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Gold Ecu with sun - Charles VIII
| Issuer | France |
|---|---|
| Year | 1483 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 3.4 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Central field bears a floriated cross pattée with fleurs-de-lis terminating each arm, typical of the écu au soleil type issued under Charles VIII. The cross is boldly executed in high relief, its four arms elegantly curved and adorned with fleur-de-lis terminals, with a small sun or fleur-de-lis motif at the centre. A beaded inner circle encloses the central design, and the surrounding legend in uncial script reads XPS VInCIT XPS REGAT XPS IMPER, the traditional Christogram invocation proclaiming Christ's victory, reign, and command. |
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| Mint | Bordeaux, France (?-1880) Dijon, France |
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| Additional information |
Charles VIII came to the throne at thirteen, and the regency government under his sister Anne de Beaujeu moved quickly to stabilize royal finances after the turbulent final years of Louis XI. The écu au soleil had been introduced by Louis XI in 1475 specifically to compete with the Burgundian and Flemish gold coinage flooding French markets — the sun privy mark distinguishing it from earlier écu types and asserting Valois authority over a fractured monetary system.
The "var." notation against Royales 575A suggests a die or privy mark variant not fully catalogued by Gadoury, worth cross-referencing against the Duplessy corpus for precise attribution.