HISTORIC OLD COINS
BRILLIANT
UNCIRCULATED FIRST COINS OF UNIFIED ITALY
The
Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed on March 17, 1861. Victor
Emmanuel II, the king of Sardinia was declared King. Prior to
that time Italy was a collection of independent nations. The
first coins of unified Italy were issued later that year, including the
copper 1 and 2 Centesimi. King Victor Emmanuel is portrayed
on the obverse. The denomination and date within a wreath are
on the reverse. The 1 Centesimo is 15mm and the 2 Centesimi
is 20.2mm. Both coins were struck in Milan and have the “M”
mintmark at the bottom of the reverse. Amazingly both coins
are in Uncirculated condition and still retain most of their original
mint luster! It is an historic set in top condition.
Item
IT-SET2
ITALY 1 & 2 CENTESIMI 1861-M KM1.1 & 2.1 BU
$55.00
Also see:
ATTRACTIVE COINS
OF THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC
SCARCE COINS OF
PORTUGUESE MALACCA
Portugal
took Malacca in 1511 and controlled it for the next 130 years, until it
was conquered by the Dutch East India Company. Today it is
part of Malaysia. The Malacca mint produced these tin
Dinheiro coins for use in the territory. John III (Joao III)
ruled Portugal from 1521 to 1557. He expanded Portugal’s colonization
of Brazil and Asia. He was called the “Grocer King” due to
his country’s rich profits from the spice trade. His tin
Dineiro features a Cross with the letters “ISMA” in the four quadrants,
which stood for Ioanes Senhor MalaccA, meaning struck for King John at
Malacca. The other side depicts an armillary sphere, which
was used in navigation.
He
was succeeded by his young grandson, Sebastian I (Sebastio
I). Sebastian became king at age 3 in 1557.
Sebastian died in battle in a crusade against Morocco in 1578, before
marrying or producing any heirs. One side of his coin
features three arrows with the letters “BA”, which may mean “Bazaruco,
or bazaar money, indicating it was for local use. The other side has a
crude representation of an armillary sphere on the other.
Both coins are about 16mm to 18mm in diameter. They show
little wear, but are crudely struck.
Item
MALC-JOHN
PORTUGUESE MALACCA DINHIERO JOHN III 1521-1557 VF out
Item
MALC-SEB
PORTUGUESE MALACCA DINHIERO SEBASTIAN 1557-1578 VF $30.00
SCARCE COIN OF DEMAK
SULTANATE
The
Demak Sultanate was founded about 1475 by Sultan Pangeran al Patah,
also known as Raden Patah. He was of Javanese nobility and his mother
may have been a Chinese princess who had been exiled from China.
His Sultanate was the first Muslim state in Java.
He quickly expanded his Sultanate to include most of the
northern coast of Java and southern Sumatra. This was
an important step in bringing Islam to what is now Indonesia.
The Sultan ruled until his death in 1518. The Sultanate
lasted about another 30 years, until it collapsed in a dynastic
feud. The Sultanate prospered through trade in spices, rice
and its control over Javanese trading ports. This
Pitis of Sultan Pangeran al Patah is one of the few
affordable coins of the Demak Sultanate. The uniface tin coin
is approximately 19mm to 20mm in diameter and grades Very Fine.
Item
DEMAK
DEMAK SULTANATE, TIN PITIS, PANGERAN AL PATAH 1475-1518 VF $19.50
SILVER
COIN OF CHARLES V FROM BESANCON 
Charles was the eldest son of Philip the Handsome and Joanna the
Mad. As heir to three of Europe’s leading dynasties: The
Hapsburgs, The House of Valois-Burgundy and the crown of Castile
& Aragon he ruled over much of Europe as well as the Spanish
colonies in the Americas and Asia. He stopped
Suleyman the
Magnificent’s
advance into Europe at the Siege of Vienna in
1529. In an effort to try to limit further religious wars
caused by the Protestant Reformation he encouraged the formation of the
Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the calling of the Council of Trent,
which attempted to reform the Catholic Church and repudiate
Protestantism. Charles abdicated the throne in 1555, dividing
his lands between his son, Phillip II,
who was given Spain, and his
brother Ferdinand, who was given the Hapsburg throne. In 1526
Charles granted the Free Imperial City of Besancon the right to issue
coins. At the time it was a French speaking city under nominal Hapsburg
rule. The city issued coins bearing the name and portrait of
Charles V until 1673. In 1674 French troops took the city and
it has since remained part of France. This silver coin,
called a Carlos is named after Charles. It has the Charles’s
portrait on the obverse and the cities arms on the reverse. The coins
were struck from about 1610 to 1622 but do not have a visible date.
Item
BESANCON
BESANCON SILVER CARLOS 1610-1622 KM10 VG $29.95
THE MAN WHO SPARKED
THE PROTESTANT
REFORMATION
Albrecht
von Brandenburg, coming from the powerful ruling Prussian family, was
appointed the archbishop of Magdeburg and administrator of the Diocese
of Halberstadt in 1513, at the young age of 23. The following
year he also became the Archbishop of Mainz. That position
carried considerable power temporal power as Archbishop of Mainz was
one of the seven Electors of the Holy Roman Empire, making him only
second in rank to the Emperor. His appointment to these
positions was contrary to Church law as he was not yet reached the
canonical age of 27 and one person could not hold more than single
diocese. However Albrecht was granted dispensations from Pope Leo X
after he made a large contribution to the Pope to help pay for the
rebuilding of St. Peter’s in Rome. Albrecht had borrowed that
money from Jakob Fugger. In order to repay Fugger, he was
granted permission by Pope Leo to sell indulgences, as long as half
proceeds went to the Pope. All this was too much for a German
monk named Martin Luther who driven to write his famous 95 Theses,
which he posted on the doors of the Wittenburg Church, thus starting
the Protestant Reformation. This silver Groschen of Albrecht
was minted by the Duchy of Prussia, which at that time was a vassal
state of the Kingdom of Poland. One side depicts Albrecht
along with the date and legends. The other side features and
Eagle with an “S” on its chest, signifying Sigismund I, King of Poland,
along with Albrecht’s abbreviated name and titles. The 23mm
silver coin is dated between 1532 and 1545.
Item
ALBRECHT PRUSSIA SILVER GROSCHEN, ALBRECHT
1532-1545 VF
$95.00
SILVER
COIN OF LEOPOLD THE HOGMOUTH
Leopold
I was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1658 to 1705. He had a
rather
pronounced lower lip, possibly brought on by his father’s marriage to
his cousin. He was described as a cultivated man of extreme
ugliness, hence the name "The Hogmouth". As Emperor of the
Holy
Roman Empire (which was neither Holy, Roman, nor an Empire) he ruled a
vast territory including Austria, Hungary, Bohemia, as well as parts of
Germany. He claimed the throne of Spain, leading to The War of Spanish
The Succession. Leopold fought a number of wars against the
Turks
and France. The engravers made no attempt to hide his
ugliness on
the coins, hence his protruding Hapsburg jaw is plainly visible on the
coin. His coins tend to have a slight curvature that was
caused
by the minting process which used "roller dies" rather than the coin
being struck flat. We offer a silver 15 Kreuzer coins of
Leopold
from Hungary featuring the Madonna and Child on the reverse and a
wonderfully ugly portrait of Leopold on the
obverse. The
coin is date between 1660 and 1696 and are approximately 30mm in
diameter.
Item
HU-LEO-15K HUNGARY SILVER 15 KREUZER LEOPOLD
THE HOGMOUTH 1660-1696 F-VF $59.75
ST.
PETER ON SILVER COINS OF THE ARCHBISHOPS OF TRIER
The
Archbishopric of Trier was one of the most powerful in
Germany. The position held special privileges as it was one
of only seven electors who chose the Holy Roman Emperor and
controlled the territory between France and the Rhine. This silver 3
Albus coin of Trier is called a Petermenger. One side of the
coin depicts St. Peter in the clouds holding a key.
The other side has the arms of the Archbishop. The coin is
approximately 23mm in diameter. Johann Hugo von Orsbeck was
Archbishop Trier from 1675 until his death in 1711. He helped
chose Joseph I as the successor to
Leopold
the Hogmouth as Holy Roman
Emperor. He ruled during a difficult
period of time for Trier. France, under Louis XIV,
repeatedly invaded and occupied Trier. Johann Hugo issued
silver Petermengers from 1691 to 1695 with the date on the front, and
again from 1706 to 1709 with the date on the back. Upon Johann Hugo's
death, Charles Joseph of Lorraine purchased the
position of Archbishop for an enormous sum. He died four
years later in 1815.
Item
TRIER-JOHANN TRIER SILVER PETERMENGER
1691-1709 JOHANN HUGO F
$32.00
Item
TRIER-CHARLES TRIER SILVER PETERMENGER
1711-1715 CHARLES JOSEPH F
$34.00
OLD
COIN OF AUSTRIA
The
Imperial Coat-of-Arms of Austria is featured on the obverse 1851
Austrian 1 Kruezer. It was the first time the denomination
had been struck since 1816, and was one of the first coins of Emperor
Franz-Joseph I, Franz-Joseph reigned for almost 68 years,
until his death in 1916. During his reign Austria lost its
possessions in Italy in the Italian Wars of Independence in 1859 and
1866. Its defeat in the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 lead to
the unification of Germany under Prussia. After this rocky
beginning of his reign, a forty-eight year period of peace
then
prevailed in Austria until the start of World War I in 1914.
The reverse of the 23mm copper coin features the denomination and
date.
Item
AT-1KR AUSTRIA 1 KREUZER 1851
KM2185 VF
$3.00
100
YEAR OLD BRILLIANT UNCIRCULATED MALDIVE COIN
This
Brilliant Uncirculated bronze 1 Larin was struck for the Maldive
Islands in 1913 by the Birmingham Mint. The 13mm coin has
Arabic
legends on both sides. The coin is in its original Brilliant
Uncirculated condition. It is an amazingly inexpensive coin
considering
its age and condition.
Item MV-1L
MALDIVE ISLANDS 1 LARIN, AH1331 = 1913AD KM41
BU
$5.00
FOR MORE HISTORICAL OLD COINS, PLEASE SEE:
AFGHANISTAN COINS
OLD COINS OF ANNAM
COINS OF
INDIA and PAKISTAN
COINS OF THE
MIDDLE EAST
2400 YEARS OF CHINESE COINS and
CURRENCY
COINS
OF DEAD NATIONS
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The
Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed on March 17, 1861. Victor
Emmanuel II, the king of Sardinia was declared King. Prior to
that time Italy was a collection of independent nations. The
first coins of unified Italy were issued later that year, including the
copper 1 and 2 Centesimi. King Victor Emmanuel is portrayed
on the obverse. The denomination and date within a wreath are
on the reverse. The 1 Centesimo is 15mm and the 2 Centesimi
is 20.2mm. Both coins were struck in Milan and have the “M”
mintmark at the bottom of the reverse. Amazingly both coins
are in Uncirculated condition and still retain most of their original
mint luster! It is an historic set in top condition. 
Portugal
took Malacca in 1511 and controlled it for the next 130 years, until it
was conquered by the Dutch East India Company. Today it is
part of Malaysia. The Malacca mint produced these tin
Dinheiro coins for use in the territory. John III (Joao III)
ruled Portugal from 1521 to 1557. He expanded Portugal’s colonization
of Brazil and Asia. He was called the “Grocer King” due to
his country’s rich profits from the spice trade. His tin
Dineiro features a Cross with the letters “ISMA” in the four quadrants,
which stood for Ioanes Senhor MalaccA, meaning struck for King John at
Malacca. The other side depicts an armillary sphere, which
was used in navigation. 
He
was succeeded by his young grandson, Sebastian I (Sebastio
I). Sebastian became king at age 3 in 1557.
Sebastian died in battle in a crusade against Morocco in 1578, before
marrying or producing any heirs. One side of his coin
features three arrows with the letters “BA”, which may mean “Bazaruco,
or bazaar money, indicating it was for local use. The other side has a
crude representation of an armillary sphere on the other.
Both coins are about 16mm to 18mm in diameter. They show
little wear, but are crudely struck. 
The
Demak Sultanate was founded about 1475 by Sultan Pangeran al Patah,
also known as Raden Patah. He was of Javanese nobility and his mother
may have been a Chinese princess who had been exiled from China.
His Sultanate was the first Muslim state in Java.
He quickly expanded his Sultanate to include most of the
northern coast of Java and southern Sumatra. This was
an important step in bringing Islam to what is now Indonesia.
The Sultan ruled until his death in 1518. The Sultanate
lasted about another 30 years, until it collapsed in a dynastic
feud. The Sultanate prospered through trade in spices, rice
and its control over Javanese trading ports. This
Pitis of Sultan Pangeran al Patah is one of the few
affordable coins of the Demak Sultanate. The uniface tin coin
is approximately 19mm to 20mm in diameter and grades Very Fine.
Charles was the eldest son of Philip the Handsome and Joanna the
Mad. As heir to three of Europe’s leading dynasties: The
Hapsburgs, The House of Valois-Burgundy and the crown of Castile
& Aragon he ruled over much of Europe as well as the Spanish
colonies in the Americas and Asia. He stopped Suleyman the
Magnificent’s
advance into Europe at the Siege of Vienna in
1529. In an effort to try to limit further religious wars
caused by the Protestant Reformation he encouraged the formation of the
Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the calling of the Council of Trent,
which attempted to reform the Catholic Church and repudiate
Protestantism. Charles abdicated the throne in 1555, dividing
his lands between his son, Phillip II,
who was given Spain, and his
brother Ferdinand, who was given the Hapsburg throne. In 1526
Charles granted the Free Imperial City of Besancon the right to issue
coins. At the time it was a French speaking city under nominal Hapsburg
rule. The city issued coins bearing the name and portrait of
Charles V until 1673. In 1674 French troops took the city and
it has since remained part of France. This silver coin,
called a Carlos is named after Charles. It has the Charles’s
portrait on the obverse and the cities arms on the reverse. The coins
were struck from about 1610 to 1622 but do not have a visible date.
Albrecht
von Brandenburg, coming from the powerful ruling Prussian family, was
appointed the archbishop of Magdeburg and administrator of the Diocese
of Halberstadt in 1513, at the young age of 23. The following
year he also became the Archbishop of Mainz. That position
carried considerable power temporal power as Archbishop of Mainz was
one of the seven Electors of the Holy Roman Empire, making him only
second in rank to the Emperor. His appointment to these
positions was contrary to Church law as he was not yet reached the
canonical age of 27 and one person could not hold more than single
diocese. However Albrecht was granted dispensations from Pope Leo X
after he made a large contribution to the Pope to help pay for the
rebuilding of St. Peter’s in Rome. Albrecht had borrowed that
money from Jakob Fugger. In order to repay Fugger, he was
granted permission by Pope Leo to sell indulgences, as long as half
proceeds went to the Pope. All this was too much for a German
monk named Martin Luther who driven to write his famous 95 Theses,
which he posted on the doors of the Wittenburg Church, thus starting
the Protestant Reformation. This silver Groschen of Albrecht
was minted by the Duchy of Prussia, which at that time was a vassal
state of the Kingdom of Poland. One side depicts Albrecht
along with the date and legends. The other side features and
Eagle with an “S” on its chest, signifying Sigismund I, King of Poland,
along with Albrecht’s abbreviated name and titles. The 23mm
silver coin is dated between 1532 and 1545.
Leopold
I was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1658 to 1705. He had a
rather
pronounced lower lip, possibly brought on by his father’s marriage to
his cousin. He was described as a cultivated man of extreme
ugliness, hence the name "The Hogmouth". As Emperor of the
Holy
Roman Empire (which was neither Holy, Roman, nor an Empire) he ruled a
vast territory including Austria, Hungary, Bohemia, as well as parts of
Germany. He claimed the throne of Spain, leading to The War of Spanish
The Succession. Leopold fought a number of wars against the
Turks
and France. The engravers made no attempt to hide his
ugliness on
the coins, hence his protruding Hapsburg jaw is plainly visible on the
coin. His coins tend to have a slight curvature that was
caused
by the minting process which used "roller dies" rather than the coin
being struck flat. We offer a silver 15 Kreuzer coins of
Leopold
from Hungary featuring the Madonna and Child on the reverse and a
wonderfully ugly portrait of Leopold on the
obverse. The
coin is date between 1660 and 1696 and are approximately 30mm in
diameter.
The
Archbishopric of Trier was one of the most powerful in
Germany. The position held special privileges as it was one
of only seven electors who chose the Holy Roman Emperor and
controlled the territory between France and the Rhine. This silver 3
Albus coin of Trier is called a Petermenger. One side of the
coin depicts St. Peter in the clouds holding a key.
The other side has the arms of the Archbishop. The coin is
approximately 23mm in diameter. Johann Hugo von Orsbeck was
Archbishop Trier from 1675 until his death in 1711. He helped
chose Joseph I as the successor to Leopold
the Hogmouth as Holy Roman
Emperor. He ruled during a difficult
period of time for Trier. France, under Louis XIV,
repeatedly invaded and occupied Trier. Johann Hugo issued
silver Petermengers from 1691 to 1695 with the date on the front, and
again from 1706 to 1709 with the date on the back. Upon Johann Hugo's
death, Charles Joseph of Lorraine purchased the
position of Archbishop for an enormous sum. He died four
years later in 1815.
The
Imperial Coat-of-Arms of Austria is featured on the obverse 1851
Austrian 1 Kruezer. It was the first time the denomination
had been struck since 1816, and was one of the first coins of Emperor
Franz-Joseph I, Franz-Joseph reigned for almost 68 years,
until his death in 1916. During his reign Austria lost its
possessions in Italy in the Italian Wars of Independence in 1859 and
1866. Its defeat in the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 lead to
the unification of Germany under Prussia. After this rocky
beginning of his reign, a forty-eight year period of peace
then
prevailed in Austria until the start of World War I in 1914.
The reverse of the 23mm copper coin features the denomination and
date. 
This
Brilliant Uncirculated bronze 1 Larin was struck for the Maldive
Islands in 1913 by the Birmingham Mint. The 13mm coin has
Arabic
legends on both sides. The coin is in its original Brilliant
Uncirculated condition. It is an amazingly inexpensive coin
considering
its age and condition. 