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Testone - Johann Jakob Trivulzio
| Issuer | Lordship of Mesocco |
|---|---|
| Year | 1487-1518 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Testone |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The Virgin Mary, nimbed and robed, is depicted standing and turned to the left in a posture of adoration, her hands clasped in prayer as she gazes down upon the Christ Child. The nimbate infant Jesus lies before her, rendered in a devotional composition characteristic of late 15th-century North Italian ecclesiastical iconography. A Latin legend encircles the scene, reading from the reverse inscription, referencing the act of adoration: 'Whom she bore, she adored.' The overall style reflects the influence of the Milanese artistic tradition prevalent in Trivulzio coinage. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The Trivulzio lordship over Mesocco — a strategically vital Alpine valley controlling access between Milan and the Graubünden — was itself a transaction. Johann Jakob Trivulzio, the celebrated Milanese condottiere who commanded French forces at the Battle of Fornovo in 1495, acquired the territory through wealth accumulated in military service to the French crown. He later sold the entire lordship to the Grisons in 1549, ending private coinage rights in the valley entirely.
The testone as a denomination originated in Milan in the 1470s and Trivulzio's issue of it reflects his deep Milanese connections.