In the Aurora Numismatica auction today, I just won a coin that I was extremely excited about and had been after for several months now. It is a Fiorino struck in Florence sometime between 1237 and 1250, though likely due to the style (which I will elaborate on later) it was made in 1237 or shortly thereafter. Arguably, this coin can be considered the very first Florin. Historical Context: Throughout the 12th Century, Florence became an increasingly-wealthy and powerful city-state in Italy. Despite Florence’s economic growth, its neighbors surpassed Florence in wealth and power. Florence had no mint of its own, so it relied heavily upon the coinage of its neighbors Pisa and Lucca. The denari struck in these cities had degraded over the past couple of centuries to the point that they were poorly-struck, ugly coins made out of extremely-debased silver by the 13th Century. An early Denaro of Lucca: A 13th-Century Denaro of Lucca: Between 1232 and 1237, someone began privately striking coins in Florence as an attempt to replace the wretched coins currently in circulation. (Some say that the earliest of these were struck in 1182, but no extant record can confirm this; most pre-1200 documents of the public Archives were burned by Gualtieri Duca.) These coins were struck in good silver, were well-styled, and were produced with good workmanship. On the obverse was a Fleur-de-Lis, the symbol of Florence, and the name of the city, FLORENTIA. On the reverse is a portrait of St. John with the inscription S. IONANNES B. The portrait of St. John on these has a very distinct style that seems to be somewhat reminiscent of the portraits on contemporary coins from other areas. In 1237, Florence became a free municipality independent of the Marquisate of Tuscany, and an official mint was established shortly thereafter. It is at this point we see the earliest reference to a “Fiorino” in a manuscript alluding to a silver coinage being struck in Florence, meaning that the official coinage began at this time. The value of these coins was set at 12 denari of Lucca. Though the fiorino was very faithful to the “prototype,” the reverse portrait of St. John was refined with a very artistic style that had a realism not seen on other contemporary coins. This new coin proved to be very popular in Florence and its neighbors because of its good silver and attractive appearance. However, as Florence became more involved with trade, it became apparent that a much higher-value coin was needed. In 1252, Florence began striking gold fiorinos at a value of 1 gold fiorino per 20 silver fiorinos. These were struck with a very high fineness of gold and high level of artistry. This ratio was maintained for a couple decades until the silver florin began degrading (and silver itself began depreciating with respect to gold). by 1300, the ratio was 47/1, and by 1500 it was 147/1. The gold fiorino maintained its purity and quality for several centuries and became the dominant means of trade throughout Europe, being imitated in many different countries. The use of the name “Fiorino” or “Florin” continued into the 20th Century, showing just how much of an impact this little silver coin had on the economy of Europe.
Here is the evolution of the silver Fiorino: This is the "prototype" struck between 1232 and 1237: This is my coin. Note how the layout and style of the coin as a whole is the same as the "prototype." However, St. John is portrayed with a much finer portrait, typical of the high quality of Florentine products. This "variety" was struck between 1237 and 1250. Note the dot after FLORENTIA and the wide space between the Fleur petals and the stem. That is diagnostic for the early variety and is fairly scarce. This example has longer hair, which is a breakaway from the original. The bust of St. John then starts including more of his torso, making him look less scrunched onto the coin. The next major type if the "Fiorino di Stella". These are named after the star placed after FLORENTIA. This is by far the most common of the varieties. These were made between 1250 and 1260, so these would have been produced concurrently with the gold Fiorinos. These are characterized by the wide space between the Fleur petals and the stem, a helmet-like top petal, a thin stem, and long spindly hair on St. John. A later example of the above variety has a narrow gap between the the Fleur petals and a thick stem. The helmet-like ridge then disappeared from the top petal. Then there is a very scarce variety in which the star is replaced with a dot. The style of the Fleur indicates it was struck after the above issues. This was struck sometime between 1260 and 1279. Then the reverse inscription was altered from S . IONANNES . B . to S . IONANNES : B . (addition of a : between S and B). This variety is also placed between 1260 and 1279, though it was likely struck later than the above coin. And the last variety (which I don't have a picture of) changes the dot after FLORENTIA to an o. This is probably the latest variety of the silver Fiorinos, though it is still placed in the 1260-1279 time frame. There is also another odd variety which has a trifoil (a clover) beneath St. John's cross. This one is said to have been struck between 1250 and 1256.
Congrats on that acquisition, @TypeCoin971793! All of the coins shown (including yours) seem to be in remarkable condition compared to others of that general era and place.
That is a great coin!! And a stupendous write up which will certainly earn featured status. Well done!
That is a great coin @TypeCoin971793 congrats on such a magnificent acquisition. I will have to look forone of these coins because they are quite attractive. Do you happen to know of any reference works for the coins of Florence?
My other Florence hammered silver. This is a soldino from 1463, one of the finest known for the entire 1462-1470 type.
Strange as it may seem, that coin was offered by Nomisma as a unsold lot, this example is "unique"according to the auction house. I never knew that Florins also were struck in silver....
Picked up one of these yesterday (single globe next to the cross in the obverse legend). Not as nice as yours, @TypeCoin971793, but I'm very happy with it! (130 GBP.) So cool to have a coin from the beginning of Florence's rise. Thanks for the excellent writeup!