Double Tournois - Henri III Riom mint

The Double Tournois was the workhorse of French petty coinage throughout the later sixteenth century, but the Riom mint — established in Auvergne under royal authority — produced comparatively modest volumes relative to the great northern workshops at Paris or Rouen. Henri III's reign was financially catastrophic: the Wars of Religion drained the treasury continuously, and copper coinage was repeatedly debased or reissued to cover shortfalls. Provincial mints like Riom existed partly to satisfy local demand that the principal mints could not reliably service during periods of civil disruption.

CGKL#104 distinguishes this Riom emission within what is otherwise a sprawling and difficult type to attribute by mint mark alone.