Blanc with crown of Provence - Charles VIII Tarascon

Charles VIII inherited the County of Provence through his father Louis XI's absorption of the territory in 1481, following the death of René d'Anjou's nephew Charles du Maine. The Tarascon mint had operated under Angevin authority for generations; its continued production under the new French crown required specific royal authorization, and the "crown of Provence" type was the direct administrative acknowledgment of that distinct regional jurisdiction — separate from the French royal mint system proper.

The Ciani gap is telling. Pieces attributable to Tarascon from this reign circulate rarely enough that auction documentation remains thin.