I was pleasantly surprised to be gifted a medieval coin from @nicholasz219 of Hugues X. I own a few French denars, but not many. So this is a welcome coin that I may not have added anytime soon. And big thanks to @seth77 for confirming the attribution of it. Hugues X, Comte de le Marche (1219-1249 A.D.) AR Denier O: +VGO COMES; Cross within beaded circle at center. R: +MARCHIE; Cross with two crescents and two annulets within a beaded circle at center. .80g 19mm BD 437; PA 2609v; D 960v
I am glad you like it @Mat. I think these type of little medieval pennies are fascinating. And for the price it is hard to beat. I don’t really know anything except what I’ve read recently and the info that @seth77 sent Mat. I like the adventure of figuring these little pieces out and placing them in the context of larger France/history. The father of Hugues X, Hugues IX, “The Brown” was to marry a very fair lady named Isabel of Angouleme but King John of England made off with her. This triggered a large scale rebellion by Hugues IX and the entire de Lusignan clan. King Phillip of France declared John’s holdings in France abandoned for his refusal to appear the court of Phillip to answer the charges against him by Hugues IX. Then, after King John died, Isabel returned France. And married Hugues X, the son of IX and the minter of this coin.
And here is what I wrote in reply to Mat regarding this coin: This is very likely an immobilized type, which started with Hugo IX de Lusignan at Bellac after 1200 to around 1218 (under the direct rule of Hugo IX, dit "Le Brun" 1199/1203-1208/1219) or after 1218 to around 1250, under the short bailliage of his son, Hugo X, who became Count of La Marche in his own right in 1219, at the news of the death of Hugo "Le Brun" at the siege of Damietta in the Fifth Crusade. There are probably two phases of this type: the early phase of the minting at Bellac(?) during Hugo IX's lifetime (to 1219) and the later phase minted at Bellac and Montreuil-Bonnin to around the death of Hugo X in 1249. The distinction is mainly due to the overall style and mostly weight. The early phase is at cca. 1g while the later phase stands at cca. 0.75g poids theorique. The availability of these coins suggests that a large number of them were minted either on two separate occasions or on multiple occasions during the rule of father and son between cca. 1200 and 1249/50. Hugo X died like his father, during the siege of Damietta in June 1249. The coinage was likely continued to around 1250.
My example is about .8 of a gram, give or take a bit. Hugues X, Denier, +MARCHIE AR Denier Hugues X, Comte de le Marche B. ca. 1185 - Died June 5, 1249 Issued: 1219 - 1239 18.0mm 0.80gr 11h O: +VGO COMES; Cross within beaded circle at center. R: +MARCHIE; Cross with two crescents and two annulets within a beaded circle at center. BD 437; PA 2609v; D 960v Holding History Coins/Nathan Hochrein
