Louis XII inherited the French claim to Milan through his grandmother Valentina Visconti and launched his Italian campaigns almost immediately after taking the throne in 1498 — the same year this ecu was struck. The "sun of Provence" mintmark places production at Aix-en-Provence, a mint brought into heavy use as royal financial demands escalated with Italian military ambitions.
The Fr#332a designation distinguishes this as a transitional subtype within the third emission. Relatively few examples surface with full, unweakened strikes from the Aix facility.
Louis XII inherited the French claim to Milan through his grandmother Valentina Visconti and launched his Italian campaigns almost immediately after taking the throne in 1498 — the same year this ecu was struck. The "sun of Provence" mintmark places production at Aix-en-Provence, a mint brought into heavy use as royal financial demands escalated with Italian military ambitions.
The Fr#332a designation distinguishes this as a transitional subtype within the third emission. Relatively few examples surface with full, unweakened strikes from the Aix facility.