coin's circumference. The treatment of the saint and ornamental devices is consistent with the Gothic artistic conventions of mid-fifteenth-century Scottish gold coinage. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
James II's second coinage was cut short by the king's own recklessness: he was killed in 1460 at the siege of Roxburgh when a cannon burst beside him, making him the first European monarch documented to have died by gunfire. The 1st Issue of this coinage predates the monetary reforms that followed his death, reforms driven partly by the chronic shortage of bullion that plagued the Scottish crown throughout the 1450s.
Spink 5220 is among the scarcer Scottish medieval gold types in any grade, a direct consequence of limited bullion supply rather than short minting windows.