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1 Quattrino - Gian Giacomo de` Medici Cross
| Issuer | Marquisate of Musso (Italian States) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1528-1530 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Draped bust of Gian Giacomo de' Medici facing left, rendered in low relief in the late medieval Italian style typical of small hammered billon coinage. The effigy occupies the central field, with the hair and collar details visible despite the characteristic softness of strike. A circular Latin legend surrounds the bust, separated from the effigy by an inner beaded border. The flan is irregular in shape, as is common for hammered issues of this period and denomination. |
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| Obverse lettering | IO · IA · DE · MEDICIS (Translation: John (Gian) James (Giacomo) de Medici) |
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| Additional information |
Gian Giacomo de' Medici — the so-called "Medeghino" — seized the fortress of Musso on Lake Como in 1523 and held it by a combination of piracy, mercenary violence, and opportunistic alliance-switching throughout the Italian Wars. His tiny lakeside lordship was never a legitimate political entity in any conventional sense; it existed because the chaos of competing French and Habsburg claims over northern Italy left local strongmen briefly ungoverned. The quattrino was struck during that window, and the marquisate itself was dissolved in 1532 when he sold Musso to the Habsburgs.