10 Zecchini - Giovanni Corner II

Giovanni Corner II served as Doge from 1709 to 1722, a period dominated by the War of the Spanish Succession and Venice's increasingly precarious neutrality. The multiple-zecchino format — struck as a single large planchet equivalent to ten standard zecchini — was not a circulation coin in any practical sense. These were presentation pieces, distributed as diplomatic gifts and ceremonial largesse, and almost never changed hands in trade.

The zecchino itself had maintained its gold fineness without interruption since the 13th century, a monetary discipline few European states matched. Corner's reign produced these multiples in very limited numbers, which is reflected in their survival rate today.