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1 Teston - Ranuccio II Saint Vitalis
| Issuer | Duchy of Parma and Piacenza (Italian States) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1646-1694 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Teston (3⁄2) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Saint Vitalis, patron saint of Parma, depicted standing in three-quarter view facing right, shown nimbate and clad in Roman military attire with cuirass and paludamentum. In his raised right hand he holds an upright processional banner or standard, while his left hand rests upon an ornately quartered heraldic shield bearing the arms of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. The circular legend S + VITALIS + PARMAE + PROT surrounds the figure, with the date appearing in the exergue on dated examples. The reverse is enclosed within the same milled border as the obverse. |
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| Mint | Parma, Italy (773-1858) |
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| Additional information |
Ranuccio II ruled Parma for nearly half a century under the suffocating financial dominance of Spain, to whom the Farnese duchy owed both political survival and crippling debt. His coinage output was substantial but erratic, reflecting a treasury perpetually strained by obligations to Madrid and the costs of maintaining a court determined to project ducal grandeur it could barely afford. The teston denomination itself was by this period something of an anachronism in northern Italian commerce, persisting in Parma largely through inertia and ducal prestige.
Saint Vitalis, the martyred Roman soldier venerated as patron of Ravenna, appears here through Farnese ecclesiastical politics rather than any deep local devotion.