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Countermarked 1⁄12 écu - Louis XIV timmin coinage under Mehmed IV
| Issuer | Ottoman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1670 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Timmin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Draped bust of Louis XIV facing right, depicted as a young sovereign with flowing hair, occupying the central field. A circular legend surrounds the effigy, identifying the monarch by name and royal title. The impact of an applied Ottoman countermark is typically visible somewhere within the obverse field, attesting to the coin's subsequent revalidation for Ottoman circulation. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | LVD•XIIII•D•G•FR•ET•NAV•REX (Translation: Louis XIV, by the Grace of God, King of France and Navarre) |
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| Additional information |
French écu fractions — struck at various provincial mints throughout the 1660s — entered Ottoman circulation through Levantine trade networks and were systematically countermarked under Mehmed IV to legitimize their use within the empire's monetary system. The practice was not unique to French silver; Spanish, Dutch, and Venetian coins received similar treatment, but the 1⁄12 écu appears with particular frequency in Levantine hoards, suggesting it circulated at a value the Ottoman treasury found administratively convenient.
The specific authorization under Mehmed IV places this piece during a period when the Ottoman akçe was in steep debasement, making foreign silver an attractive parallel currency.