Obol - Amadeus VIII

Amadeus VIII ruled Savoy for an unusually long and transformative stretch, eventually abdicating in 1440 to enter his own monastic order at Ripaille before being elected antipope Felix V in 1439 — the last antipope in the history of the Catholic Church. This obol belongs to the earlier decades of his reign, well before that remarkable turn. Billon coinage of this type circulated through Alpine trade routes connecting French and Italian markets, and the weight on surviving examples varies noticeably, reflecting the loose tolerance standards applied to petty denominations at Savoyard mints during this period.