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4 Tari - Alof de Wignacourt
| Issuer | Order of Malta (Knights of St. John) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1609-1619 |
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| Currency | Scudo (1530-1825) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | Facing bust of the severed head of St. John the Baptist, depicted with flowing hair and beard, rendered in a bold, slightly crude hammered style within a recessed circular field. A full circular Latin legend surrounds the central image, incorporating a prayer invocation to the Baptist along with the mint mark and date, all contained within a beaded border. |
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| Additional information |
Alof de Wignacourt served as Grand Master from 1601 to 1622, a tenure defined largely by the Order's desperate need to project naval power against Ottoman and Barbary corsair forces in the central Mediterranean. Revenue from the Order's European commanderies funded both the fleet and the mint at Valletta, which had been operational for barely three decades by the time this issue was struck. The 4 Tari denomination circulated primarily within Malta itself and among the Order's maritime network rather than in broader European trade.
Wignacourt is perhaps better known today as the patron who brought Caravaggio to Malta in 1607.