Gold Ecu with sun of Dauphine - Francis I 1st type, 3rd emission

The écu au soleil was first introduced under Louis XI in 1475 and remained France's dominant gold denomination through the early sixteenth century, but the Dauphiné issues occupy a specific administrative niche — struck at Crémieu or Romans under the authority of the heir apparent's appanage, not the royal mints proper. Francis held the Dauphiné from birth until his accession in 1515, and production at these regional mint points continued into the early years of his reign under transitional authority arrangements that complicate precise attribution to this day.

The "var." designation against Dy#782 matters here — Duplessy himself acknowledged die variations in this emission that remain incompletely catalogued.