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Gold Ecu - Catherine of Navarre
| Issuer | Béarn, Lordship of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1483-1484 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | An ornate floriated cross pattée at center, with two crossed swords and two crowns placed alternately in the four angles of the cross, all enclosed within a beaded inner circle. The swords are depicted with their hilts outward and blades inward, while the crowns appear in the remaining angles, evoking both temporal and spiritual authority. A Gothic Latin legend fills the outer margin, separated from the inner field by a beaded border. The reverse design follows the standard écus au soleil compositional tradition adapted for this feudal lordship. |
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| Additional information |
Catherine of Navarre inherited Béarn and Navarre in 1483 following the death of her brother Francis Phoebus, who died at fifteen under circumstances considered suspicious even at the time. She was twelve years old. The right to strike gold coinage in Béarn derived from the lordship's ancient privileges, technically independent of the French crown — a jurisdictional anomaly that survived well into the early modern period.
The issue dates place this ecu within the regency years before Catherine reached majority, meaning the coinage was authorized and administered on her behalf.