I've always had an interest in medieval Italy and specifically the Republic of Venice. Venice was originally formed in the late 400's when Roman civilians fled northern Italy to the safety of the marshes on the Italian coast to escape Atilla the Hun's hoards. When the Lombards invaded Italy in the 560's, the Venetians behind their lagoon's were untouchable. On paper the Venetians were subject to the Emperor in Constantinople, but with the loss of the Exarchate of Ravenna in 751 and Imperial priorities focused on holding Anatolia, meant that for the most part Venice was on it's own. Venice was essentially independent from the Byzantines by the 9th century, but still enjoyed good relations with their Roman cousins. Being stuck on a few lagoon islands off the coast of Italy made the Venetians good mariners by necessity, and excellent merchants by extension. Venice had a prosperous trading agreement with the Byzantines which only improved with Byzantine desperation for naval forces during the reign of Alexius I Komnenos. Unfortunately, Venetian-Byzantine relations were permanently soured due to the Venetian involvement in the Fourth Crusade in 1204, which saw the Byzantine Empire temporally broken up into Latin kingdoms. Talk about stabbing your dad in the back! By the time Pietro Gradengo became Doge(Dux) of Venice in 1289, the Byzantines were so ticked off at the Venetians that they granted the Italian city-state of Genoa exclusive trading privileges at Venetian expense. Suffice it to say, this action led open warfare between the two merchant powers that would drag on for about a century and a half. One of the more severe Venetian defeats of the wars occurred under Pietro at the Battle of Curzola on September 8th 1298, where dozens of Venetian ships were lost along with thousands of men. In addition to the disastrous war with Genoa, Pietro also effectively turned Venice into an oligarchy with his declaration that only sons born to current members of the ruling council could hold their father's positions. To make matters worse for poor Pietro, he got himself and the entire Republic excommunicated by the pope for starting a war with the Papal states over control of a city in northern Italy. Eventually, Pietro embraced the sweet relief of death in 1311, much to the celebration of the Venetians. As for the Republic of Venice; it would reach it's zenith in the late 1400's and early 1500's, then slowly fade into oblivion until a certain Napoleon Bonaparte would finally abolish it in 1797. In the end though it was the rise of Spain and Portugal with their New World Colonies, rich in silver and spices, that would render Venice irrelevant and be the death blow to the Merchant Republic. A city that resisted Attila was eventually conquered by American Silver and Spice! One perk for us numismatists is that Venice, by virtue of being a mercantile powerhouse, minted lots of coins. Finding a decent Grosso for under $100 isn't hard, and the coins have a pleasing art style considering the period they were minted in. Obverse Doge (duke) stands facing receiving banner from patron saint St. Mark. Lettering: . PE • GRADONICO • Reverse Facing figure of Nimbate Jesus Christ Pantocrator, enthroned, IC XC field to the left and right. Lettering: IC / XC A map fo the major powers in the Mediterranean circa 1300 CE. A rare depiction of Doge Pietro Feel free to post any relevant coins!
Great coin and informative write-up! A grosso is still missing from my collection, but here is a soldino, effectively a quarter grosso first introduced in 1332 AD: Italy, Republic of Venice, under Giovanni Dolfin (57th Doge), AR soldino (slightly clipped), 1356-1361 AD. Obv: +IOh’S DELPhYNO DVx; kneeling doge holding banner l., . Rev: + S MARCVS VENETI; lion of St. Marc with banner l.; in field l., S. 14mm, 0.43g. Ref: MEC 12, 1164–1165.
I too have always had a thing for Venice. I would highly suggest John Julius Norwich's book on the city, as well as his 3 part series on Byzantium, (Venice and Byzantium are highly interrelated).
Thanks, Magnus Maximus, Orielensis and Medoraman, for a terrific thread! ...Yep, as a 'popular' historian (of the highest calibre), Norwich was the rightful successor of Thomas B. Costain (kings of England). Norwich also did a good one on the Normans in Sicily. ...Um, here's my holed one of Pietro Ziani (1205-1229), the successor of Dandolo, who initiated the type. ...From the proceeds of the Fourth Crusade. The Byzantine influence is All Over this. The Venetians' ongoing relationship with Byzantium was indeed as fraught as it gets. From the initial sack of Constantinople, the Venetians netted the relics of St. Mark, who summarily became the patron saint of the city. (That's him on the right: '.S. M. VENETI'.) 'Appropriated,' along with the quasi-ikonic coin motifs, in the service of a different communion. Then, when the last Latin emperor, Baldwin II, had to dispose of the rest of Constantinople's relics, he initialy pawned them to Venice. ...Louis IX eventually bought them, including the Crown of Thorns, for which he built the Sainte-Chappelle.
...Well, okay, then I had to get one of Jacopo Tiepelo (1229-1249), the doge during Jean de Brienne's tenure as regent of Baldwin II (his son-in-law) and de jure Latin emperor. With apologies for the pics.... --But No, not to scare people; Magnus Maximus is absolutely right about the affordability of Really Solid examples from all but the first couple of doges.
...Doh, here's a numismatic reference for this stuff --conspicuously missing any kind of comprehensive listing, but no less solid. Recommended to me by the published numismatist, Alan DeShazo.
Those are scone great coins @Magnus Maximus @Orielensis and @+VGO.DVCKS. I think the grosso of Venice might be the most iconic silver coin of the medieval period. I have yet to add one to my collection, but do have a mezzanino nuovo. Maybe one of these days I'll get a grosso.
That one's serious, @TheRed. With the motif of Christ rising from the (already, as such somewhat anachronistically --ya just Think?-- Christian) tomb. @FitzNigel posted a thread on this recently, which I hope you saw. By the 14th century, the Venetian issues start to jettison the neoByzantine motifs, replacing them (along with the legends) with Latin ones. Given which, that coin would be my one reason to branch out into the 14th century for this series.
Fun write up and beautiful coins Here's my Doggos...I mean Doges: Medieval Italy, Venice. Antonio Veniero. 1382-1400. AR grosso (21.4 mm, 1.75 g, 4 h). ANTO' • VENERIO • • S • M • VENETI, DVX, doge standing left and St. Mark, nimbate, standing facing, both holding pendant between them; stars flanking / • + • TIBI • LAVS • • 3 • GLORIA •, Christ, nimbate, seated facing on high-backed throne. CNI 40; Biaggi 2855; Papadopoli 3. VF. Rare. Ex: Ares Dads telling jokes: my holiest coin Doge Agostino Barbarigo ITALY, Venice. 1486-1501. AR Soldino o Marchetto (0.33 gm). LAVS TIBI SOLI, Christ, nimbate, standing facing / AV BAR SMV DVX, St. Mark standing right blessing kneeling Doge. Paolucci, page 53, 7.
Pietro Gradenigo was the 49th Doge, and Giovanni Soranzo became the 51st Doge after the short reign of Marino Zorzi (c. 1231 – 3 July 1312). Italy, Venice, Giovanni Soranzo, AD 1312-1328, AR Grosso Right: IO SVPANTIO SM VENETI, Doge and St. Mark standing facing, holding banner between them DVX going down Left: IC - XC, Christ Pantocrator enthroned facing
I will second the recommendation for the book, Zecca. If you ever wanted to learn about the operation of a medieval mint and its moneyers, read this book for the intricate detail of its adventures (and many misadventures). Don't for get the humble Piccolo. Italy, Venice. Doge Orio Malipiero, AD 1178-1192. BI Piccolo (13mm, 0.25g, 11h). Venice mint. Obv: +AVRIO DVX; Short cross pattee. Rev: +S MARCVS; Short cross pattee. Ref: CNI VII 47; Papadopoli 4; Paolucci 1.
@Sulla80, thanks for the complete attribution. (As was conspicuously absent on mine.) Liking the light and toning on your picture a lot. Could almost picture it being backlit by a rose window.
Aaaah, Yes! @Edessa, Finally, a Piccolo! Pre-Dandolo (coolly recently so) at that! Always wanted one of these, ideally of Danolo himself, since the grossos are kind of out of reach.
Thanks @+VGO.DVCKS, this coin has long been a favorite...and perhaps could have more properly identified as
Venetian coins are quite fun! I’m happy to pile in (although I think all of mine have been represented already...) Italy - Venice Enrico Dandolo, r. 1192-1205 AR Denaro, 13.66 mm x 0.4 grams Obv.: +S MARCVS around small cross Rev.: +ENRIC DVX around small cross Ref.: MEC 12-1004; De Wit 3625 Italy - Venice Pietro Zani, r. 1205-1229 AR Grosso, 19.79 mm, 1.9 grams Obv.: [·+·]P·ZIANI· ·S·M.VENETI outside (Z retrograde), D/U/X down banner held between doge and St. Mark facing Rev.: [I¯C] X¯C across field, Christ enthroned facing Ref.: Similar to De Witt 3626 (guess I need to update this with an MEC Number!) My post on this coin here Italy - Venice Andrea Dandolo, r. 1343-1354 (1346-1353) AR Mezzanino Nuovo, 15.52 mm x 0.9 grams ANDADVL ·SMVENE DVX. Saint Mark left receiving candle from Doge right. Or in field (unknown mintmaster) Rev.: ·XPS·RES VRESIT·. Christ emerging from sepulchre Ref.: MEC 12-1131; cf. De Wit 3640 And my post on this coin here My review of Stahl’s book here
@Ryro - your first coin is actually a Bulgarian imitation of a Venetian grosso! Here is mine: Bulgaria Ivan Alexander, r. 1331-1371 (1340-1365) Trnovo mint, AR Groši, 19.63 mm x 1.1 grams Obv.: Christ standing in front of throne, both hands raised in benediction. IC - XC on ether side of head. Monograms for Alexander and Tsar on either side of his body above the throne Rev.: Ivan Alexander left and son Michael Asen right wearing stemma & holding cross scepters. Long staff between toped with a banner. Monograms for ‘Alexander’ and ‘Tsar’ on either side at top, and monograms for ‘pious’ and ‘Michael’ in the fields Ref.: MSCB Bulgaria 9.1.2; De Wit 3905 (as Asen I) Ex. Harlan J. Berk Note: Type B or C clipped to fit the weight of Type D
Many thanks, @FitzNigel, for putting all of that in one place! And apologies for the short-term memory loss.
After reading this thread I couldn't resist adding a Venetian grosso to my collection – it arrived the day before yesterday: Italy, Republic of Venice, under Lorenzo Tiepolo (46th Doge), AR grosso, 1268–1275 AD. Obv: .LA.TEVPL’. DVX .S.M.VENETI.; Mark the Evangelist, standing facing to r. with book, passing banner-staff to doge standing facing to l. Rev: IC-XC; Christ enthroned facing; wedge in lower l. field (next to leg). 21.5mm, 2.09g. Ref: MEC 12, 1041–2.
