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Blanca - Enrique IV diamond, Avila
| Issuer | Castile and Leon, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1471-1474 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Blank (1 Blanca) (1⁄60) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | ENRICVS DEI GRA REX C |
| Reverse description | Central field depicts a rampant lion (the arms of León) set within a square or quadrilobe frame, enclosed within a beaded inner circle. The lion is shown passant-rampant in the characteristic Gothic style of Castilian medieval coinage. The surrounding circular legend in Latin reads XPS VINCIT XPS REGNAT (Christus vincit, Christus regnat — Christ conquers, Christ reigns), a traditional Christological acclamation used on Castilian coinage of the period. The coin shows the typical irregular flan and weak strike consistent with hammered billon production of the Enrique IV period. |
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| Additional information |
The Avila blanca belongs to one of the most politically fractured mintings in Castilian history. In 1465, rebel nobles staged the "Farce of Ávila," symbolically deposing Enrique IV by dethroning a straw effigy of the king — and Ávila became the seat of the rival court of the boy-king Alfonso. By 1471, Enrique had reasserted nominal control, but the mint at Ávila continued producing debased billon coinage under conditions of severely compromised royal authority.
The chronic debasement of Enrique's billon issues prompted the monetary reforms codified at the Ordinance of 1471, which this piece postdates by a matter of months at most.