Ducat - Dorino Gattilusio

Dorino Gattilusio ruled Lesbos as a Genoese lord under nominal Byzantine suzerainty, a balancing act that defined the island's political position throughout the mid-fifteenth century. His ducats were struck in deliberate imitation of the Venetian gold ducat — the dominant trade coin of the eastern Mediterranean — a calculated decision to ensure acceptance in Aegean commerce without the backing of a major state treasury. The Gattilusio family had held Lesbos since 1355, when Francesco Gattilusio received the island as a reward from John V Palaiologos for naval assistance in reclaiming the Byzantine throne.

Dorino's reign ended when the Ottomans tightened their grip on the Aegean following the fall of Constantinople in 1453, though he died before that event.