I purchased the Silver Gigliato at a coin show a couple months back. I don't have anything like it - but now that I have a good scan, some things strike me as odd about it, and I'm hoping it doesn't turn out to be a fake. The second piece, 1722 2 Reales - I just received it today. The scan makes it look far more flat than it actually appears in hand, but I thought it was a decent image. I just wanted to share both. If the Anjou piece strikes anyone else as appearing off, please let me know - it's going to bother me until I place what troubles me about it, specifically. By the way, how are my scans looking these days? I can get better resolution, but then I exceed the max size allowed to attach.
Nice 2 reales ! I almost got started on those a couple years ago - but then I figured Good Lord I got enough to collect already I've always liked the coins - but as the man said - ya gotta know your limitations To be honest the Gigliato is out of my field. I think I have a book or two around here that talks about them - Grierson I believe. I was just reading it again last night. I'll have to check. Nice lookin coin though
Thanks GD! funny, but my images appear darker on my work monitor than they do on my home computer - but everyone else's pics look the same. I wonder why that would be... I have another example of the 2 reales on the way, and I can't wait to get it in my hands. I love how the broadness of the flan effects the overall appearance of the coin. It's almost like every piece has its own unique collector value.
Nice coins Rick....but not nice enough to make me go over to the Dark Side You might try lightting your photos if you can...that should take care of the dakeness....GDJMSP has taken photos longer than I have so he will know more then I can tell you... Speedy
OK - took a crash course on the gigliato, also known as the gillat & carlino, last night and today. Here's what I found. The coin design originally started out in Naples in 1303 and soon became the one of the most popular silver trade coins in the Mediterranean. It was copied by virtually everybody, Popes, Bishops, Princes & Kings. The coin weighed 3.93 gm, ASW 3.65gm, and was 27mm. It had as types the seated figure of the king and a floriated cross with a lily in each corner which gave the coin its name gigliato. It was struck in huge quantities by Charles II and his successor Robert the Wise 1309 - 43. Robert even issued the coin at Avignon as well since he was the Count of Provence and the coin also spread throughout the Aegean area and became the model for the coins struck by local rulers there. The became so popular that it continued to be struck in Robert's name for decades after his death. Even in the mid 15th century the coin was ordered to be struck at the Papal mints by Martin V and Eugenius IV. The new coins were only distinguished from the original design by the use of the mint master's segno ( privy mark ) at the end of the reverse legend. Which brings us to your coin Rick. You said it looks a bit odd to you - well I think that may be because you might have one of those examples struck by Martin V or Eugenius IV. The legends on Robert's coin should read - obv - +ROBERTUS DEI GRA IERL' ET SICIL REX rev - +HONOR REGIS IUDICIU DILIGIT Your coin has the correct legends of course, but the symbol at 12 o'clock of the reverse should be a small + (cross) as found on the obverse before ROBERTUS. Your coin has instead a rather large gothic cross. Now I don't know for sure that this large cross is the segno as mentioned above, but perhaps it is. I have pictures of Robert's coin to compare, and I have found an example of Robert's coin available on-line - HERE This coin ( at the link ) matches what I have in my books. It is also possible that this coin may have been struck at any of the mints that copied this coin's design over a period of almost 250 yrs. And of course it is also possible it is a counterfeit - or genuine. To be honest I have no idea - I can only report on the information available to me. That's about all I can do in 1 day pal PS - you might wish to contact Josh ( WINS member ) - and that's his web site by the way, Civitas, he actually knows this stuff
Wow! that's quite a 'bit' of research you did there! What resource did you use? Grierson? What bothers me about the coin, personally, is that when I compared it against other similar examples, it just had a different <i>feel</i> to it. Maybe it is a different strike, like you suggested. Thanks! Josh has a particular piece from the swiss cantons that has my fingers itching... I'd wager I will be making a purchase in a week or two. Maybe I will pass the image over to him and see what he has to say, at the same time.
I got a bit of info from Coins of the World by Carson, but most of it came from Coins of Medieval Europe by Philip Grierson. I highly recommend the second book. It is not a coin catalog, it is more of a highly detailed historical account of the coinage and their impact on the world. Reads like a novel but is packed with info about the coins!! Complete with almost 500 black & white pics and 8 pages of color plates. This book is WOW !
