Did Henry III Of France Mint Any Coins Dated 1574?

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Author	Replies: 4 / Views: 1,034
tdziemia Pillar of the Community United States 7956 Posts	Posted 05/02/2019 08:39 am I am hoping someone has a good catalog for France. Collectors of Polish coins have a problem with the 1570s. Sigimund II last issued coins in 1570, and died in 1572. There was an interregnum in which denars and schillings were issued in 1573, and the next king of Poland was was Henry III of France, who ruled briefly in 1574-75 before abandoning the throne when his father died, and he was crowned King of France. His French coins bear the legend "Henry III King of France and Poland," and are collected by Polish collectors, even though not minted in the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth Stefan Bathory was the next king. He ascended the throne in 1576, and Polish coins are again minted starting 1577. I know that Henry minted coins dated 1575 and 1576, but I have not been able to find any dated 1574. DO they exist? Report this Post to the Staff

erafjel Pillar of the Community Sweden 2124 Posts	Posted 05/02/2019 12:59 pm According to the Sombart catalog, there is only one coin with Henry III dated 1574: A teston from the Nantes mint (T). Very rare, a single example is listed by Sombart. Possibly there is also a 1574 half teston from the same mint, but no example is known. So yes, they exist, but seem hard to come by... Report this Post to the Staff
erafjel Pillar of the Community Sweden 2124 Posts	Posted 05/02/2019 4:00 pm Having looked a bit more into this, I see a one problem with the 1574 Henry III teston. The first royal decree about manufacturing coins with Henry's name is dated 7 January 1575. So, any coins with Henry III dated 1574 would strictly speaking be illegal. And even if the Nantes mint master would be a big fan of the new king, it would have been difficult to begin minting his coins prematurely since at this time the master dies were manufactured in Paris, and that would not have happened until 1575. So, in conclusion, I doubt that the 1574 coin that Sombart mentions is genuine. Either a forgery or an engraving mistake, I think. Report this Post to the Staff
tdziemia Pillar of the Community United States 7956 Posts	Posted 05/02/2019 5:42 pm Thank you. That confirms my hunch, as I could not find an example in a brief search. I have a 1575 teston. Now I must decide whether I feel a 1576 coin is appropriate to a Poland collection, since Henry had already abandoned the Polish throne at this point, even though the obverse legends on his coins continue to claim the title King of Poland. Edited by tdziemia 05/02/2019 5:43 pm Report this Post to the Staff
erafjel Pillar of the Community Sweden 2124 Posts	Posted 05/03/2019 02:20 am On my 1584 franc Henry still claims to be king of Poland, and that goes on until the last post-mortem coins of 1594 (according to Sombart). Report this Post to the Staff
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