Papal Coinage PDF

PAPAL
COINAGE
To 1605
NOTES ON PAPAL COINAGE
The Papal Mint is the pope's institute for the production of hard cash. Papal Mint may also refer to the buildings in Avignon, Rome
and elsewhere which used to house the mint. (The Italian word for mint is Zecca).
The right to coin money being one of the regalia (sovereign prerogatives), there can be no papal coins of earlier date than that of
the temporal power of the popes. Nevertheless, there are coins of Pope Zacharias (741-52), of Gregory III (Ficoroni, "Museo
Kircheriano"), and possibly of Gregory II (715-741). There is no doubt that these pieces, two of which are of silver, are true coins,
and not merely a species of medals, like those which were distributed as "presbyterium" at the coronation of the popes since the
time of Valentine (827). Their stamp resembles that of the Byzantine and Merovingian coins of the seventh and eighth centuries,
and their square shape is also found in Byzantine pieces. Those that bear the inscription GREII PAPE SCI PTR (Gregorii
Pap Sancti Petri) cannot be attributed to Pope Gregory IV (827-44), because of the peculiarity of minting. The existence of
these coins, while the popes yet recognized the Byzantine domination, is explained by Hartmann (Das Knigreich Italien, Vol. III),
who believes that, in the eighth century, the popes received from the emperors the attributes of "Prfectus Urbis". Under the
empire, coins that were struck in the provinces bore the name of some local magistrate, and those coins of Gregory and of
Zacharias are simply imperial Byzantine pieces, bearing the name of the first civil magistrate of the City of Rome.
There are no coins of pope Stephen III or of pope Paul I, who reigned when the Duchy of Rome was already independent of the
Eastern Empire; the first true papal coins are those of Adrian I, from whose time until the reign of pope John XIV (984) the popes
coined money at Rome.
There is no pontifical money of a date between the last-named year and 1305; this is explained, in part, by the fact that the
Senate of Rome, which sought to replace the papacy in the temporal government of the city, took over the mint in 1143. On the
other hand, Prince Alberic had already coined money in his own name. The coins of the Senate of Rome usually bear the inscrip-
tion "ROMA CAPUT MUNDI", or, S. P. Q. R., or both, with or without emblems. In 1188 the mint was restored to pope Clement III,
with the agreement that half of its profits should be assigned to the sindaco, or mayor. The Senate, meanwhile, continued to coin
money, and there is no reference on the coins of that time to the papal authority. In the thirteenth century the Sindaco caused his
own name to be stamped upon the coins, and, consequently, we have coins of Brancaleone, of Charles I of Anjou, of Francesco
Anguillara, viceroy of Robert of Naples, etc.; so did King Ladislao. Cola di Rienzi, during his brief tribunate, likewise struck coins,
with the inscription: N. TRIBUN. AUGUST.: ROMA CAPU. MU.
Papal coins reappeared with the removal of the pontifical Court to Avignon, although there exists a single coin that is referred to
Benedict XI (1303-4), with the legend COITAT. VENASIN; as, however, this pope never resided in Venaissin, which had belonged
to the Holy See since 1274, the coin should be referred to Benedict XII. There are coins of all the popes from John XXII to Pius
IX.
The popes, and also the Senate when it coined money, appear to have used the imperial mint of Rome, which was on the slope
of the Campidoglio, not far from the Arch of Septimius Severus; but in the fifteenth century the mint was near the bank of Santo
Spirito. Finally, in 1665, Alexander VII moved it to the rear of the apse of St. Peter's. Bernini invented for it a machine to do the
work more rapidly, and Francesco Girardini furnished a very sensitive balance; so that the mint of Rome was technically the most
perfect one of those times. In 1845 Pius IX equipped it with the most modern appliances.
The administration of the mint was at first entrusted to the cardinal camerlengo; direct supervision, however, was exercised by the
senate, from the time at least when that body took possession of the mint, until the reign of pope Martin V. The sindaco and the
conservators of the Camera Capitolina appointed the masters of the mint, while the minting was witnessed by the heads of the
guild of goldsmiths and silversmiths. In 1322 John XXII created the office of treasurer for the mint of Avignon, and its incumbent,
little by little, made himself independent of the camerlengo. Later, the office of prelate president of the mint was created.
According to Lunadori (Relaz. della Corte di Roma, 1646), the establishments for the coining of money were in charge of a con-
gregation of cardinals.
Rome was not the only city of the Pontifical States that had a mint: prior to the year 1000, there existed at Ravenna the former
imperial mint, which was ceded in 996 to Archbishop Gerberto by Gregory V; there were mints also at Spoleto and at Benevento,
former residences of Lombard dukes. The Archbishop of Ravenna, who was a feudatory of the emperor rather than of the pope,
coined money as long as his temporal power over that city and its territory lasted. The mint of the Emperor Henry VI was estab-
lished at Bologna in 1194, and nearly all of the coins struck there bear the motto BONONIA DOCET, or BONONIA MATER STU-
DIORUM. The baiocchi of Bologna were called bolognini; the gold bolognino was equivalent to a gold sequin. The lira, also a
Bolognese coin, was worth 20 bolognini. These coins were struck in the name of the commune; it is only from the time when
Bologna was recovered by the Holy See, under Clement VI, that Bolognese coins may be regarded as papal.
All papal coins, with rare exceptions, bear the name of the pope, preceded (until the time of Paul II) by a Greek cross, and nearly
all of the more ancient ones bear, either on the obverse or on the reverse, the words S. PETRUS, and some of them, the words
S. PAULUS also. From Leo III to the Ottonian dynasty, the coins bear the name of the Holy Roman Emperor as well as that of the
pope. After the sixteenth century the coat of arms of the pope alone frequently appears on pontifical coins. There are also found
images of the Saviour, or of saints, symbolical figures of men or of animals, the keys (which appear for the first time on the coins
of Benevento) etc. From the sixteenth century to the eighteenth, Biblical or moral phrases are added, in allusion to the saint or to
the symbol that is stamped upon the coin, e.g. MONSTRA TE ESSE MATREM, SPES NOSTRA, SUB TUUM PRSIDIUM, TOTA
PULCERA, SUPRA FIRMAM PETRAM, DA RECTA SAPERE (during the Conclave), UBI THESAURUS IBI COR, CRESCENTEM
SEQUITUR CURA PECUNIAM, HILAREM DATOREM DILIGIT DEUS, PRO PRETIO ANIM, FERRO NOCENTIUS AURUM, IN
SUDORE VULTUS, CONSERVAT PEREUNT, TOLLE ET PROIICE, etc. Sometimes allusion is made to an historical event, as
the acquisition of Ferrara, or the deliverance of Vienna from the Turks(1683), or to some concession of the pope to his subjects,
or to a jubilee year. From the time of Clement X the coins struck at Rome bear a minute representation of the coat of arms of the
prelate in charge of the mint, a custom that obtained until 1817. The only instance of a cardinal camerlengo stamping his coat of
arms on the coins during the lifetime of the pope is that of Cardinal Armellini, under Adrian VI, in the case of four grossi.
The mints outside of Rome stamped the coins with the arms of their respective cities, or with those of the cardinal legate, of the
vice-legate, or of the governor; thus, Cardinal Scipione Borghese in 1612 struck coins at Avignon with his own name and arms,
omitting the name of the pope, an example that was followed a year later by the pro-legate Cardinal Filonardi. The city very often
placed the image of its patron saint on its coins. The date came to be stamped on coins that were struck during the vacancies of
the Holy See, occasionally at first, and later as a rule; it rarely appears on other coins before 1550; the practice became general
in the seventeenth century, the year of the Christian era or that of the pontificate being used; and Gregory XVI established it by
law, as also the requirement that each coin should bear upon it an expression of its value. At Bologna as early as the seventeenth
century, the value of gold or silver coins was usually indicated with the figures 20, 40, 80, etc., i.e. so many bolognini or baiocchi;
at Rome, in the eighteenth century, nearly all the copper coins bore an indication of their value. The rim of papal coins rarely bore
an inscription; at most, the monogram of the city in which the coin was struck was stamped upon it. From the sixteenth century,
the engravers, also, put their ciphers on the coins; among these engravers may be named Benvenuto Cellini, Francesco
Raibolini, called il Francia (Bologna), the four Hamerani, Giulio Romano (trident), Cavaliere Lucenti, Andrea Perpenti etc. Until the
time of Pius VI, the dies for the mint remained the property of the engravers.
The Byzantine monetary system is followed in the papal coinage until the reign of Leo III, after which the system of the Frankish
Empire obtains. John XXII adopted the Florentine system, and coined gold forms, but the weight of this coin varied from 22 to 30
carats (4.4 to 6 g), until Gregory XI reduced it to the original 24 carats (4.8 g); but deterioration came again, and then there were
two kinds of florins, the papal florin, which maintained the old weight, and the florin di Camera, the two being in the ratio of 69
papal florins = 100 florins di Camera = 1 gold pound = 10 carlini. The ducat was coined in the papal mint from the year 1432; it
was a coin of Venetian origin that circulated with the florin, which in 1531 was succeeded by the scudo, a piece of French origin
(cu) that remained the monetary unit of the Pontifical States. At the same time, there appeared the zecchino. The ancient papal
florin was equal to 2 scudi and 11 baiocchi (1 baiocco = 0.01 scudi); one ducat was equal to one scudo and 9 baiocchi. The
scudo also underwent fluctuations, in the market and in its weight: the so called scudo delle stampe (1595) was worth 1842
baiocchi, that is, a little less than 2 scudi. Benedict XIII re-established the good quality of the alloy, but under Pius VI it again dete-
riorated. In 1835 Gregory XVI regulated the monetary system of the Pontifical States, establishing the scudo as the unit, and
dividing it into 100 baiocchi, while the baiocco was divided into 5 quattrini (the quattrino, until 1591, had been equal to of a
baiocco). The scudo was coined both in gold and in silver; there were pieces of 10 scudi, called Gregorine; and pieces of 5 scudi,
and of 2 scudi were also coined. The scudo of the eighteenth century was equal to l65 scudi of Pius VII, which last was adopt-
ed by Gregory XVI; the zecchino was worth 22 scudi. The scudo is equal to 53 lire in the monetary system of the Latin Union.
The fractional silver coins were the half scudo, and the giulio, called also paolo, which was equal to 01 seudi. The latter coin was
created by Julius II in order to put the carlini of Charles of Anjou out of circulation, these coins being of bad alloy. There were
pieces of 2 giulii that were called papetti, at Rome, and lire at Bologna, a name that was later given to them officially. A grosso,
introduced in 1736, was equal to half a giulio (25 baiocchi); there were also the mezzogrosso, and the testone = 30 giulii. The
copper coins were the baiocco or soldo (which was called bolognino, at Bologna) and the 2 baiocchi piece. The name baiocco is
derived from that of the city of Bayeux.
Vitalian - 30 July 657 to 27 Jan. 672
Pope Saint Vitalianus was pope from July 30, 657 until January 27, 672.
He was born in Segni, Lazio, the son of one Anastasius.
After the death of Pope Eugene I, on June 2 or 3, 657, Vitalian was elected his successor, and
was consecrated and enthroned on July 30.
Like Eugene, Vitalian tried to restore the connection with Constantinople by making friendly
advances to the Eastern Emperor Constans II (641-668) and to prepare the way for the settle-
ment of the Monothelite controversy. He sent letters (synodica) announcing his elevation to the
emperor and to Patriarch Peter of Constantinople, who was inclined to Monothelitism. The
emperor confirmed the privileges of the Roman Church and sent to Rome a codex of the
Gospels in a cover of gold richly ornamented with precious stones as a good-will gesture.
The Patriarch Peter also replied, although his answer was somewhat noncommittal as to
Monothelitism, a belief he defended. In his letter, he gave the impression of being in accord with
the pope, whose letter to Peter had expounded the Catholic Faith. Thus ecclesiastical inter-
course between Rome and Constantinople was restored, but the mutual reserve over the dog-
matic question of Monothelitism remained. Vitalian's name was entered on the diptychs of the Byzantine Church--the only name of
a pope so entered between the reign of Honorius I (d. 638) and the Sixth Ecumenical Council of 680-81.
The inclusion of Vitalian's name on the diptych was seen as some as being too conciliatory towards heresy, but that charge was
unfounded.
Vitalian showed reciprocity toward Constans, when the latter came to Rome in 663, spending twelve days there during a campaign
against the Lombards. On 5 July the pope and members of the Roman clergy, met the emperor at the sixth milestane and accom-
panied him to St. Peter's, where the emperor offered gifts. The following Sunday, Constans went in state to St. Peter's, offered a
pallium wrought with gold, and was present during the Mass celebrated by the pope. The emperor dined with the pope on the fol-
lowing Saturday, attended Mass again on Sunday at St. Peter's, and after Mass took leave of the pope. On his departure Constans
removed a large number of bronze artworks, including the bronze tiles from the roof of the Pantheon, which had been dedicated to
Christian worship.
Constans then moved on to Sicily, oppressed the population, and was assassinated at Syracuse in 668. Vitalian supported
Constans' son Constantine IV against a usurper and thus helped him attain the throne. As Constantine had no desire to maintain
the Monothelite decree (typus) of his father, Pope Vitalian made use of this inclination to take a more decided stand against
Monothelitism and to win the emperor over to orthodoxy. In this latter attempt, however, he did not succeed. The Monothelite patri-
arch Theodore of Constantinople removed Vitalian's name from the diptychs. It was not until the Sixth Ecumenical Council (681)
that Monothelitism was suppressed, and Vitalian's name was replaced on the diptychs of the Byzantine Church.
Pope Vitalian was successful in improving relations with England, where the Anglo-Saxon and British clergies were divided regard-
ing various ecclesiastical customs. At the Synod of Streaneshalch, King Oswy of Northumberland accepted Roman practices
regarding the keeping of Easter, and the shape of the tonsure. Together with King Egbert of Kent, he sent the priest Wighard to
Rome, to be consecrated there after the death of Archbishop Deusdedit of Canterbury in 664, but Wighard died at Rome of the
plague.
Vitalian wrote to King Oswy promising to send a suitable bishop to England as soon as possible. Hadrian, abbot of a Neopolitan
abbey, was selected, but he considered himself unworthy to be bishop. At his recommendation a highly educated monk, Theodore
of Tarsus, who understood both Latin and Greek, was chosen as Archbishop of Canterbury and consecrated on 26 March, 668.
Accompanied by Abbot Hadrian, Theodore went to England, where he was recognized as the head of the Church of England.
The archiepiscopal See of Ravenna reported directly to Rome. Archbishop Maurus of Ravenna (648-71) sought to end this
dependence, and thus make his see autocephalous. When Pope Vitalian called upon him to justify his theological views, he
refused to obey and declared himself independent of Rome. The pope excommunicated him, but Maurus did not submit, and even
went so far as to excommunicate the pope.
Emperor Constans II sided with the archbishop and issued an edict removing the Archbishop of Ravenna from the patriarchal juris-
diction of Rome, and ordained that the former should receive the pallium from the emperor. The successor of Maurus, Reparatus,
was in fact consecrated, in 671. It was not until the reign of Pope Leo II (682-83) that the independence of the See of Ravenna
was suppressed: Emperor Constantine IV repealed the edict of Constans and confirmed the ancient rights of the Roman See over
the See of Ravenna.
Vitalian enforced his authority as supreme pontiff in the Eastern Church. Bishop John of Lappa, had been deposed by a synod
under the presidency of the Metropolitan Paulus. John appealed to the pope, and was imprisoned by Paulus for so doing. He
escaped, however, and went to Rome, where Vitalian held a synod in December, 667, to investigate the matter, and pronounced
John guiltless. He then wrote to Paulus demanding the restoration of John to his diocese, and the return of the monasteries which
had been unjustly taken from him. At the same time the pope directed the metropolitan to remove two deacons who had married
after consecration.
The introduction of church organ music is traditionally believed to date from the time of Vitalian's papacy.
Vitalian was considered a firm ruler of the Church, one who preserved discipline. He died January 27, 672. Venerated as a saint,
his feast is kept on that date.
PAPAL COINS
CONSTANTINE IV (668-685) and POPE ST. VITALIAN (657-672).
AR 1/8 Siliqua. Rome mint. 0.26 g.
Obv.:Crowned and beardless facing bust, wearing chlamys and holding globus
cruciger
Rev.: Elongated monogram of Pope Vitalian.
Reference: M.D. OHara and I. Vecchi, A Find of Byzantine Silver from the
Mint of Rome for the Period AD 641-752, SNR 64 (1985), 15; SB 1233A;
Berman 8 (Pope Stephen III or IV). EF, flan chip, some weakness in obverse.
Extremely rare.
This class was unknown before 1985 and is of considerable interest. It was
during the pontificate of Vitalian that the first visit by an Emperor to Rome in
over three hundred years, by Constans II in 663, ended in a public relations
disaster. Constans IIs campaigns against the Lombards invariably meant the
ruthless extortion of his Italian subjects, added to which the infamous despoil-
ing of the gilded roof of the Pantheon gave him a reputation almost as bad as
Gaiseric.
Estimate $3000 Sold For $4750

Agatho - 27 June 678 to 10 Jan. 681
Pope Saint Agatho (c. 577 January 10, 681) was pope from June 27, 678 to January 10, 681.
A Greek born in Sicily of wealthy and devout parents, he allegedly gave away his inheritance
after their death and retired to a monastery in Palermo. This belief is based on a letter written by
St. Gregory the Great to the abbot of St. Hermes in Palermo, a Benedictine Monastery, mention-
ing an Agatho. In this letter, Gregory wrote that the abbot could receive Agatho into his
monastery if Agatho's wife was willing to enter a convent. While there are reasons to believe that
Pope Agatho is this monk, he would have been over 100 years old at the time of his election.
Shortly after Agatho became Pope, St Wilfrid, Archbishop of York, arrived at Rome to invoke the
authority of the Holy See in his behalf. Wilfrid had been deposed from his see by Theodore,
Archbishop of Canterbury, who had carved up Wilfrid's diocese, appointing three bishops to gov-
ern the new sees. At a synod which Pope Agatho convoked in the Lateran to investigate the
affair, it was decided that Wilfrid's diocese should indeed be divided, but that Wilfrid himself should name the bishops.
The major event of his pontificate was the Sixth Ecumenical Council (6801), which ended the Monothelite heresy that had been
tolerated by previous popes (Honorius among them). The council began when Emperor Constantine IV, desired to heal the schism
that separated the two sides. He wrote to Pope Donus suggesting a conference on the matter, but Donus was dead by the time
the letter arrived. However, Agatho was quick to seize the olive branch offered by the emperor. He ordered councils held through-
out the West so that legates could present the universal tradition of the Western Church. Then he sent a large delegation to meet
the Easterners at Constantinople. The legates and patriarchs gathered in the imperial palace on November 7, 680. The
Monothelites presented their case. Then the letter of Pope Agatho was read which explained the traditional belief of the Church
that Christ was of two wills, divine and human. The council agreed that Peter spoke through Agatho. Patriarch George of
Constantinople accepted Agatho's letter, as did most of the bishops present. The council proclaimed the existence of the two wills
in Christ and condemned Monothelitism, with Pope Honorius being included in the condemnation. When the council ended in
September of 681 the decrees were sent to the Pope, but Agatho had died in January. The Council had not only ended the
Monothelite heresy, but had healed the schism. Agatho also undertook negotiations between the Holy See and Constantine, con-
cerning the relations of the Byzantine Court to papal elections. Constantine promised Agatho to abolish or reduce the tax that the
popes had had to pay to the imperial treasury on their consecration. He is venerated as a saint by both Latins and Greeks.
Some Traditionalist Catholics say he was the first pope to take, as part of his inauguration, what they call the Papal Oath.
PAPAL COINS
Constantine IV Pogonatus. 668-685. Struck under Pope St. Agatho (678-681).
AR 1/8 Siliqua- 30 Nummi. Rome mint. 0.26 g.
Obv.: Crowned bust facing with triangular locks of hair, wearing chlamys and holding globus
cruciger in right hand.
Rev.: Cross on base with two steps; A suspended from left bar of cross (partially visible); R in
right field. Unpublished. VF, toned. Unique.
The letter R in the reverse field probably indicates Roma, and A the reigning pope. As the coin
depicts a conventional likeness of Constantine IV on the obverse and a letter A on the reverse,
the only possible candidates would appear to be Pope Agatho (27th June 678 -10th January
681) or Pope Adeodatus II (11th April 672 - 17th June 676).
This important new coin in this historically significant, newly discovered series (1985) would
seem to represent yet another pope striking coins in his own name, thereby claiming temporal
sovereignty. Pope Adeondatus did not enjoy amicable relations with the government or clergy
at Constantinople and the reign has been described as extremely obscure (Kelly p. 78). Pope
Agatho, a Sicilian and ex monk who spoke both Greek and Latin, was an able administrator
who broke from precedent, in view of the stringency of the church finances, in order to under-
take the office of treasurer (acarius) of the Holy See until ill health obliged him to relinquish it.
This particular pope, therefore, with his specific financial experience and knowledge, would
certainly have appreciated the significance of coinage both as a political and fiscal medium.
Although a short reign, it was important for a number of events, but particularly for the aban-
donment of Monothelitism by the Byzantine government and the resultant reopening of good
relations between the Holy See and Constantinople.
The sheer number of new classes and varieties with the classes which have come to light so far
in this series would seem to suggest a much larger coinage initially in circulation that the actual
number of coins recorded to date might indicate.
Sergius I - 15 Dec. 687 to 8 Sept. 701
Pope Sergius I (d. September 8, 701) was Pope from 687701. He came from an Antiochene Syrian family
which had settled at Palermo in Sicily, and owed his election as Pope Conon's successor to skillful intrigues
against Paschalis and Theodorus, the other candidates. He was consecrated on December 15, 687.
On April 10, 689, he baptised King Caedwalla of Wessex in Rome. For rejecting certain canons of the Trullan
(Quinisext) council of 692, Justinian II ordered his arrest and transportation to Constantinople, but the militia of
Ravenna and the Pentapolis forced the imperial protospatharius to abandon the attempt to carry out his orders.
Sergius ordained Saint Willibrord as bishop of the Frisians, and the Liber Pontificalis states he also ordained
Berhtwald as Archbishop of Canterbury. Sergius died in 701.
PAPAL COINS
JUSTINIAN II. First Reign (685-695) and POPE ST. SERGIUS (687-698).
AR 1/8 Siliqua- 30 Nummi. Rome mint. 0.26 g.
Obv.: Crowned and beardless facing bust, wearing chlamys.
Rev.: Full monogram of Rome, S in upper left field.
Reference: OHara/Vecchi, 21(this coin); SB 1308A; Berman 6 (Pope Stephen II or III).

EF, flan chip, slightly off-center, but nicely toned and of refined portrait style. Unique.
There were 31 coins in the OHara/Vecchi Hoard, and this was the most aesthetic and
stylistically pleasing coin in the entire hoard.
Although Pope Sergius was appointed by the personal intervention of the Byzantine
exarch, he was a strong defender of Roman rights, and the ensuing efforts of Justinian to
have him deported to Constantinople weakened the imperial position in Italy. [New
Paragraph] Through the pontificate of Sergius the Italo-Byzantine territories continued to
have less connection with the empire. The exarchate of Ravenna showed signs of an
autonomous entity, the Romagna. The duchy of Rome submitted to the pope, leaving
only Naples, Calabria and Sicily loyal to Constantinople, which with the adoption of the
iconoclastic heresy widened even further the rift between the papacy and the Byzantine
emperor.

Gregory II - 19 May 715 to 11 Feb. 731
Pope Gregory II served as pope from May 19, 715 to his death on
February 11, 731, succeeding Pope Constantine. Having, it is said,
bought off the Lombards for thirty pounds of gold, he used the tranquil-
lity thus obtained for vigorous missionary efforts among the Germanic
tribes, and for strengthening the papal authority in the churches of
Britain and Ireland. By excommunicating the Byzantine emperor Leo III
the Isaurian, he prepared the way for a long series of revolts and civil
wars, which tended greatly to the establishment of the temporal power
of the popes. He died in 731, and subsequently attained the honour of
canonization. The day that Gregory is remembered in the "Martyrology"
seems to be any one of February 11th, February 13th, and February
28th.
Gregory II was an alleged collateral ancestor to the Roman Savelli

family, according to a 15th century chronicler, but this is undocumented
and very likely unreliable. The same was said of Benedict II, but noth-
ing certain is known about a kinship between the two popes.
PAPAL COINS
LEO III (717-741) and POPE ST. GREGORY II (715-731).
AR 1/8 Siliqua . 0.26 g. Struck circa 717-731.
Obv.: Crowned and bearded facing bust, wearing chlamys and holding cross cruciger
in right hand; star in upper field left and right.
Rev.: G R E O around central cross.
Reference: OHara/Vecchi 29; DOC III 92 (Leo III); MEC 1030 (Gregory III); SB
1534C (Gregory III). EF, very light encrustation. ($1000) This type was previously
attributed to Gregory, exarch of Africa who revolted against Constans II in 647, or to
duke Gregory of Benevento (732-739). However its presence in the papal-Byzantine
hoard confirms its present identification.
Gregory II was a strong and able pope who resisted the iconoclast edicts eminating
from Constantinople and survived a number of attacks on his life instigated, some
say, by agents of Leo III. When Liutprand, king of the Lombards (712-744), resumed
a policy of expansion and unification, the papacy found itself completely isolated,
appealing without success in 739 for help to the Frankish king Charles Martel, who
was too busy defending his kingdom against the Moors. It took Pepin III (the
Short), the son of Charles Martel, to take the initiative and come to an understand-
ing first with Pope Zacharias and later Pope Stephen II, who in 754 visited Gaul to
request military help against the Lombards.

Zacharias - 3 Dec. 741 to 14 March/22 March 752
Pope Saint Zachary (Greek Zacharias), pope (741-752). He came from a Greek family of Calabria. Most
probably he was a deacon of the Roman Church and as such signed the decrees of the Roman council of
732; and was on intimate terms with Gregory III, whom he succeeded in December 10, 741.
Zachary was a wise and subtle diplomat. Finding that his predecessor's alliance with the Lombard Duke of
Spoleto was not protecting Papal cities against the Lombard king, Zachary turned to Liutprand directly.
Contemporary history (Liber pontificalis) dwells chiefly on Zachary's great personal influence with
Liutprand, and with his successor Ratchis; his tact in dealing with these princes in a variety of emergencies
contributed to save the exarchate of Ravenna from the Lombard attacks.
A correspondence, of considerable extent, and great interest, between Zachary and Saint Boniface, the
apostle of Germany, survives, and shows how great was the influence of this pope on events then passing
in France and Germany; he encouraged the deposition of the last Merovingian king of the Franks, Childeric
III, and it was with his sanction that Boniface crowned Pepin the Short as King of the Franks at Soissons in
752. Zachary is stated to have remonstrated with the Byzantine emperor Constantine V Copronymus on
the part he had taken in the iconoclastic controversy. He died March 22, 752, and buried in St. Peter's
Basilica. His successor was Stephen who died soon after, before consecration and is not considered a
valid pope. He was then succeeded by another Stephen who became Stephen II.
In the effort to Christianize Rome, Zachary built the original church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva over an
ancient temple to Minerva near Pantheon. He also restored the Lateran Palace, moving the relic of the
head of Saint George to the church of San Giorgio al Velabro.
The letters and decrees of Zachary are published in Jacques Paul Migne, Patrolog. lat. lxxxix. p. 917-960.
PAPAL COINS
CONSTANTINE V and POPE ZACHARIAS. 741-752 AD.
AR 1/8 Siliqua . Rome mint. 0.13 g.
Obv.: Crowned beardless facing bust, wearing chlamys; cross in left field.
Rev.: Rm monogram; Z (Zacharias) in upper left field.
Reference: M.D. OHara and I. Vecchi, A Find of Byzantine Silver from the
Mint of Rome for the Period AD 641-752, SNR 64 (1985), 20 [Hoard nos. 30-
31]; Berman 4; SB 1579 (not priced!). EF, flan chip. Extremely rare - the finest
of just three known specimens. ($2000) This class was unknown before 1985
and is of considerable interest. Its existence shows that the silver coins at present
listed in the various standard works under Constantine V for Rome, those with
the reverse type K combined with a cross and emperor wearing a loros, must be
re-attributed to Pope Constantine. Zacharias is also known to have issued square
bronze tessere, cf. Berman pg. 31, 5. (NEW PARAGRAPH)Pope (and St.)
Zacharias is noteworthy in history for his momentous decision to bless St.
Bonifaces anointment of Pepin the Short as king of the Franks. In 751,
Zacharias appealed for the Franks help against Aistulf, who had taken Ravenna
and was demanding suzerainty over Rome as part of his enlarged dominion of
the Lombards.

Adrian I - 1 Feb. 772 to 26 Dec. 795
Pope Adrian, or Hadrian I, (d. December 25, 795) was pope
from February 9, 772 to December 25, 795. He was the son
of Theodore, a Roman nobleman.
Soon after his accession, the territory ruled by the popes was
invaded by Desiderius, king of the Lombards, and Adrian
found it necessary to invoke the aid of the Frankish king
Charlemagne, who entered Italy with a large army, besieged
Desiderius in his capital of Pavia, took that town, banished
the Lombard king to Corbie in France and, in an innovative
gesture, took the title 'King of the Lombards' himself. The
pope, whose expectations had been aroused, had to content
himself with some additions to the duchy of Rome, and to the
Exarchate of Ravenna, and the Pentapolis in the Marches,
which consisted of the "five cities" on the Adriatic coast from
Rimini to Ancona with the coastal plain as far as the moun-
tains.
A mark of such newly settled conditions in the Duchy of

Rome is the Domusculta Capracorum, the central villa on the
Charlemagne comes to the aid of Pope Adrian I
Roman plan that Adrian assembled from a nucleus of his
inherited estates and acquisitions from neighbors in the countryside north of Veii. The villa is documented in Liber Pontificalis but
its site was not rediscovered until the 1960s, when excavations revealed the structures on a gently rounded hill that was only mar-
ginally capable of self-defense but fully self-sufficient, with its own grain mill, smithies and tile-kilns, for a mixed economy of grains
and vineyards, olives, vegetable gardens and piggery. In the tenth century, villages were carved out of Adrian's Capracorum
estate: Campagnano mentioned first in 1076, Formello mentioned in 1027, Mazzano in 945, and Stabia (modern Faleria) in 998.
In his contest with the Byzantine Empire and the Lombard dukes of Benevento, Adrian remained faithful to the Frankish alliance,
and the friendly relations between pope and king were not disturbed by the difference which arose between them on the question
of the veneration of images, to which Charlemagne and the bishops in France were strongly opposed, while Adrian favoured the
views of the Eastern Church, and approved the decree of the second council of Nicaea (787), confirming the practice and excom-
municating the iconoclasts. It was in connection with this controversy that the Libri Carolini were written, to which Adrian replied by
letter, anathematizing all who refused to venerate the images of Jesus, or the Virgin Mary, or saints. Notwithstanding this, a synod,
held at Frankfurt in 794, anew condemned the practice, and the dispute remained unsettled at Adrian's death.
In 787, he elevated the diocese of Lichfield, in England, to an archdiocese on request from the English bishops and King Offa of
Mercia in order to balance the ecclesiastic power in that land between Kent and Mercia. He gave the Lichfield bishop Higbert the
pallium in 788.
An epitaph written by Charlemagne in verse, in which he styles Adrian "father," is still to be seen at the door of the Vatican basili-
ca. Adrian restored some of the ancient aqueducts of Rome, and rebuilt the churches of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, decorated by
Greek monks fleeing from the iconoclastal persecutions, and of San Marco in Rome. At the time of his death, his was the longest
papacy since Saint Peter, and it would remain so until he was surpassed by the 24-year papacy of Pius VI in the late 18th century.
In fact, only three more popes (Pius IX, John Paul II and Leo XIII) have reigned longer since.
PAPAL COINS
HADRIAN I. 772-795.
AR Denaro. Struck circa 781-795. 1.27 g.
Obv.: HADRIANVS P^P>, bust of Hadrian facing; in field, I-B
Rev.: VICTOR-IA DNN :., cross potent on two steps, flanked by R-m; in exergue, CONOB.
Reference: MEC 1032; Muntoni I pg. 3, 1; Serafini I pg. 4, 3; CNI XV pg. 63, 5; Berman 210 (this
plate coin). Extremely rare. EF, fine toning.

Leo III - 26 Dec. 795 to 12 June 816
Pope Leo III (died June 12, 816) was Pope from 795 to 816.
Leo announced his election to Charlemagne, sending him the keys of Saint Peter's tomb and
the banner of Rome, requesting an envoy. Charlemagne in his reply stated that it was his func-
tion to defend the church and the popes' to pray for the realm and for victory of the army.
Leo, coming from a common-folk background, aroused the hostility of Rome's nobility, who saw
the papal post as reserved for noble candidates. During his rule he was accused of adultery
and perjury. In April 799 he was attacked by a gang, who unsuccessfully attempted to gouge
out his eyes and cut off his tongue for his earlier actions. He was then formally deposed and
sent to a monastery, but escaped and made his way to Charlemagne, who escorted him back
to Rome under royal protection. On Christmas Day, Leo placed the imperial crown on
Charlemagne's head, creating the office of Holy Roman Emperor (HRE).
Charlemagne went to Rome in November 800, and on December 1 held a council there with
representatives of both sides. Leo, on December 23, took an oath of purgation concerning the
charges brought against him, and his opponents were exiled. Two days later Leo crowned
Charlemagne after the latter prayed at St. Peter's tomb. Charlemagne was to intervene in
church affairs, not always being successful.
Leo helped restore King Eardwulf of Northumbria, and settled various matters of dispute
between the Archbishops of York and Canterbury. He also reversed the decision of his prede-
cessor in regards to the granting of the pallium to the bishop of Lichfield, Higbert. He believed
that the English episcopate had been misrepresented before Hadrian and that therefore his act
was invalid. In 803, Lichfield was a regular diocese again.
Leo forbade the addition of "filioque" to Nicene Creed which was added by Franks in Aachen in 809. He also ordered that the
Nicene creed be engraved on silver tablets so that his conclusion might not be overturned in the future. He wrote HAEC LEO
POSUI AMORE ET CAUTELA ORTHODOXAE FIDEI (I, Leo, put here for love and protection of orthodox faith)(VITA LEONIS,
LIBER PONTIFICALIS (Ed.Duchene, TII, p.26)
The reasons for the coronation, the involvement beforehand of the Frankish court, and the relationship to the Byzantine Empire
are all matters of debate among historians. An effective administrator of the papal territories, Leo contributed to the beautification
of Rome.
His feast day, formerly, was June 12.
PAPAL COINS
POPE ST. LEO III. 795-816
Lead Imitative Denaro. Struck circa 796-800. 5.42 g.
Obv.: SCS PETRVS, bust of St. Peter three-quarter facing
Rev.: DN / LEONI / PAPE in three lines.
Reference: Cf. MEC 1033 (Leo III); Berman 13 (Leo III). Also cf. Muntoni I pg. 21, 2-
3, Serafini IV pg. 11, 4 and CNI XV pg. 95, 6 (all as Leo VIII); Extremely rare. Fine.
The presence of this type in the Biebrich hoard dated to about 800, makes the present
identification of this issue as Leo III certain.
On Christmas day 800, by taking advantage of the tenuous hold on power by Irene in the
eastern empire, Pope Leo raised the Frankish king from the status of patricius of the
Romans to universal emperor. In so doing he established the legal precedent that the
pope alone could confer the imperial crown.

Gregory IV - 827 to January 844
Gregory IV, pope (September 20, 827-January 11, 844), was chosen to
succeed Valentine in December 827, on which occasion he recognized
the supremacy of the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious in the most
unequivocal manner.
Papal dependence on the Holy Roman Emperor loosened through the

quarrels of Louis I the Pious and his sons, the future Lothair I, Pepin and
Louis the German. On the sons' rebellion against their father, Gregory
supported Lothair, hoping his intervention would promote peace, but in
practice this action annoyed the Frankish bishops. Gregory's response
was to insist upon the primacy of St Peter's successor, the papacy being
superior to the Emperor.
The two armies, of Louis and his sons, met at Rotfeld, near Colmar, in
the summer of 833. The sons persuaded Gregory to go to Louis' camp
to negotiate, but he then found he had been duped by Lothair. Louis was
deserted by his supporters and was forced to surrender unconditionally,
and was deposed and humiliated. This sequence of events is known as
the Campus Mendacii or "field of lies." Louis was subsequently restored,
and after his death Gregory made unsuccessful attempts to mediate in
the conflict that ensued between the brothers.
Gregory contributed to the architectural development of Rome (he rebuilt the Basilica di San Marco) and promoted the celebration
of the feast of All Saints.
PAPAL COINS
GREGORY IV (827-844) with LOUIS the PIOUS
Denaro 827-840. Rome mint. Ag 1,25 g.
Obv.: +SCS PETRVS around PP GRE II
Rev.: LVDOVVICVS IMP MP around PIVS monogram
Reference: Muntoni 2; CNI 4; MEC 1037; Berman 21. Rare. Very fine.
Estimate: 3000 CHF. Price realized: 3,000 CHF (approx. 2,874 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Sergius II - January 844 to 7 January 847
Sergius II was Pope from January, 844-January 24, 847.
On the death of Gregory IV the archdeacon John was proclaimed pope by popular acclamation, while the nobility elected Sergius,
a Roman of noble birth. The opposition was suppressed, with Sergius intervening to save John's life. Sergius was then consecrat-
ed immediately by the nobles (or the bishops)[citation needed], without seeking the ratification of the Frankish court.
The Holy Roman Emperor Lothair I, however, disapproved of this abandoning of the Constitutio Romana of 824 which included the
statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor. He sent an army under his
son Louis, the recently appointed viceroy of Italy, to re-establish his authority. The Church and the Emperor reached an accommo-
dation, with Louis being crowned king of Lombardy by Sergius, although the Pope did not accede to all the demands made upon
him.
Sergius contributed to urban redevelopment in Rome, relying on some consider to be dubious means of gaining money. Simony is
said to have flourished during the reign of Sergius II.
During his pontificate Rome was ravaged and the churches of St. Peter and St. Paul were sacked by Saracens, who also assault-
ed Porto and Ostia (August 846). Sergius died while negotiating between two patriarchs and was succeeded by Pope Leo IV.
PAPAL COINS
SERGIUS II with LOTHAR I (844-847)
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,33 g.
Obv.: SCS PETRVS around SER P
Rev.: +HLOTHARIVS MP around PIVS monogram
Reference: Muntoni 1; CNI 5; MEC 1040; Berman 24. Rare. Extremely fine
Estimate: 1750 CHF. Price realized: 19,000 CHF (approx. 18,201 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date).
Leo IV, Saint Leo - Jan. 847 to 17 Jul. 855
Pope Saint Leo IV was pope from April 10, 847 to July 17, 855.
A Roman by birth, he was unanimously chosen to succeed Sergius II. When he was elected, on April 10, 847, he was cardinal of
Santi Quattro Coronati, and had been subdeacon of Gregory IV and archpriest under his predecessor. His pontificate was chiefly
distinguished by his efforts to repair the damage done by the Saracens during the reign of his predecessor to various churches of
the city, especially those of St Peter and St Paul.
The Saracens were sieging Gaeta, and then between 848 and 849 Leo had the walls of the city restored and strengthened. When
the Muslims closed to Portus, he summoned the Repubbliche Marinare or mariner cities of Italy: Naples, Gaeta and Amalfi to form
a league. The command of the unified fleet was given to Cesarius, son of Duke Sergius I of Naples. The subsequent Battle of
Ostia was one of the most famous in the Middle Ages Papacy history, and is celebrated in a famous fresco by Raphael and his
pupils in his Rooms of the Vatican Palace in the Vatican City. Another episode of Leo's life celebrated by the Urbinate in his series
of frescoes painter is the Incendio di Borgo: it depicts the great burning of the Anglo-Saxon district of Rome (the "Borgo") which,
according to the legend, was stopped by Leo simply making the sign of the cross.
In order to definitively counter the Saracen menace, Leo ordered a new line of walls encompassing the suburb on the right bank of
the Tiber to be built, including the till now undefended St. Peter's Basilica. The district enclosed by the walls is still known as the
Civitas Leonina, namely the City of Leo. He also embellished the damaged churches of St. Paul and St. Peter's: the latter's altar
received again (after the former had been stolen) his gold covering, which weighed 206 lb. and was studded with precious gems.
Leo held three synods, one of them in 850, distinguished by the presence of Louis II, but none of them otherwise of importance.
The history of the papal struggle with Hincmar of Reims, which began during Leo's pontificate, belongs rather to that of Nicholas I.
Leo died on July 17, 855 and was buried in St. Peter's. Benedict III was Leo's immediate successor. A medieval tradition claimed
that a woman, Pope Joan, succeeded him, disguising herself as a man; Joan is generally believed to be fictitious.
PAPAL COINS PAPAL COINS

Leo IV., 847-855 with Lothar I., 840-855. Leo IV., 847-855 with Lothar I., 840-855.
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 22 mm 1,09g. Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 0,86g.
Obv.: Legend around monogram of the Pope. Obv.: Legend around monogram of the Pope.
Rev.: Legend around Imperial monogram. Rev.: Legend around Imperial monogram.
Reference: M 2. B 26. MEC 1044. VF. Very rare. VF+
Estimate CHF 800. Price realized: 950 CHF (approx. 702 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 2,600 EUR (approx. 3,985 U.S.
as of the auction date) Dollars as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Leo IV., 847-855 with Lothar I., 840-855.
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,44g.
Obv.: Legend around monogram of the Pope.
Rev.: Legend around Imperial monogram.
Reference: Muntoni 2. Very rare. VF.
Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,839 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Nicholas I - 24 April 858 to 13 November 867

Saint Nicholas
Pope Nicholas I, (Rome c. 820 November 13, 867), or Nicholas the Great, reigned from
April 24, 858 until his death. He is remembered as a consolidator of papal authority and
power, exerting decisive influence upon the historical development of the papacy and its
position among the Christian nations of Western Europe, and is considered a saint.
He refused to grant an annulment to Lothar II from Theutberga so that Lothar could marry
his mistress Waldrada; when a Council pronounced in favor of annulment, Nicholas I
declared the Council to be deposed, its messengers excommunicated, and its decisions
void. Despite pressure from the Carolingians, who laid siege to Rome, his decision held.
During his reign, relations with the Byzantine Empire soured over his support for Ignatius as
Patriarch of Constantinople, who had been removed and Photius appointed to replace him.
Born to a distinguished family, son of the Defensor Theodore, Nicholas received excellent
training. Distinguished for his piety, benevolence, ability, knowledge, and eloquence, he
entered the service of the Church at an early age, was made subdeacon by Pope Sergius II
(844-47), and deacon by Leo IV (847-55). After the death of Benedict III (7 April 858), Louis
II, Holy Roman Emperor, who was in the neighbourhood of Rome, came into the city to exert
his influence upon the election. On 24 April Nicholas was elected pope, consecrated, and enthroned in St. Peter's in the presence
of the emperor. Three days after, he held a farewell banquet for the emperor, and afterward, accompanied by the Roman nobility,
visited him in his camp before the city, on which occasion the emperor came to meet the pope and led his horse for some dis-
tance.
To a spiritually exhausted and politically uncertain Western Europe beset by Muslim and Norse incursions, Pope Nicholas
appeared as a conscientious representative of the Roman primacy in the Church. He was filled with a high conception of his mis-
sion for the vindication of Christian morality, the defence of God's law against powerful, worldly bishops.
Archbishop John of Ravenna oppressed the inhabitants of the papal territory, treated his suffragan bishops with violence, made
unjust demands upon them for money, and illegally imprisoned priests. He also forged documents to support his claims against
the Roman See and maltreated the papal legates. As the warnings of the pope were without result, and the archbishop ignored a
thrice-repeated summons to appear before the papal tribunal, he was excommunicated. Having first visited the Emperor Louis at
Pavia, the archbishop repaired, with two imperial delegates to Rome, where Nicholas cited him before the Roman synod assem-
bled in the autumn of 860. Upon this John fled from Rome.
Going in person to Ravenna, the pope then investigated and equitably regulated everything. Again appealing to the emperor, the
archbishop was recommended by him to submit to the pope, which he did at the Roman Synod of November, 861. Later on, how-
ever, he entered into a pact with the excommunicated archbishops of Trier and Cologne, was himself again excommunicated, and
once more forced to make his submission to the pope. Another conflict arose between Nicholas and Archbishop Hincmar of
Reims: this concerned the prerogatives of the papacy. Bishop Rothad of Soissons had appealed to the pope against the decision
of the Synod of Soissons, of 861, which had deposed him; Hincmar opposed the appeal to the pope, but eventually had to
acknowledge the right of the papacy to take cognizance of important legal causes (causae majores) and pass independent judg-
ment upon them. A further dispute broke out between Hincmar and the pope as to the elevation of the cleric Wulfad to the
archiepiscopal See of Bourges, but here, again, Hincmar finally submitted to the decrees of the Apostolic See, and the Frankish
synods passed corresponding ordinances.
Nicholas showed the same zeal in other efforts to maintain ecclesiastical discipline, especially as to the marriage laws. Ingiltrud,
wife of Count Boso, had left her husband for a paramour; Nicholas commanded the bishops in the dominions of Charles the Bald
to excommunicate her unless she returned to her husband. As she paid no attention to the summons to appear before the Synod
of Milan in 860, she was put under the ban.
The pope was also involved in a desperate struggle with Lothair II of Lorraine over the inviolability of marriage. Lothair had aban-
doned his lawful wife Theutberga to marry Waldrada. At the Synod of Aachen, 28 April 862, the bishops of Lorraine approved this
union, contrary to ecclesiastical law. At the Synod of Metz, June, 863, the papal legates, bribed by the king, assented to the
Aachen decision, and condemned the absent Theutberga. Upon this the pope brought the matter before his own tribunal. The two
archbishops, Gnther of Cologne and Thietgaud of Trier, who had come to Rome as delegates, were summoned before the
Lateran Synod of October, 863, when the pope condemned and deposed them as well as John of Ravenna and Hagano of
Bergamo. The Emperor Louis II took up the cause of the deposed bishops, while King Lothair advanced upon Rome with an army
and laid siege to the city, so that the pope was confined for two days in St. Peter's without food. Yet Nicholas did not waver in his
determination; after being reconciled with the pope, the emperor withdrew from Rome and commanded the former Archbishops of
Trier and Cologne to return to their homes. Nicholas never ceased from his efforts to bring about a reconciliation between Lothair
and his lawful wife, but without effect.
Another matrimonial case in which Nicholas interposed was that of Judith, daughter of Charles the Bald, who had married Baldwin,
Count of Flanders, without her father's consent. Frankish bishops had excommunicated Judith, and Hincmar of Reims had taken
sides against her, but Nicholas urged leniency, in order to protect freedom of marriage.
Nicholas was seen in the East as trying to extend his papal power beyond what was the canonical authority asserting a "rulership"
over the Church instead of the position of "highest honor among equals" accorded to the pope of Rome by the East. He contended
that, in violation of ecclesiastical law, the Patriarch Ignatius was deposed in 857 and Photius raised to the patriarchal see. In a let-
ter addressed (8 May 862), to the patriarchs of the East, Nicholas called upon them and all their bishops to refuse recognition to
Photius, and at a Roman synod held in April, 863, he excommunicated Photius.
Photius was elected lawfully and canonically in 858 according to the Eastern church. This was affirmed two months later in a true
ecumenical council where Ignatios elevation to the Patriarchate was declared to be uncanonical and Photius was acclaimed as
properly elected as the new Patriarch. This led to conflict between East and West over doctrinal issues such as the Filioque and
territorial claims due to Nicholas stance as a ruler over the church. An ecumenical synod was convened in 867 in Constantinople
where Nicholas was excommunicated along with the rejection of his claims of primacy, his intrusion into Bulgaria, and the innova-
tive addition of the Filioque.
Bulgaria having been converted by Greek missionaries, its ruler, Prince Boris, in August, 863, sent an embassy to the pope with
one hundred six questions on the teaching and discipline of the Church. Nicholas answered these inquiries exhaustively in his
"Responsa Nicolai ad consulta Bulgarorum" (Mansi, "Coll. Conc.", XV, 401 sqq.). At the same time he sent an embassy to Prince
Boris in an abortive attempt to convert him to the western usage; ultimately the prince elected to join the Eastern Church.
He encouraged the missionary activity of the Church. He sanctioned the union of the Sees of Bremen and Hamburg, and con-
firmed to St. Anschar, Archbishop of Bremen, and his successors the office of papal legate to the Danes, Swedes, and Slavs. In
many other ecclesiastical matters, he issued letters and decisions, and he took active measures against bishops who were neg-
lectful of their duties.
At Rome, Nicholas rebuilt and endowed several churches, and constantly sought to encourage religious life. His led a pious per-
sonal life guided by a spirit of Christian asceticism. Regino of Prm reports that Nicholas was highly esteemed by the citizens of
Rome and by his contemporaries generally (Chronicon, "ad annum 868," in "Mon. Germ. Hist." Script.", I.579), and after death was
regarded as a saint.
A much discussed question and one that is important in judging the position taken by this pope is whether he made use of the
forged pseudo-Isidorian papal decretals. After exhaustive investigation, Schrrs has decided that the pope was neither acquainted
with the pseudo-Isidorian collection in its entire extent, nor did he make use of its individual parts; that he had perhaps a general
knowledge of the false decretals, but did not base his view of the law upon them, and that he owed his knowledge of them solely to
documents which came to him from the Frankish Empire [Schrrs, "Papst Nikolaus I. und Pseudo-Isidor" in Historisches Jahrbuch,
XXV (1904), 1 sqq.; Idem, "Die pseudoisidorische 'Exceptio spolii' bei Papst Nikolaus I" in Historisches Jahrbuch, XXVI (1905), 275
sqq.].
PAPAL COINS
NICHOLAS I with LOUIS II (858-867)
Obv.: SCS PETRVS around ADR monogram.
Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS MP around ROMA monogram
Reference: Muntoni 1; CNI 1; MEC 1048; Berman 32. Rare. Extremely fine.
Estimate: 3000 CHF. Price realized: 5,000 CHF (approx. 4,790 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 22 mm 1,53 g.
Reference: M 1. B 32. MEC 48. XF.
Estimate CHF 1200. Price realized: 1,400 CHF (approx. 1,035 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Reference: Muntoni 1. Rare. VF.
Estimate: 500 EUR. Price realized: 2,400 EUR (approx. 3,679 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
Adrian II - 14 Dec. 867 to 14 Dec. 872
Adrian II (also known as Hadrian II), (792872), pope from December 14, 867 to December 14, 872, was a member of a noble
Roman family, and became pope in 867, at an advanced age.
He maintained, but with less energy, the attitude of his predecessor Nicholas I. Lothar II, king of Lotharingia, died in 869, leaving
Adrian to mediate between the Frankish kings with a view to assuring to the Emperor, Louis II, the heritage of Lothar II, Louis's
brother.
Photius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, shortly after the council in which he had pronounced sentence of deposition against Pope
Nicholas I, was driven from the patriarchate by a new emperor, Basil the Macedonian, who favoured his rival Ignatius. An ecumeni-
cal council (called by the Latins the 8th Ecumenical Council) was convoked as the Fourth Council of Constantinople to decide this
matter. At this council Adrian was represented by legates, who presided at the condemnation of Photius as a heretic, but did not
succeed in coming to an understanding with Ignatius on the subject of the jurisdiction over the Bulgarian church.
Like his predecessor Nicholas I, Adrian was forced to submit, in temporal affairs, to the interference of the emperor, Louis II, who
placed him under the surveillance of Arsenius, bishop of Orte, his confidential adviser, and Arsenius's nephew Anastasius, the
librarian.
Adrian had in his youth married a woman named Stephania, by whom he had a daughter, and both were still living at his election,
following which they lived with him in the Lateran Palace. They were carried off and assassinated by Anastasius's brother,
Eleutherius.
Adrian died in 872 after 5 years as pope.
PAPAL COINS
Adrian II. 867-872.
Lead Bulla (34mm, 30.61 gm).
Obv.: *HADRIANI around cross.
Rev.: + PA PAE.
Reference; Serifini I pg. 12, 5. VF, lacquered, dig on obverse. ($500)
Estimate $500. Price realized: 500 USD.

*NOTE: This piece is included because lead Bullae are sometimes mistaken for coins. They were used to seal
documents, and to show an official seal.
John VIII - 14 Dec. 872 to 16 Dec. 882
John VIII was pope from December 13, 872 to December 16, 882. He is often considered one of the ablest pontiffs of the ninth
century[1] and the last bright spot on the papacy until Leo IX two centuries later.
He was born in Rome. Among the reforms achieved during his pontificate was a notable administrative reorganisation of the papal
curia. With little help from European kings, he attempted to expel the Saracens from Italy after they had penetrated as far as
Rome. He failed and was forced to pay tribute. John defended St. Methodius against his German enemies, who objected to his use
of the Slavonic language in the liturgy. John later confirmed the permission to use Slavonic that had been originally granted by
Pope Adrian II, John's predecessor. In 879 he recognised the reinstatement of Photius as the legitimate patriarch of
Constantinople; Photius had been condemned in 869 by Pope Adrian II. Consequently, John VIII was in favour of reciting the
Creed without the filioque. In 878 John crowned Louis II, king of France. He also crowned two Holy Roman Emperors: Charles II
and Charles III.
John VIII, son of Gundus, seems to have been born in the first quarter of the ninth century. In 853 AD and 869 AD he was archdeacon of the
Roman Church, and it was as such that he became pope on 14 December 872 AD. His election was opposed by Formosus, who remained in
opposition to him throughout the whole of his pontificate. All modern historians are agreed that John was one of the greatest of the great popes
who sat on the chair of Peter during the ninth century. His pontificate was noted for the progressive conversion of the Slavs, delicate diplomatic
relations with the Carolingian Empire and the Saracen raids which constantly threatened Italy and Rome itself.
Louis II, though not even master of Italy, bore at this time the title of Emperor of the Romans. To him, as a prince of character, John gave his
support. He endeavoured to induce Charles the Bald, King of France, to yield up to him the kingdom of Lothaire; he aided him in his efforts
against the Saracens, and, after his death (875 AD), strove to comfort his widow Engelberga. When Louis II died, Johns support of Charles the
Bald resulted in his receiving the imperial crown (25 December 875 AD), and in the discomfiture of his rivals.
According to the legend of Pope Joan, a woman named Joan reigned as pope under the name of John earlier in the 9th
century. Her true gender was discovered, and she would eventually be erased from the historical record because of this.
If she existed, when regnal numbering was applied to papal reigns in the 10th century, she would have been designated
John VIII and the Pope John that is the subject of this article would have been John IX. However, most historians believe
that Pope Joan did not exist and that the legend was created in the 13th century by the chronicler Martin of Opava.
Pope John VIII is not otherwise connected with this legend.

JOHN VIII (872-882) with Louis II, Holy Roman Emperor. 872-882 JOHN VIII (872-882) with Louis II, Holy Roman Emperor. 872-882
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,55 g. 24 mm Struck 872-875 AD.. Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,25 g. Struck 872-875 AD..
Obv.: SCS PETRVS, IOHANS monogram Obv.: SCS PETRVS, IOHANS monogram
Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS IMP (ligate), ROMA monogram. Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS IMP (ligate), ROMA monogram.
Reference: M 1. B 35. MEC 1052. Rare! Beautiful patina. XF. Reference: CNI XV 1; Muntoni 1; Berman 35; Depeyrot 867AA; MEC 1, 1052.
Good VF, some encrustation. Very rare.
Estimate CHF 2500. Price realized: 5,000 CHF (approx. 3,696 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: $2000. Price realized: 3,000 USD
PAPAL COINS
JOHN VIII (872-882) with Louis II of Italy, Holy Roman Emperor. 872-882
Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,38 g. Struck 872-875 AD..
Obv.: SCS PETRVS, IOHANS monogram
Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS IMP (ligate), ROMA monogram.
Reference: CNI XV 1; Muntoni 1; Berman 35; Depeyrot 867AA; MEC 1, 1052. Good
VF, sharp strike with light toning and some encrustation. Very rare.
Estimate $2000. Price realized: 3,050 USD.
PAPAL COINS
JOHN VIII (872-882) with CHARLES THE FAT (872-882)
Obv.: SCS PETRV Bust of St Peter facing slightly left, with staff.
Rev.: +KAROLVS MP around IOHANS monogram
Reference: Muntoni 2. Very rare, about XF example.
Estimate: 4.000 EUR. Price realized: 5,750 EUR (approx. 8,144 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
JOHN VIII (872-882) with CHARLES THE BALD & CHARLES THE FAT (872-882)
Obv.: SCS PETRV Bust of St Peter facing slightly left, with staff.
Rev.: +KAROLVS MP around IOHANS monogram
Reference: Muntoni 2; CNI 5; MEC 1053; Berman 36. Rare. Extremely fine.
Estimate: 3000 CHF. Price realized: 4,800 CHF (approx. 4,598 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
Stephen V - 885 to 14 September 891
Pope Stephen V, (885-891), succeeded Pope Adrian III, and was in turn succeeded by Pope Formosus. In his dealings with
Constantinople in the matter of Photius, as also in his relations with the young Slavonic church, he pursued the policy of Pope
Nicholas I.
His father, Hadrian, who belonged to the Roman aristocracy, entrusted his education to his relative, Bishop Zachary, librarian of the
Holy See. Stephen was created cardinal-priest of SS. Quattro Coronati by Marinus I, and his obvious holiness was the cause of his
being chosen pope.
He was consecrated in September, 885, without waiting for the imperial confirmation; but when Charles the Fat found with what
unanimity he had been elected he let the matter rest.
Stephen was called upon to face a famine caused by a drought and by locusts, and as the papal treasury was empty he had to fall
back on his father's wealth to relieve the poor, to redeem captives, and to repair churches.
To promote order he adopted Guy III of Spoleto "as his son" and crowned him Emperor (891). He also recognized Louis the Blind
as King of Provence. As Aurelian, Archbishop of Lyon, would not consecrate Teutbold who had been canonically elected Bishop of
Langres, Stephen himself consecrated him. He had also to oppose the arbitrary proceedings of the Archbishops of Bordeaux and
Ravenna, and to resist the attacks which the Patriarch Photius made on the Holy See. His resistance was successful, and the
Emperor Leo Sent the disturber into exile. When writing against Photius, he begged the emperor to send warships and soldiers to
enable him to ward off the assaults of the Saracens.
Stephen, who received many English pilgrims and envoys bringing Peterspence, was buried in the portico of the basilica of that
Apostle.
In some sources, this pope is called Stephen VI and Pope Stephen IV is called Stephen V.
Stephen, a priest of Rome elected pope in March of 752 to succeed Pope Zachary, died of apoplexy three days later, before being
ordained a bishop. In those times, the pope was chosen from among the priests and deacons of Rome and never from among
bishops from other dioceses [1]. By definition, the pope was the bishop of Rome and was considered legitimate only from the day
of his ordination. As a result, Stephen was not considered a legitimate pope and as such, omitted from all lists of popes. His imme-
diate successor, also called Stephen, is as a rule numbered Stephen II, since the name Stephen had been already borne by Pope
Stephen I (254-257).
From 752 to 942, seven popes reigned bearing the name of Stephen. Originally, they were not otherwise distinguished, as regnal
numbering was not applied to popes until the 10th century. They were named Stephen II to VIII respectively after their death. But
the next pope to take the name Stephen in 1057, after numbering had become a custom, was called Stephen IX during his life and
signed all his documents "Stephanus Nonus Papa".
Approximately from the beginning of the 13th century, the election to Papacy (in contrast to episcopal consecration) was consid-
ered the beginning of the pontificate, not only because nearly all popes were now already bishops when elected [2], but especially
to ensure a clear transition of the very great papal powers, not subject to other forces. Episcopal consecration thus became a for-
mality as far as the papal title, which was not a sacramental order, was concerned. A pope was thus legitimate pope from his elec-
tion, even before his consecration. According to this new point of view, when Pope Celestine IV (1241) or Pope Urban VII (1590)
died just after their election, before their papal consecration, they were still considered legitimate. The most extreme case is Pope
Adrian V, who was elected pope in 1276 without ever having been ordained to the priesthood, and died one month later, still not
ordained: he has always been considered a legitimate pope. In the 16th century, at the time of the Council of Trent and the
Catholic Counter-Reformation, the supremacy of the Church and its leader was reinforced. It was emphasized that the pope owed
his election only to the Holy Spirit and thus became pope from the moment of election.
Therefore Pope-elect Stephen was now counted as a legitimate pope. He had then to be called Stephen II and the following
Stephens had to be requalified from Stephen III to Stephen X even if the last one was called officially Stephen IX during his life.
During the reign of Pope John XXIII, Stephen was again erased from the lists. The Annuario pontificio, which gives the authorized
list of popes, was modified in its 1961 edition, and the regnal numbers of the subsequent Stephens reverted to II to IX.
Although pope-elect Stephen has not been listed among the popes in the Annuario pontificio since 1961, many recent articles and
internet sites continue to list him as pope, often relying on the 1913 edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia, because it is in the public
domain. Even reputable sources such as the Encyclopedia Britannica continue to refer to him as "unconsecrated pope" Stephen
(II), with his successor identified either as Stephen (II) III or as Stephen II (III).
The matter of Stephen's legitimacy is of no theological or historical consequence, as he died without having made any decisions.
Thus, the only aspect affected by his recognition, or lack thereof, is the list of popes.
STEPHEN V with CHARLES THE FAT (885-891) STEPHEN V with CHARLES THE FAT (885-891)
Denaro 1,02 g. Denaro 22 mm 1,03 g.
Obv.: +SCS PETRVS around cruciform monogram of SEPHAN Obv.: +SCS PETRVS around cruciform monogram of SEPHAN
Rev.: CAROLVS MP around ROMA monogram Rev.: CAROLVS MP around ROMA monogram
Reference: Muntoni 3; CNI 3; MEC 1054. Rare. Extremely fine. Reference: M 3. B 42. MEC 1054. Beautiful example!
Estimate: 3000 CHF. Price realized: 4,100 CHF (approx. 3,928 U.S. Estimate CHF 1400. Price realized: 2,000 CHF (approx. 1,478 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Dollars as of the auction date)
Formosus - 19 Sept. 891 to 4 April 896

Formosus (c. 816 in Ostia896) was Pope of the Roman
Catholic Church from 891 to 896. His brief reign as Pope was
troubled, and his remains were exhumed and put on trial in the
notorious Cadaver Synod.
He became Cardinal Bishop of Portus in 864. He undertook

diplomatic missions to Bulgaria (866) and France (869 and 872),
and he persuaded Charles the Bald, King of France, to be
crowned by the Pope.
As early as 872 he was a candidate for the papacy, but due to

political complications he left Rome and the court of Pope John
VIII that year. John convened a synod, and Formosus was
ordered to return, or be excommunicated on charges that he had
aspired to the Bulgarian Archbishopric and the Holy See, had
opposed the emperor and had deserted his diocese without
papal permission, had despoiled the cloisters in Rome, had per- Jean Paul Laurens Le Pape Formose et Etienne VII 1870
formed the divine service in spite of the interdict, and had "con-
spired with certain iniquitous men and women for the destruction of the papal see". The condemnation of Formosus and others
was announced in July 872. In 878 the sentence of excommunication was withdrawn after he promised never to return to Rome or
exercise his priestly functions.
In 883 John's successor, Pope Marinus I, restored Formosus to his suburbicarian diocese of Portus. Following the reigns of
Marinus, Pope Hadrian III (884885) and Pope Stephen V (885891), Formosus was elected Pope on October 6, 891.
Supporters of Guy II of Spoleto forced Formosus to crown him as a Roman Emperor in April 892. Other immediate issues were
that in Constantinople, the Patriarch Photius had been ejected and Stephen, the son of Emperor Basil I, had taken the office.
There was a quarrel between the Archbishops of Cologne and Hamburg concerning the Bishopric of Bremen. In the contest
between Odo, Count of Paris and Charles the Simple for the French crown, the Pope sided with Charles.
Formosus persuaded Arnulf of Carinthia to advance to Rome, invade the Italian peninsula, and take control of Italy. In 894, Arnulf's
army occupied all the country north of the Po River. Guido died in December, leaving his son Lambert in the care of his mother
Agiltrude, an opponent of the Carolingians. In autumn 895 Arnulf undertook his second Italian campaign, and in 896 he was
crowned by the Pope in Rome. The new emperor moved against Spoleto but was struck with paralysis on the way and was unable
to continue the campaign.
On April 4, 896, Formosus died. He was succeeded by Pope Boniface VI.
Pope Stephen VI, the successor of Boniface, influenced by Lambert and Agiltrude, sat in judgment of Formosus in 897, in what
was called the Cadaver Synod. The corpse was disinterred, clad in papal vestments, and seated on a throne to face all the
charges from John VIII. The verdict was that the deceased had been unworthy of the pontificate. All his measures and acts were
annulled, and the orders conferred by him were declared invalid. The papal vestments were torn from his body, the three fingers
from his right hand that he had used in consecrations were cut off and the corpse was thrown into the Tiber (and later retrieved by
a monk).
Following the death of Stephen VI, Formosus' body was reinterred in St Peter's. Further trials of this nature against deceased per-
sons were banned, but Pope Sergius III (904911) reapproved the decisions against Formosus. Sergius demanded the re-ordina-
tion of the bishops consecrated by Formosus, who in turn had meanwhile conferred orders on many other clerics, causing great
confusion. Later the validity of Formosus's work was re-reinstated. The decision of Sergius with respect to Formosus has been
subsequently disregarded by the Church.
PAPAL COINS
Formosus. 891-896.
Denaro Struck 891-894. 21 mm 1,24 g.
Obv.: FORMOSI P, half-length bust of St. Peter facing slightly left, holding keys; S P across field .
Rev.: +WWIDO IMP (IMP ligate) (diamond of four pellets), ROMA monogram.
Reference: CNI XV 2; Muntoni 1; Berman 45. VF, toned. Very rare.
Shortly after assuming office, Formosus, in order to secure his position as Pope, was forced to crown Guy
II of Spoleto and his young son Lambert as co-emperors. Fearing their power, he offered to crown Arnulf
of Carinthia in their place if he liberated Italy. Early in 894, Arnulf entered the Italy and conquered all
of the territory north of the Po. Later that year, Guy died and Lambert was removed, though it was not
until 896 when Formosus finally crowned him emperor. Shortly thereafter, both he and Formosus died.
Following the death of both Formosus and Arnulf, Lambert, under the influence of his mother Agiltrude,
sought his reinstatement as emperor and in 897, the new pope Stephen VI, convened what has subsequent-
ly known as the Cadaver Synod , by putting the disinterred corpse of Formosus on trial. Found guilty and
unworthy of his pontificate, all his measures and acts, including his removal of Lambert as emperor, were
annulled, and the orders conferred by him were declared invalid. The papal vestments were torn from his
body, the three fingers from his right hand that he had used in consecrations were cut off and the corpse
was thrown into the Tiber.
Sold For $3250

John IX - Jan. 898 to Jan. 900
John IX, Pope from 898 to 900, not only confirmed the judgment of his predecessor Pope Theodore II (897) in granting Christian
burial to Pope Formosus (891896), but at a council held at Ravenna decreed that the records of the synod which had condemned
him should be burned.
Finding, however, that it was advisable to cement the ties between the empire and the papacy, John IX gave unhesitating support
to Lambert in preference to Arnulf, and also induced the council to determine that henceforth the consecration of the Popes should
take place only in the presence of the imperial legates. The sudden death of Lambert shattered the hopes which this alliance
seemed to promise. John IX was succeeded by Pope Benedict IV (900903).
PAPAL COINS
POPE JOHN IX (898-900) and LAMBERT OF SPOLETO (894-898).
Denaro. Struck circa 898-900. 1,21 g.
Obv.: SCS PETRVS, bust of St. Peter three-quarter facing
Rev.: +LANTVERT MP around IOHANIS monogram.
Reference: MEC 1063; Berman 13; Muntoni I pg. 13, 1, Serafini IV pg. 16, 1; CNI XV pg. 82,
1. Toned, good VF. In order to establish peace following the chaos caused by the posthumous
trial of Formosus in 897, John IX rehabilitated the former popes memory and confirmed the
imperial consecration on Lambert of Spoleto.
John X - March 914 to May 928

John X, Pope from March, 914 to May, 928, was deacon at Bologna when he attracted the attention of Theodora, the wife of
Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, the most powerful noble in Rome, through whose influence he was elevated first to the see of
Bologna and then to the archbishopric of Ravenna.
In direct opposition to a decree of council, John X was, at the instigation of Theodora, promoted to the papal chair as the succes-
sor of Pope Lando (913914). Like Pope John IX (898900) he endeavoured to secure himself against his temporal enemies
through a close alliance with Theophylact and Alberic, marquis of Camerino, then governor of the duchy of Spoleto.
In December 915 John X granted the imperial crown to Berengar of Friuli (915924), and with the assistance of the forces of all
the princes of the Italian peninsula, he took the field in person against the Saracens, over whom he gained a great victory on the
banks of the Garigliano. The defeat and death of Berengar in 924, through the combination of the Italian princes, again frustrated
the hopes of a united Italy, and after witnessing several years of anarchy and confusion, John X perished as a result of the
intrigues of Marozia, daughter of Theodora. His was succeeded by Pope Leo VI in 928.
PAPAL COINS
JOHN X with BERENGAR I (914-928)
Denaro. Ag 1,05 g.
Obv.: +BERENGARIV IMP around monogram of IOHANS PA
Rev.: +SCS PETRVS around ROMA monogram in square border
Reference: Muntoni 3; CNI 4; MEC 1073; Berman 64. Very fine.
Estimate: 2500 CHF. Price realized: 11,000 CHF (approx. 10,537 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date)
ANONYMOUS ISSUE - 13th CENTURY
PAPAL COINS
Anonymous issues. 13th century.
Grosso. Ag 3,38 g.
Obv.: Lion passant left.
Rev.: Roma enthroned facing, holding globus and palm.
Reference: CNI XV 25; Muntoni 59; Berman 110. Good VF, toned.
Estimate: $300. Price realized: 380 USD.
Issue of the Roman Senate.
SEDE VACANTE - 1268-1271

SEDE VACANTE, 1268-1271. SEDE VACANTE, 1268-1271.
Denaro. Viterbo mint. 0,60 g. Grosso. Viterbo mint. 1,34 g.
Obv.: Cross, +PATRIMONIV Obv.: Bearded head facing. SANCTVS PETRVS
Rev.: 2 parallel standing keys, +BEATI PETRI Rev.: 2 parallel standing keys SANCTVS PETRVS
Reference: Munt. 2. Berman 64. Biaggi 3005. Irregular rim. VF. Very rare. Green deposit, rim break, still VF.
Sehr schn
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 400 EUR (approx. 613 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date)
Estimate: EUR 50. Price realized: 210 EUR (approx. 265 U.S. Dollars as
of the auction date)
Boniface VIII - 24 Dec. 1294 to 11 Oct. 1303
Pope Boniface VIII (c. 1235 October 11, 1303), born Benedetto Caetani, was
Pope of the Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303.
Caetani was born in 1235 in Anagni, c. 50 kilometers southeast of Rome. He

was the younger son of a minor noble family, the Caetani Family, and became a
canon of the cathedral in Anagni in his teens. In 1252, when his uncle Peter
Caetani became bishop of Todi, in Umbria, Benedict went with him and began
his legal studies there. Benedict never forgot his roots in Todi, later describing
the city as "the dwelling place of his early youth," the city which "nourished him
while still of tender years," and as a place where he "held lasting memories". In
1260, Benedict acquired a canonry in Todi, as well as the small nearby castle of
Sismano. Later in life he repeatedly expressed his gratitude to Anagni, Todi, and
his family.
In 1264, Benedict became part of the Roman Curia where he served as secre-
tary to Cardinal Simon of Brie on a mission to France. Similarly, he accompanied
Cardinal Ottobono Fieschi to England (1265-1268) in order to suppress a rebel-
lion by a group of barons against Henry III, a churchman in England. Upon
Benedict's return from England, there is an eight year period in which nothing is
known about what occurred in his life. After this eight year period of uncertainty,
Benedict was sent to France to supervise the collection of a tithe in 1276 and
then became a papal notary in the late 1270s. During this time, Benedict accu-
mulated seventeen benefices which he was permitted to keep when he was promoted, first to cardinal deacon in 1281 and then
10 years later as cardinal priest. As cardinal, he often served as papal legate in diplomatic negotiations with France, Naples, Sicily,
and Aragon.
He was elected in December 24, 1294 after Pope Celestine V abdicated in December 13. There is a legend that it was Boniface
VIII's doing that Celestine V renounced the papacy - for Boniface, previously Benedetto, convinced Celestine V that no person on
the earth could go through life without sin. However, in later times, it is a more common understanding that Celestine V resigned
by his own designs and Benedetto merely showed that it was allowed by Church law. Either way, Celestine V left and Boniface
VIII took his place as pope. One of his first acts as pontiff was to imprison his predecessor in the Castle of Fumone in Ferentino,
where he died at the age of 81, attended by two monks of his order. In 1300, Boniface VIII formalized the jubilees, which after-
wards became a source of both profit and scandal to the church. Boniface VIII founded the University of Rome La Sapienza in
1303.
Boniface VIII put forward some of the strongest claims to temporal, as well as spiritual, supremacy of any Pope and constantly
involved himself with foreign affairs. In his Bull of 1302, Unam Sanctam, Boniface VIII proclaimed that it "is absolutely necessary
for salvation that every human creature be subject to the Roman pontiff", pushing papal supremacy to its historical extreme. These
views and his intervention in 'temporal' affairs led to many bitter quarrels with the Emperor Albert I of Hapsburg (1291-1298), the
powerful family of the Colonnas, and with Philip IV of France (12851314).
The conflict between Boniface VIII and Philip IV of France came at a time of expanding nation states and the desire for the con-
solidation of power by the increasingly powerful monarchs. The increase in monarchical power in the rising nation states and its
conflicts with the Church of Rome were only exacerbated by the rise to power of Phillip IV. In France, the process of centralizing
royal power and developing a genuine national state began with the Capetian kings. During his reign, Phillip surrounded himself
with the best civil lawyers, and decidedly expelled the clergy from all participation in the administration of the law. With the clergy
beginning to be taxed in France and England in order to finance their ongoing wars against each other, Boniface took a hard
stand against it. He saw the taxation as an assault on traditional clerical rights, and ordered the Bull Clericis laicos in February
1296, forbidding lay taxation of the clergy without prior papal approval. In the bull, Benedict states "they exact and demand from
the same the half, tithe, or twentieth, or any other portion or proportion of their revenues or goods; and in many ways they try to
bring them into slavery, and subject them to their authority. And also whatsoever emperors, kings, or princes, dukes, earls or
barons...presume to take possession of things anywhere deposited in holy buildings...should incur sentence of excommunication."
It was during the issuing of Clericis Laicos that hostilities between Boniface and Philip began. Philip retaliated against the bull by
denying the exportation of money from France to Rome, funds that the Church required to operate. Boniface had no choice but to
quickly meet the demands of Philip by allowing taxation only "during an emergency."
After complications involving the capture of Jean Lemoine by Philip, the conflict was re-ignited. In December of 1301, Philip was
sent the Papal Bull Ausculta fili ("Listen, My Son"), informing Philip that "God has set popes over kings and kingdoms."
The feud between the two reached its peak in the early 14th century when Philip began to launch a strong anti-papal campaign
against Boniface. On November 18, 1302, Boniface issued one of the most important papal bulls of Catholic History: Unam
Sanctum. It declared that both spiritual and temporal power were under the pope's jurisdiction, and that kings were subordinate to
the power of the Church.
In response, Guillaume de Nogaret, Philip's chief minister, denounced Boniface as a heretical criminal to the French clergy. In
1303, Philip and Nogaret were excommunicated. However, on September 7, 1303 an army led by Nogaret and Sciarra Colonna of
the Colonna family surprised Boniface at his retreat in Anagni. The King and the Colonnas demanded that he resign, to which
Boniface VIII responded that he would 'sooner die'. Boniface was beaten badly and nearly executed but was released from captiv-
ity after three days. He died a month later, on October 11, 1303.
After the humiliating ordeal of Boniface and Philip, no popes would ever again challenge or seriously threaten kings and emperors
despite further excommunications and interdictions. In the future, the Church would see itself becoming subordinate to the grow-
ing power of the European nation-states and their secular leaders, and the church's secular power would forever be lost. It is also
interesting to note that this was the first event that marked the downfall of the Church's prestige, and the decline of its prestige
and advertisement of its corruptions led to the Reformation.
Boniface VIII was buried in St. Peter's Basilica in a grandiose tomb that he had designed himself. (Allegedly, when the tomb
cracked open three centuries after his death (on October 9, 1605), his body was revealed to be perfectly incorrupt.)
Pope Boniface VII is now considered an anti-pope. At the time, however, this fact was not recognized and so the seventh true
Pope Boniface took the official number VIII. This has advanced the numbering of all subsequent Popes Boniface by one.
Therefore, Popes Boniface VIII and IX are really the seventh and eighth popes respectively.
A process (judicial investigation) against the memory of Pope Boniface VIII was held from 1303 to 1311. Its records were repub-
lished in a critical edition by J. Coste (1995). The collected testimonies (especially those of the examination held at Groseau in
August and September of 1310) alleged many heretical opinions of Boniface VIII.
The historicity of these testimonies is disputed among scholars. T. Boase, whose 1933 biography of Pope Boniface VIII is often
regarded as still the best, comes to the conclusion, "The evidence is not unconvincing ... but it was too late, long years after the
event, to construct an openly held heresy out of a few chance remarks with some newly-added venom in construing them" (p.
361).
The posthumous trial against the memory of Boniface VIII was in any case settled without a result in 1311.
PAPAL COINS
Boniface VIII. 1294-1303.
Denaro paparino Pont de Sorgues mint.
Obv.: DnI*BON*PAPE MItred bust facing, looking slightly to left.
Rev.: COIT*VENAVSIN Cross.
Reference: Muntoni 2, CNI -, Biaggi -. Very rare. Good VF.
Estimate: 250 EUR. Price realized: 850 EUR (approx. 1,041 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
John XXII - 7 Aug. 1316 to 4 Dec. 1334
Pope John XXII (1249 December 4, 1334), born Jacques Duze (or d'Euse),
was pope from 1316 to 1334. He was the second Pope of the Avignon Papacy
(1309-1377), elected by a conclave in Lyon assembled by Philip V of France.
Like his predecessor, Clement V, he centralized power and income in the
Papacy, living a princely life in Avignon. He opposed Louis IV of Bavaria as
emperor, and Louis in turn invaded Italy and set up an antipope, Nicholas V.
Pope John XXII also faced controversy in theology involving his views on the
Beatific Vision.
The son of a shoemaker in Cahors, Jacques Duze studied medicine in

Montpellier and law in Paris.
The death of Pope Clement V in 1314 was followed by a sedisvacancy of two

years, due to disagreements between the cardinals, who were split into two
factions. After two years, Philip V of France (131622) finally in 1316 managed
to arrange a conclave of twenty-three cardinals in Lyon. This conclave elected
Jacques Duze, who took the name John XXII and was crowned in Lyon. He
set up his residence in Avignon rather than Rome, continuing the Avignon
Papacy of his predecessor.
John XXII involved himself in the politics and religious movements of many
European countries in order to advance the interests of the Church. This made
him a very controversial pope at the time.
Before John XXII's election a contest had begun for the imperial crown between Louis IV of Bavaria (131447) and his opponent,
Frederick I of Austria (130830). John XXII was neutral at first; but in 1323, when Louis IV had won and became Holy Roman
Emperor, the Guelph (papal) party and the Ghibelline (imperial) party began a serious quarrel. This was partly provoked by John
XXII's extreme claims of authority over the empire and also partly by Louis IV's support of the spiritual Franciscans, whom John
XXII condemned for their insistence on evangelical poverty and their belief that mendicant friars would replace the priesthood and
sacraments of the Church. Louis IV was assisted in his doctrinal dispute with the papacy by Marsilius of Padua, and later by the
British Franciscan friar and scholar William of Ockham. Louis IV invaded Italy, entered Rome and set up Pietro Rainalducci as
antipope Nicholas V (132830). The project was a fiasco. Guelphic predominance at Rome was later restored, and Pope John
excommunicated William of Ockham. However, Louis IV had silenced the papal claims, and John XXII stayed the rest of his life in
Avignon.
Pope John XXII was involved in a theological controversy involving the Beatific Vision. Beginning before he was pope, he argued
that those who died in the faith did not see the presence of God until the Last Judgment. The point is important to Catholics, since
if the dead are not in the presence of God, then the whole idea of prayers to the saints would seem to be undermined. John XXII
continued this argument for a time in sermons while he was pope, although he never taught this in official documents. He eventu-
ally backed down from his position, and agreed that those who died in grace do indeed immediately enjoy the Beatific Vision.
Despite holding for many years a view widely held to be heretical, John XXII is not considered a heretic because in his day the
doctrine he had contradicted had not been formally defined by the Church, a lacuna that his successor, Pope Benedict XII
(133442), immediately filled by the encyclical Benedictus Deus, which formally defined this doctrine as part of Church teaching.
Pope John XXII was also an excellent administrator and did much efficient reorganizing.
John XXII has traditionally been credited with having composed the prayer 'Anima Christi, sanctifica me...', which has come down
to us in English as 'Soul of Christ, sanctify me...' and as the hymn, 'Soul of my Saviour, sanctify my breast'.
On Sunday 27th March 1329 John XXII condemned many writings of Meister Eckhart as heretical in his papal bull 'in agro domini-
co'.
Johannes XXII., 1316-1334. Johannes XXII., 1316-1334.
Gold Gulden. 3,46 g. Grosso tornese. Pont de Sorgues mint. 3,77 g.
Obv.: Large stylized fleur-de-lis. SANT PETRII Obv.: Mitred pope enthroned, with right hadn raised in blessing, and
cross staff.
Rev.: John the Baptist stands facing, tiara to left of head. S.
IOHANNES .B. Rev.: Floreate cross.
Reference: Poey dAvant 4140. Fr. 27. VF. Reference: Muntoni 7. Rare, beautiful Patina, VF +
Estimate: CHF 650. Price realized: 700 CHF (approx. 565 U.S. Estimate: 250 EUR. Price realized: 700 EUR (approx. 992 U.S.

Johannes XXII., 1316-1334. Johannes XXII., 1316-1334.
Grosso tornese. Pont de Sorgues mint. 3,93 g. Grosso. Macerata mint. 2,24 g.
Obv.: Mitred pope enthroned, with right hadn raised in blessing, and Obv.: Mitred pope enthroned, with right hadn raised in blessing, and
cross staff. cross staff.
Rev.: Floreate cross. Rev.: Cross.
Very rare, nice patina. XF. Reference: Muntoni 1. Rare, VF.
Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 2,600 EUR (approx. 3,985 U.S. Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,839 U.S.
Benedict XII - 20 Dec. 1334 to 25 April 1342
Pope Benedict XII (died April 25, 1342), born Jacques Fournier, was Pope from 1334 to 1342.
Little is known of the origins of Jacques Fournier. He is believed to have been born in
Saverdun in the Comt de Foix around the 1280s to a family of modest means. He became a
Cistercian monk and left to study at the University of Paris. In 1311 he was made Abbot of
Fontfroide Abbey and quickly became known for his intelligence and organizational ability. In
1317 he was made bishop of Pamiers. There he undertook a rigorous hunt for Cathar
heretics, which won him praise from religious authorities, but alienated the local people.
His efforts against the Cathars of Montaillou in the Arige, were carefully recorded in the
Fournier Register which he took to Rome and deposited in the Vatican Library. This has been
documented by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie's pioneering microhistory, Montaillou, village occi-
tan. In 1326, upon the successful rooting out of the last - it was believed - heretics of the
south, he was made Bishop of Mirepoix in the Arige. A year later, in 1327, he was made a
cardinal.
Fournier succeeded Pope John XXII (131634) as Pope in 1334, being elected on the first
conclave ballot. But he did not carry out the policy of his predecessor. He practically made
peace with the Emperor Louis IV, and as far as possible came to terms with the Franciscans, who were then at odds with the
Roman See.
Benedict XII was a reforming pope who tried to curb the luxuries of the monastic orders, though without much success. He also
ordered the construction of the Palais des Papes in Avignon. He spent most of his time working on questions of theology. He
rejected many of the ideas developed by John XXII and campaigned against the Immaculate Conception. He engaged in long the-
ological debates with other noted figures of the age such as William of Ockham and Meister Eckhart
A note on the numbering: Pope Benedict X is now considered an antipope. At the time, however, this status was not recognized
and so the man the Roman Catholic church officially considers the tenth true Pope Benedict took the official number XI, rather
than X. This has advanced the numbering of all subsequent Popes Benedict by one. Popes Benedict XI-XVI are, from an official
point of view, the tenth through fifteenth popes by that name.
PAPAL COINS
Benedict XII, 1334-1342.
Denaro paparino. Macerata mint. 17 mm 0,65 g.
Obv.: Cross.
Rev.: Key on pole.
Reference: M 4. B 181. Very rare. Beautiful condition!
Estimate CHF 300. Price realized: 390 CHF (approx. 288 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
Clement VI - 7 May 1342 to 6 Dec. 1352
Pope Clement VI (1291 December 6, 1352), born Pierre Roger,
the fourth of the Avignon Popes, was pope from May 1342 until his
death.
Clement was born in the village of Maumont, today part of the com-
mune of Rosiers-d'gletons, in Limousin, the son of the wealthy lord
of Rosiers-d'gletons.
He entered the Benedictine order as a boy, studied at Paris, and

became successively prior of St. Baudil, abbot of Fcamp, bishop of
Arras, chancellor of France, archbishop of Sens and archbishop of
Rouen. He was made cardinal-priest of Santi Nereo e Achilleo and
administrator of the bishopric of Avignon by Benedict XII in 1338,
and four years later succeeded him as pope.
Like his immediate predecessors, he was devoted to France, and

he demonstrated his French sympathies by refusing a solemn invi-
tation to return to Rome from the city's people, as well as from the
poet Petrarch. He however threw a sop to the Romans by reducing
the Jubilee term from one hundred years to fifty. He also purchased
the sovereignty of Avignon from Queen Joan I of Naples, for 80,000
crowns. The money was never paid, but Clement VI may have
deemed that he gave the queen a full equivalent by absolving her
from the murder of her husband.
Clement VI issued the Bull Unigenitus, January 27, 1343, in order to

justify the power of the pope and the use of indulgences. This docu-
ment was also used in the defence of indulgences after Martin
Luther pinned his 95 Theses to a church in Wittenburg on October
31, 1517.
Clement VI reigned during the Black Death. This pandemic swept through Europe (as well as Asia and the Middle East) between
13471350, and is believed to have killed between a third and two thirds of Europe's population. During the plague, he sought the
insight of astronomers for explanation. Jehan de Murs was among the team "of three who drew up a treatise explaining the plague
of 1348 by the conjunction of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars in 1341" (Tomasello, 15). Clement VI's physicians advised him that sur-
rounding himself with torches would block the plague. However, he soon became skeptical of this recommendation and stayed in
Avignon supervising sick care, burials, and the pastoral care of the dying (Duffy, 167). He never contracted the disease. One of his
physicians, Gui de Chauliac, later wrote the Chirurgia magna.
Pope Clement VI cameo.Popular opinion blamed the Jews for the plague, and pogroms erupted throughout Europe. Clement
issued two papal bulls in 1348 (one on July 6) which condemned the violence and said those who blamed the plague on the Jews
had been "seduced by that liar, the Devil." He urged clergy to take action to protect Jews, but the orders appeared to have little
effect, and the destruction of whole Jewish communities continued until 1349[1].
Clement continued the struggle of his predecessors with the Emperor Louis IV. He excommunicated him after protracted negotia-
tions on April 13, 1346, and directed the election of Charles IV, who received general recognition after the death of Louis in
October 1347, putting an end to the schism which had long divided Germany. Clement proclaimed a crusade in 1343, but nothing
was accomplished beyond a naval attack on Smyrna (29 October 1344).
The other chief incidents of his pontificate were his disputes with Edward III of England on account of the latter's encroachments
on ecclesiastical jurisdiction, as well as with the kings of Castile and Aragon; his fruitless negotiations for reunion with the
Armenians and with the Byzantine emperor, John VI Kantakouzenos; and the commencement of Cola di Rienzo's agitation at
Rome. He had appointed Cola to a civil position at Rome, and, although at first approving the establishment of the tribunate, he
later sent a legate who excommunicated him and, with the help of the aristocratic faction, drove him from the city in December
1347. Clement also excommunicated Casimir III of Poland and made Prague an archbishopric in 1344.
Clement VI died in December 1352, leaving the reputation of "a fine gentleman, a prince munificent to profusion, a patron of the
arts and learning, but no saint" (Gregorovius; see also Gibbon, chap. 66).
Unlike the Cistercian Benedict XII, Clement VI was devoted to lavish living, and the treasury which he inherited made that lifestyle
possible. He claimed to have "lived as a sinner among sinners", in his own words. During his pontificate, he added a new chapel to
the Papal Palace and dedicated it to St. Peter. He commissioned the artist Matteo Giovanetti de Viterbo to paint common hunting
and fishing scenes on the walls of the existing papal chapels, and purchased enormous tapestries to decorate the stone walls. In
order to bring good music to the celebrations, he recruited musicians from northern France, especially from Lige and of the Ars
Nova style. He liked music so much that he kept composers and theorists close to him throughout his entire pontificate, Philippe de
Vitry being among the more famous. The first two payments he made after his coronation were to musicians (Tomasello, 12-20).
PAPAL COINS
Clement VI., 1342-1352.
Grosso clementino da 24 denari, AR Avignon mint. 26 mm 2,47 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS PP SEXTVS Il Pope enthroned facing.
Rev.: SANTVS PETRVS Crossed keys. Crossed-keys legend dividers.
Reference: Muntoni 1. Berman 182. VF++
Estimate: EUR 300. Price realized: 660 EUR (approx. 979 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Clement VI., 1342-1352.
Grosso tornese. Pont de Sorgues mint. 4,08 g.
Obv.: Pope enthroned with mire, right hand raised in blessing, and cross staff.
Ornamental border at rim of quatrefoils in circles. CLEMES PP SEXTx
Rev.: Cross in circle, double line of writing around. +COMES VENESI
Reference: Muntoni 2. Very rare, beautiful patina. VF-XF.
Estimate: 400.00 EUR. Price realized: 1,500 EUR (approx. 1,801 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Clement VI., 1342-1352.
Grosso. Pont de Sorgues mint.
Obv.: Pope facing holding cross, hand held in benediction, within circles of legend
and quatrefoils, CLEMES PP SEXTREV.
Rev.: cross, +COMES VENESI with keys in saltire, within circle of legend.
Reference: (Ber.183; Munt.2; P.A.4151), very fine, rare
Estimate 400-500. Price realized: 550 GBP (approx. 913 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Clement VI., 1342-1352.
Grosso. Pont de Sorgues mint. 4.07 g.
Obv.: Pope facing holding cross, hand held in benediction, within circles of legend
and quatrefoils, CLEMES PP SEXTREV.
Rev.: cross, +COMES VENESI with keys in saltire, within circle of legend. In outer
legend: ONIPOTE instead of ONIPOTES variety, DEU instead of DEUS. Rare,
undocumented.
Reference: - Ber. manque cf. 183 var. de lgende. Munt. manque cf. 2
Beautful condition!
Estimate: 2.000 / 2.500. Price realized: 3,200 EUR (approx. 4,070 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Clement VI., 1342-1352.
Denier. Pont de Sorgues mint. 1.22 g.
Obv.: Mitred bust of pope facing, rosette each side of head.
Rev.: Cross, crossed keys in 2nd and 4th angles. Legend variety: The second N in
VENESINI is retrograde. Rare, unpublished.
Reference: - Ber. manque cf. 186 - Munt. manque cf. 5
Estimate: 1.000 / 1.200. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 1,780 U.S. Dollars as
Innocent VI - 18 Dec. 1352 to 12 Sept. 1362
Pope Innocent VI (1282 or 1295 September 12, 1362), born tienne Aubert, Pope at Avignon from
1352 to 1362, the successor of Pope Clement VI (134252), was a native of the hamlet of Les
Monts, diocese of Limoges (today part of the commune of Beyssac, dpartement of Corrze), and,
after having taught civil law at Toulouse, became successively bishop of Noyon and bishop of
Clermont.
In 1342, he was raised to the position of cardinal. On the death of Clement VI, after the cardinals
had each bound themselves to a particular line of policy should he be elected, Aubert was chosen
(December 18, 1352), taking the name of Innocent VI; one of the first acts of his pontificate was to
declare the pact to have been illegal and null.
His subsequent policy compares favourably with that of the other Avignon Popes. He brought about
many needed reforms in the administration of church affairs, and by his legate, Cardinal Albornoz,
who was accompanied by Rienzi, he sought to restore order in Rome, where, in 1355, Charles IV
(134678) was with his permission crowned, after previously having come under an oath that he
would quit the city on the day of the ceremony.
It was largely through the exertions of Innocent VI that the Treaty of Brtigny (1360) between France and England was brought
about. During his pontificate, John V Palaeologus (134147, 135476, 137990, 139091) offered to submit the Greek church to
the Roman See on condition of assistance being rendered against John VI Cantacuzenus (134754). The resources at the dispos-
al of the Pope, however, were all required for exigencies nearer home, and the offer was declined.
He survived the black death by sitting in between two fires on his own so his air was not impure.
Most of the wealth accumulated by John XXII and Benedict XII had been lost during the extravagant pontificate of Clement VI.
Innocent VI economised by cutting the chapel staff or the "capellani capelle" from twelve to eight. Works of art were sold rather
than commissioned. His pontificate was dominated by the war in Italy and by Avignon's recovery from the plague, both of which
made draining demands on his treasury. By 1357, he was complaining of poverty.
Innocent VI was a liberal patron of letters, and, if the extreme severity of his measures against the Fraticelli are ignored, he retains
a high reputation for justice and mercy. He died on September 12, 1362, and his successor was Pope Urban V (136270). Today
his tomb can be found in the Carthusian monastery of Villeneuve-les-Avignon.
PAPAL COINS
Innocent VI., 1352-1362.
1/2 Grosso. Avignon mint. 1.33 g.
Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lions heads; right had raised in blessing,
holding cross staff in other hand. INNOCEN PP SEXTVS
Rev.: Long cross, in each angle crossed keys. +SANTVS PETRUS
Reference: Muntoni 3. Fine Patina, VF +
Estimate: 200.00 EUR. Price realized: 750 EUR (approx. 900 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lions heads; right had raised in blessing, holding cross
staff in other hand. INNOCEN PP SEXTVS
Reference: Ber. 192 - Munt. 3. Very rare. Superb condition!
Estimate: 1.000 / 1.200. Price realized: 2,900 EUR (approx. 3,688 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lions heads; right had raised in blessing, holding cross
staff in other hand. INNOCEN PP SEXTVS
Reference: Muntoni 3. VF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 525 EUR (approx. 805 U.S. Dollars as of the auction
date)
Urban V - 28 Sept. 1362 to 19 Dec. 1370
Blessed Pope Urban V (1310 December 19, 1370), born Guillaume Grimoard, was
Pope from 1362 to 1370.
He was a native of Grizac in Languedoc (today part of the commune of Le Pont-de-

Montvert, dpartement of Lozre). He became a Benedictine and a doctor in Canon
Law, teaching at Montpellier and Avignon. He held the office of abbot of Saint-Victor in
Marseille; and at Avignon, on his way back from Naples, whither he had been sent as
papal legate, he was elected Pope Urban V (September 28, 1362) in succession to
Pope Innocent VI (135262).
As Pope he was a severe disciplinarian, discountenanced the pomp and luxury of the
cardinals, introduced considerable reforms in the administration of justice, and liberally
patronised learning. He founded the University of Hungary. In Toulouse, he saved the
university of music. In Montpellier, he restored the school of medicine and founded the
college of Saint Benoit whose church became a cathedral decorated with numerous
works of art. He founded a college in Quzac and Bdous, and a church and library in Ispagnac. He supported more
than 1,000 students of all classes with food and lodging. Even during war they were nourished well. He provided them
with books and the best professors.
His pontificate witnessed one of the last flickers of crusading zeal in the expedition of Peter I of Cyprus, who took
Alexandria on (October 11, 1365), but soon afterwards abandoned it. He enforced a crusade against the Turks to take
back Alexandria. He also sent many missions to Bosnia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and China.
The great feature of Urban V's reign was the effort to restore the Papacy to Italy, and to suppress its powerful rivals
for the temporal sovereignty there. In 1363 he excommunicated Bernab Visconti, the last great figure of Ghibellinism
in northern Italy, which occupied the Papal city of Bologna and valiantly resisted the troops of Gil de Albornoz, the
Papal vicar in Italy at the time. Urban ordered a crusade to be preached throughout Italy against him and his kindred,
accused to be robbers of the church's estate; but in the march of following year he found it necessary to purchase
peace: through the mediation of Emperor Charles IV, he removed his ban against Visconti, obtaining Bologna only
after a grevious payment. Around Rome, he also planted vine-yards.
Continued troubles in Italy, as well as pleas from figures such as Petrarch and St. Bridget of Sweden, caused Urban V
to set out for Rome, which he reached on October 16, 1367. However, although greeted by the clergy and people with
joy, and despite the satisfaction of being attended by the Emperor in St. Peter's, and of placing the crown upon the
head of the Empress, it soon became clear that by changing the seat of his government he had not increased its
power. In Rome he was otherwise able to receive the homage of the king of Cyprus, Queen Joan I of Naples and the
Byzantine emperor John V Palaeologus, and coronated Charles IV as Holy Roman Emperor.
Unable any longer to resist the urgency of the French cardinals, and with numerous cities of the Papal States in
revolt, he took ship again at Corneto on September 5, 1370, arriving at Avignon on the 24th of the same month.A few
days later he fell ill, and died on December 19. He was succeeded by Pope Gregory XI (137078).
His canonization was demanded by Valdemar IV of Denmark and promised by Pope Gregory XI as early as in 1375,
but did not take place owing to the disorders of the time. Urban V's cultus was approved by Pope Pius IX (184678)
in 1870.
Urban V., 1362-1370. Urban V., 1362-1370.
Fiorino. Avignon mint. 21 mm 3,50 g. Fiorino. Avignon mint. 21 mm 3,48 g.
Obv.: Fleur-de-lis. (crossed keys) SANT PETRH Obv.: Fleur-de-lis. (crossed keys) SANT PETRH
Rev.: S.JOHANNES.B Nimbate St. John the Baptist standing; tiara to Rev.: S.JOHANNES.B Nimbate St. John the Baptist standing; tiara to
left of head. left of head.
Reference: Muntoni 2 (anonime). Poey dAvant 647. Friedberg 29. Reference: Fb. 29; Muntoni 2 (Band IV, S. 161, Teil III: Anonyme
Prgungen). GOLD. Rare, VF example.
Estimate: EUR 650. Price realized: 850 EUR (approx. 1,261 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,383 U.S.

Urban V., 1362-1370. Urban V., 1362-1370.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.94 g. Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.93 g.
Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lion head decorations; right rand Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lion head decorations; right rand
raised in blessing; cross staff in left hand. VRBANVS PP QVRTVS raised in blessing; cross staff in left hand. VRBANVS PP QVRTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRUS - crossed key dividers. Rev.: Crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRUS - crossed key dividers.
Reference: Muntoni 5. Rare, beautiful Patina, VF. Reference: Ber. 202 - Munt. 5. Very rare.
Schtzpreis: 250.00 EUR. Price realized: 800 EUR (approx. 960 U.S. Estimate: 1.000 / 1.200. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,272 U.S.
Urban V., 1362-1370. Urban V., 1362-1370.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.88 g. Sesino (1/4 Grosso). Avignon mint. 1.33 g.
Obv.: Pope enthroned on chair with lion head decorations; right rand Obv.: Mitre, PVP underneath. VRBANVS QVINTVS
raised in blessing; cross staff in left hand. VRBANVS PP QVRTVS
Rev.: Cross, in the angles: Mitre, crossed keys, mitre, crossed keys.
Rev.: Crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRUS - crossed key dividers. + SANCTVS PETRVS
Reference: Muntoni 5. Very rare! VF. Reference: Muntoni 7. Patina, weak strike, good VF.
Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,350 EUR (approx. 2,069 U.S. Estimate: 75.00 EUR. Price realized: 160 EUR (approx. 192 U.S. Dollars
Dollars as of the auction date) as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Sesino (1/4 Grosso). Avignon mint. 1.35 g.
Obv.: Mitre, PVP underneath. VRBANVS QVINTVS
Rev.: Cross, in the angles: Mitre, crossed keys, mitre, crossed keys.
+ SANCTVS PETRVS
Reference: : B., 911; Munt., 7; Berman, 204; P.A., 4173. F-VF.
Estimate: EUR 75. Price realized: 65 EUR (approx. 90 U.S. Dollars as of

the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Bolognino. Rome mint.
Obv.: Mitred bust facing. VRB PP QVNTS,
Rev.: IN ROMA and +S.PET.E.PAL around U.R.B.i.
Reference: Berman 198, 199; CNI 5, 13; Muntoni 3, 4. 2 Types. VF.
Estimation DM 100. Price realized: 225 DEM (approx. 102 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Bolognino. Rome mint. 18 mm 1,17 g.
Obv.: Mitred bust facing. VRB PP QVNTS,
Rev.: +S.PET.E.PAL around U.R.B.i. in cross formation.
Reference: Muntoni 4, Berman 199, Biaggi -. Good VF.
Estimate EUR 75. Price realized: 90 EUR (approx. 109 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Bolognino. 1,28 g.
Obv.: VRBAN PP V, mitred bust facing; star at neck.
Rev.: +(head) BONONI, large A flanked by pellets.
Reference: Muntoni 10; Serafini pg. 73, 19; cf. Berman 200. Toned, good
VF. Rare.
Estimate $200. Price realized: 1,100 USD
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Obv.: VRB PP QNTS mitred bust facing.
Rev.: IN ROMA around U.R.B.i. in cross formation.
Reference: Muntoni 3/4, Biaggi 2131. VF.
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 80 EUR (approx. 102 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Urban V., 1362-1370.
Obv.: VRB PP QNTS mitred bust facing.
Rev.: IN ROMA around U.R.B.i. in cross formation.
Reference: Muntoni 3/4, Biaggi 2131. VF.
the auction date)
Gregory XI - 30 Dec. 1370 to 26 March 1378
Pope Gregory XI (c. 1336 March 27, 1378), born Pierre Roger de Beaufort,
Pope from 1370 to 1378, born in Rosiers-d'gletons, Limousin around 1336,
succeeded Pope Urban V (136270) in 1370 as one of the Avignon Popes.
During his pontificate vigorous measures were taken against the heresies
which had broken out in Germany, England, and other parts of Europe; a sin-
cere effort was also made to bring about a reformation in the various monas-
tic orders. The nineteen propositions of John Wycliffe (c. 132084) and the
thirteen articles of the Sachenspiegel were formally condemned by Pope
Gregory XI in 1377.
His return to Rome is attributed in part to the stirring words of Catherine of

Siena, January 27, 1377. This had been attempted by Gregory's predeces-
sor, Urban V, without success. The project was delayed by a conflict between
the pope and Florence, known as "the War of the Eight Saints" for the "Eight
for War," the Florentine magistrates responsible for the conduct of the war.
The pope put Florence under interdict for a time.
Gregory XI did not long survive this removal, dying on March 27, 1378. After
his death the College of Cardinals was pressured by a Roman mob, that suc-
cessfully broke into the voting chamber, to vote an Italian Pope into the papacy. This Italian Pope was Urban VI. Soon after electing
Urban he gained the Cardinals' enmity, so, with the encouragement of the French King the cardinals returned to Avignon and elect-
ed a French pope there, named Clement VII in 1378.
This mess created through the switching of popes by the Cardinals forced the people of Europe into a dilemma of papal allegiance.
This Schism created was not fully resolved until the Council of Constance from 1414-1418, where the current popes were deposed
and Martin V was voted in as Pope. This Schism and its difficulties brought about the reforming councils and gave them the power
over who was elected, opposed to the College of Cardinals in the past.
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XI., 1370-1378.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.80 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on chair with lion head decorations; right hand raised in blessing; left hand holding
cross staff. GREGORV PP VNDEC
Rev.: Crossed keys. +SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. U in SANCTUS gothic style.
Reference: - Ber. manque cf. 213 - Munt. manque cf. 14 Rare - unpublished. Superb.
Estimate: 1.500 / 2.000. Price realized: 1,600 EUR (approx. 2,035 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Gregory XI., 1370-1378. Gregory XI., 1370-1378.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.67 g. Grosso. Avignon mint. 2.80 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on chair with lion head decorations; right Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on chair with lion head decorations; right
hand raised in blessing; left hand holding cross staff. GREGORV PP VNDEC hand raised in blessing; left hand holding cross staff. GREGORV PP VNDEC
Rev.: Crossed keys. +SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. Rev.: Crossed keys. +SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers.
Rare! Slight rim damage. VF. Reference: Muntoni 14. Very attractive example, with beautiful patina. XF.
Estimate: 300 EUR. Price realized: 650 EUR (approx. 996 U.S. Dollars as of Schtzpreis: 300.00 EUR. Price realized: 900 EUR (approx. 1,080 U.S. Dollars
the auction date) as of the auction date)

Grosso. Avignon mint. 26 mm 2,51 g. Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,94 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on chair with lion head decorations; right Obv.: Facing mitred bust; S PETRVS P
hand raised in blessing; left hand holding cross staff. GREGORV PP VNDEC
Rev.: URBI in center arranged in cross formation, ballin each angle, IN ROMA
Rev.: Crossed keys. +SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. around.
Reference: M 14. B 213. Antique patina. XF. Reference: Biaggi 2132; Berman 209.
auction date)
Bolognino. Rome mint. 1,26 g. Bolognino. Rome mint.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope facing. GG PP UND

Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope facing. GG PP UND
Rev.: URBI in center arranged in cross formation, ball in each angle; IN
ROMA around. Rev.: URBI in center arranged in cross formation, ball in each angle; IN
ROMA around.
Dark patina, VF.
Reference: Muntoni 7, Biaggi 2132. F/VF.
the auction date) Estimate: 35 EUR.
Urban VI - 8 Apr. 1378 to 15 Oct. 1389
Pope Urban VI (c. 1318 October 15, 1389), born Bartolomeo Prignano, was Pope
from 1378 to 1389.
Born in Naples, he was a devout monk and learned casuist, trained at Avignon. On
March 21, 1364, he was consecrated Archbishop of Acerenza in the Kingdom of
Naples. He became Archbishop of Bari in 1377, and, on the death of Pope Gregory XI
(137078), the Roman populace clamorously demanding a Roman pope, and the car-
dinals being under some haste and pressure, Prignano was unanimously chosen (April
8, 1378) as acceptable as well to the disunited French cardinals, taking the name
Urban VI. He was the last Pope to be elected from outside the College of Cardinals.
Immediately following the conclave most of the cardinals fled Rome before the mob
could learn that not a Roman, but a subject of Joanna of Naples, had been chosen.
Prignano had developed a reputation for simplicity and frugality, even austerity, a head
for business when acting Vice-Chancellor and a penchant for learning, and, according
to Cristoforo di Piacenza, he was without famiglia in an age of nepotism. His great
faults undid his virtues: Ludwig Pastor summed up his character: "He lacked Christian
gentleness and charity. He was naturally arbitrary and extremely violent and impru-
dent, and when he came to deal with the burning ecclesiastical question of the day,
that of reform, the consequences were disastrous."
Though the coronation was carried out in scrupulous detail, leaving no doubt as to the
legitimacy of the new pontiff, the French were not particularly happy with this move
and began immediately to conspire against this pope from the Regno. Urban VI did himself no favors; whereas the cardinals had
expected him pliant, he was considered arrogant and angry by many of his contemporaries. Dietrich of Nieheim considered that
the cardinals concluded that his elevation had turned his head, and Froissart, Leonardo Aretino, Tommaso de Acerno[6] and St.
Antoninus of Florence recorded similar conclusions.
Immediately following his election, Urban began preaching intemperately to the cardinals, insisting that the business of the curia
should be carried on without gratuities and gifts, forbidding the cardinals to accept annuities from rulers and other lay persons,
condemning the luxury of their lives and retinues, and the multiplication of benefices and bishoprics in their hands. Nor would he
remove again to Avignon, thus alienating Charles V of France, and, according to Urban's assessment, opening the Western
Schism.
The cardinals were mortally offended. Five months after his election, the French cardinals met at Anagni, inviting Urban, who real-
ized that he would be seized and perhaps slain; in his absence they issued a manifesto of grievances (August 9), declaring the
election invalid and claiming that they had been cowed by the mob into electing an Italian, followed by letters (August 20) to the
missing Italian cardinals, declaring sede vacante. Then at Fondi, secretly supported by the king of France, they proceeded to elect
Robert of Geneva (September 20). He took the title of Clement VII (137894). Thus began the Western Schism (13781417)
which divided Catholic Christendom for nearly forty years.
Urban was excommunicated by the French pope and designated the Antichrist, while Catherine of Siena called the cardinals "dev-
ils in human form". Coluccio Salutati identified the political nature of the withdrawal: "Who does not see," the Chancellor openly
addressed the French cardinals, "that you seek not the true pope, but opt solely for a Gallic pontiff." Opening rounds of argument
were embodied in John of Legnano's defense of the election, De fletu ecclesi, written and incrementally revised between 1378
and 1380, which Urban saw to it was distributed in multiple copies, and in the numerous rebuttals that soon appeared. Events
overtook the rhetoric, however; twenty-six new cardinals were created in a single day, and by an arbitrary alienation of the estates
and property of the church, funds were raised for open war. At the end of May 1379 Clement went to Avignon, where he was more
than ever at the mercy of the king of France. Louis, duc d'Anjou, was granted a phantom kingdom of Adria to be carved out of
papal Emilia and Romagna, if he could unseat the pope at Rome.
Urban's erstwhile patroness, Joanna of Naples, deserted him in the late summer of 1378,[13] in part because her former archbish-
op had become her feudal suzerain, and Urban now lost sight of the larger issues and began to commit a series of errors. He
turned upon his powerful neighbor, excommunicated her as an obstinate partisan of Clement, and permitted a crusade to be
preached against her. Soon her enemy and cousin, the "crafty and ambitious" Charles of Durazzo, representing the Sicilian
Angevin line, forgetting his French blood, was glad to be invested in the sovereignty of Naples (June 1, 1381), declared to be for-
feited by Joanna whom he murdered in 1382 and was crowned by Urban.
"In return for these favours, Charles had to promise to hand over Capua, Caserta, Aversa, Nocera, Amalfi to the pope's nephew, a
thoroughly worthless and immoral man." Once ensconced at Naples, Charles found his new kingdom invaded by Louis d'Anjou;
hard-pressed, he reneged on his promises. In Rome the Castel Sant'Angelo was besieged and taken, and Urban forced to flee;
Urban in the fall of 1383 unwisely determined to go to Naples and press Charles in person. There he found himself virtually a pris-
oner. After a first reconciliation, with the death of Anjou (September 20, 1384), Charles found himself freer to resist Urban's feudal
pretensions, and relations took a turn for the worse; Urban was shut up in Nocera, from the walls of which he daily fulminated his
anathemas against his besiegers, with bell, book and candle; a price was set on his head.
He succeeded in making his escape to Genoa. Several among his peregrine cardinals, who had been shut up in Nocera with him,
determined to make a stand: they determined that a pope, who by his incapacity or blind obstinacy, might be put in the charge of
one of the cardinals. Urban had them seized, tortured and put to death, "a crime unheard of through the centuries" the chronicler
Egidio da Viterbo remarked.
His support had dwindled to the northern Italian states, Portugal, England, and Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, who brought with
him the support of most of the princes and abbots of Germany.
On the death of Charles (February 24, 1386), set himself at the head of his troops, apparently with the intention of seizing Naples
for his nephew if not for himself, for he had never lost sight of his feudal rights in the Regno. To raise funds he proclaimed a
Jubilee, though only thirty-three years had elapsed since that celebrated under Pope Clement VI (134252), but before the cele-
bration he died "unlamented" at Rome of injuries caused by a fall from his mule, not without rumors of poisoning.
His successor was Pope Boniface IX (13891404).
PAPAL COINS
Urban VI, 1378-1389.
Denaro paparino. Viterbo mint. 15 mm 0,44 g.
Obv.: Cross pattee.
Rev.: Two upright keys.
Reference: M 4 var. B 219. Rare!
Estimate CHF 500. Price realized: 900 CHF (approx. 665 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Anti-Pope Clement VII - 13781394
Robert of Geneva (134216 September 1394) was elected to the papacy as
(Anti-)Pope Clement VII by the French cardinals who opposed Urban VI, and
was the first Avignon antipope of the Western Schism.
He was the son of Amadeus III, Count of Geneva, and was born in Geneva,
in what is now Switzerland, in 1342. Appointed Protonotary Apostolic in 1359,
he became Bishop of Throuanne in 1361, Archbishop of Cambrai in 1368,
and a cardinal on 30 May 1371.
In 1377, while serving as papal legate in upper Italy (1376-78), in order to put
down a rebellion in the Papal States, known as the War of the Eight Saints,
he personally commanded troops lent to the papacy by the condottiere John
Hawkwood to reduce the small city of Cesena in the territory of Forl, which
resisted being added to the Patrimony of Peter for the second time in a gen-
eration; there he allegedly authorized the massacre of 4,000 civilians, an
atrocity even by the rules of war at the time, which earned him the nickname
butcher - or executioner of Cesena.
Elected pope at Fondi on 20 September 1378 by the French cardinals in

opposition to Urban VI, he was the first antipope of the Western Schism, the
second of the two periods sometimes referred to as the Great Schism, which
lasted until 1417. France, Scotland, Castile, Aragon, Navarre, Portugal,
Savoy, Denmark, Norway, and some minor German states acknowledged his
authority. Unable to maintain himself in Italy, he took up his residence at Avignon in the southern French Comtat
Venaissin, where he became dependent on the French court. He created excellent cardinals but donated the larger
part of the Pontifical States to Louis II of Anjou, resorted to simony and extortion to meet the financial needs of his
court, and seems never to have sincerely desired the termination of the schism.
He died at Avignon on 16 September 1394.
Eventually it was determined that he would be recorded as an antipope rather than as a pope. Uncertainty over who
the legitimate pope might be during the time of the Western Schism gave rise to the legal theory called Conciliarism,
which claimed that a general council of the church was superior to the pope and could therefore judge between rival
claimants.
PAPAL COINS
Clement VII., Anti-Pope, 1378-1394.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,75 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, right hand
raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. CLEMENS- PP SETHVS
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers.
Reference: Muntoni 6. Rare, Attractive Patina, VF.
Estimate: 500.00 EUR. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,200 U.S. Dollars as
Clement VII., Anti-Pope, 1378-1394. Clement VII., Anti-Pope, 1378-1394.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,74 g. Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,29 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads,
right hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. CLEMES- PP right hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. CLEMENS- PP
SETHVS (Clemes in lieu of Clemens). SETHVS
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers.
Reference: Ber. manque cf. 232 - Munt. manque cf. 6. Rare! Unpublished. Reference: B., 915 var; P.A., 4198; Munt., 6; Berman, 232. Very rare!
F - VF
Estimate: 1.500 / 2.000. Price realized: 1,700 EUR (approx. 2,162 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 500.

Clement VII., Anti-Pope, 1378-1394. Clement VII., Anti-Pope, 1378-1394.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,75 g. Grosso. Avignon mint. 24 mm 2,45 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads,
right hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. CLEMENS- PP right hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. Legend reads
SETHVS CLEMENS- PP SEPTIHVS
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS ET PAULVS (ul LIG-
ATE) crossed key dividers.
Reference: Muntoni 6. Very rare, VF.
Reference: Munt. 7. Berman 233. VF.
Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 2,146 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 200. Price realized: 310 EUR (approx. 391 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, right
hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. Legend reads CLEMENS-
PP SEPTIHVS
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS ET PAULVS (ul LIGATE)

crossed key dividers.
Reference: Muntoni IV pg.144, 7; Berman 233. Good VF. Rare. Clement

VII was the first anti-pope of the Schism, opposing Bartolomeo Prigano
(Urban VI). There are also earlier examples of particularly odious pontiffs
being deposed as anti-popes, but none of these individuals struck papal
coins.
PAPAL COINS
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, right
hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. Legend reads CLEMENS-
PP SEPTIHVS
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS ET PAULVS (ul LIGATE)

crossed key dividers.
Reference: Muntoni 7 var.. Cut, scratches. F-VF.
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 220 EUR (approx. 319 U.S. Dollars as
Boniface IX - 2 Nov. 1389 to 1 Oct. 1404
Pope Boniface IX (1356 October 1, 1404), born Piero Tomacelli, was the second Roman Pope of the Western Schism from
November 2, 1389 until October 1, 1404. During his time the antipope Clement VII (137894) continued to hold court as pope in
Avignon under the protection of the French monarchy.
Piero (also Perino, Pietro) Tomacelli came of an ancient but impoverished baronial family of Naples. An unsympathetic German
contemporary source, Dietrich of Nieheim, asserted that he was illiterate (nesciens scribere etiam male cantabat); neither a trained
theologian nor skilled in the business of the Curia, he was tactful and prudent in a difficult era, but Ludwig Pastor, who passes
swiftly over his pontificate, says, "The numerous endeavours for unity made during this period form one of the saddest chapters in
the history of the Church. Neither Pope had the magnanimity to put an end to the terrible state of affairs" by resigning.[1] Germany,
England, Hungary, Poland, and the greater part of Italy accepted him as pope, (he and the Avignon Pope Clement VII having
mutually excommunicated one another) but the day before Tomacelli's election by the fourteen cardinals who remained faithful to
the papacy at Rome, Clement VII at Avignon had just crowned a French prince, Louis II of Anjou, King of Naples. The youthful
Ladislaus was rightful heir of Charles III of Naples, assassinated in 1386, and Margaret of Durazzo, scion of a line that had tradi-
tionally supported the popes in their struggles in Rome with the anti-papal party in the city itself. Boniface IX saw to it that
Ladislaus was crowned King of Naples at Gaeta May 29, 1390) and worked with him for the next decade to expel the Angevin
forces from southern Italy.
In the course of his reign Boniface IX finally extinguished the troublesome independence of the commune of Rome and estab-
lished temporal control, though it required fortifying not only the Castel Sant'Angelo, but the very bridges, and for long seasons he
was forced to reside in more peaceful surroundings, at Assisi or Perugia. He also took over the port of Ostia from its Cardinal
Bishop. In the Papal States Boniface IX gradually regained control of the chief castles and cities, and he re-founded the States as
they would appear during the fifteenth century.
Clement VII died at Avignon, September 16, 1394, but the French cardinals quickly elected a successor, on September 28:
Cardinal Pedro de Luna, who took the name Benedict XIII (13941423). Over the next few years Boniface IX was entreated to
abdicate, even by his strongest supporters: Richard II of England (in 1396), the Diet of Frankfurt (in 1397), and King Wenceslaus
of Germany (at Reims, 1398). But he refused. Pressure for an ecumenical council also grew as the only way to breach the Great
Schism, but the conciliar movement made no headway during Boniface IX's papacy.
During the reign of Boniface IX two jubilees were celebrated at Rome. The first, in 1390, had been declared by his predecessor
Pope Urban VI, and was largely frequented by people from Germany, Hungary, Poland, Bohemia, and England. Several cities of
Germany obtained the "privileges of the jubilee", as indulgences were called, but the preaching of indulgences gave rise to abuses
and scandal. The jubilee of 1400 drew to Rome great crowds of pilgrims, particularly from France, in spite of a disastrous plague.
Pope Boniface IX remained in the city.
In the latter part of 1399 there arose bands of self-flagellating penitents, known as the Bianchi, or Albati ("White Penitents"), espe-
cially in Provence, where the Albigenses had been exterminated less than a century before, and spreading to Spain and northern
Italy. These evoked uneasy memories of the mass processions of wandering flagellants of the Black Death period, 13481349.
They went in procession from city to city, clad in white garments, with faces hooded, and wearing on their backs a red cross, fol-
lowing a leader who carried a large cross. Rumors of imminent divine judgement and visions of the Virgin Mary abounded. They
sang the newly popular hymn Stabat Mater during their processions. For a while, as the White Penitents approached Rome, gain-
ing adherents along the way, Boniface IX and the Curia supported their penitential enthusiasm, but when they reached Rome,
Boniface IX had their leader burnt at the stake, and they soon dispersed. "Boniface IX gradually discountenanced these wandering
crowds, an easy prey of agitators and conspirators, and finally dissolved them." as the Catholic Encyclopedia reports.
In England the anti-papal preaching of John Wyclif supported the opposition of the King and the higher clergy to Boniface IX's
habit of granting English benefices as they fell vacant to favorites in the Roman Curia. Boniface IX introduced a novelty in the form
of revenue known as annates perpetu, withholding half the first year's income of every benefice granted in the Roman Court.
The pope's agents also now sold not simply a vacant benefice but the expectation of one; and when an expectation had been sold,
if another offered a larger sum for it, the pope voided the first sale; the unsympathetic observer Dietrich von Nieheim reports that
he saw the same benefice sold several times in one week, and that the Pope talked business with his secretaries during Mass.
There was resistance in England, the staunchest supporter of the Roman papacy during the Schism: the English Parliament con-
firmed and extended the statutes of Provisors and Prmunire of Edward III of England (132777), giving the king veto power over
papal appointments in England. Boniface IX was defeated in the face of a unified front, and the long controversy was finally set-
tled, to the English king's satisfaction. Nevertheless, at the Synod of London (1396), the English bishops convened to condemn
Wyclif.
In Germany the Electors had met at Rhense (August 20, 1400) to depose the unworthy Wenceslaus, and had chosen in his place
Rupert, Duke of Bavaria and Rhenish Count Palatine. In 1403 Boniface IX made the best of it and approved the deposition and
recognized Rupert.
In 1398 and 1399 Boniface IX appealed to Christian Europe in favor of the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaeologus, threatened
at Constantinople by Sultan Bayezid I, but there was little enthusiasm for a new crusade at such a time. Saint Birgitta of Sweden
was canonized by Pope Boniface IX, October 7, 1391. The universities of Ferrara (1391) and Fermo (1398) owe him their origin,
and that of Erfurt (in Germany), its confirmation (1392).
Boniface IX died in 1404 after a brief illness.
Boniface IX was a frank politician, strapped for cash like the other princes of Europe, as the costs of modern warfare rose and
supporters needed to be encouraged by gifts, for fourteenth-century government depended upon such personal support as a tem-
poral ruler could gather and retain. All of the princes of the late fourteenth century were accused of avaricious money-grubbing by
contemporary critics, but among them contemporaries ranked Boniface IX exceptional. Traffic in benefices, the sale of dispensa-
tions, and the like, did not cover the loss of local sources of revenue in the long absence of the papacy from Rome, foreign rev-
enue diminished by the schism, expenses for the pacification and fortification of Rome, the constant wars necessitated by French
ambition and the piecemeal reconquest of the Papal States. Boniface IX certainly provided generously for his mother, his brothers
Andrea and Giovanni, and his nephews in the spirit of the day. The Curia was perhaps equally responsible for new financial meth-
ods that were destined in the next century to arouse bitter feelings against Rome, particularly in Germany.
(Note on numbering: Pope Boniface VII is now considered an anti-pope. At the time however, this fact was not recognized and so
the seventh true Pope Boniface took the official number VIII. This caused the true eighth Pope Boniface to take the number IX.
This has advanced the numbering of all subsequent Popes Boniface by one. Popes Boniface VIII-IX are really the seventh through
eight popes by that name.)

Boniface IX., 1389-1404. Boniface IX., 1389-1404.
Grosso. Rome mint. 2,48 g. Bolognino. Rome mint.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned on seat decorated with lion heads, right Obv.: Tiara-crowned bust facing, BONIFAT.PP.N
hand raised in blessing, cross staff in left hand. Legend reads BONIFAT PP
NONVS Rev.: IN ROMA, around U-R-B-I arranged in cruciform.
Rev. Ornate crossed keys. + SANCTVS PETRVS crossed key dividers. Reference: Muntoni 5, Biaggi 2135. Prgeschwche, sehr schn
Rare, slightly corroded. VF. Estimate: 90 EUR.
Benedict XIII - Anti-Pope 13941423
Benedict XIII, born Pedro Martnez de Luna, (1328 - May 23, 1423), known
as el Papa Luna in Aragonese and Spanish, was an Aragonese, and is offi-
cially considered by the Roman Catholic Church to be an Antipope.
Benedict should not be confused with the Roman Pope Benedict XIII, who
reigned from 27 May 1724 to 21 February 1730.
Pedro Martnez de Luna was born at Illueca, Aragon (part of modern Spain)
in 1328. He belonged to the de Luna family, who were part of the Aragonese
nobility. He studied law at the University of Montpellier, where he obtained
his doctorate and later taught Canon law. His knowledge of canon law, noble
lineage and austere way of life won him the approval of Pope Gregory XI,
who appointed de Luna to the position of Cardinal Deacon of Santa Maria in
Cosmedin on 30 December 1375.
In 1377 Pedro de Luna and the other cardinals returned to Rome with Pope
Gregory, who had been persuaded to leave his papal base at Avignon by
Catherine of Siena. After Gregory's death on March 27, 1378 the people of
Rome feared that the cardinals would elect a French pope and return the
papacy to Avignon. Consequently, they rioted and laid siege to the cardinals,
insisting on an Italian pope. The conclave duly elected Bartholomew
Prignani, Archbishop of Bari, as Urban VI on April 9, but the new pope
proved to be intractably hostile to the cardinals. Some of the cardinals
reconvened at Fondi in September 1378, declared the earlier election invalid
and elected Robert of Geneva as their new pope, initiating the Western
Schism. Robert assumed the name Clement VII and moved back to Avignon.
De Luna, a supporter of Clement throughout his reign, was unanimously

elected by a conclave of twenty-four cardinals at Avignon on September 28,
1394, following Clement's death on September 16. The conclave consisted of The consecration of Benedict XIII.
eleven French cardinals, eight Italians, four Spaniards and one from Savoy.
On the death of Urban VI in 1389 the Roman College of Cardinals had chosen Boniface IX; the election of Benedict therefore per-
petuated the Western Schism. At the start of his term of office, de Luna was recognised as pope by the kingdoms of France,
Scotland, Sicily, Castile, Aragon, Navarre, and Portugal. In 1396 Benedict sent Sanchez Muoz, one of the most loyal members of
the Avignon curia, as an envoy to the Bishop of Valencia to bolster support for the Avignon papacy in Spain.
However, in 1398 the French church withdrew their allegiance from the Avignon papacy. Benedict was abandoned by seventeen of
his cardinals, with only five remaining faithful to him. An army led by Geoffrey Boucicaut, brother of the illustrious marshal, occu-
pied Avignon and started a five year siege of the papal palace in 1398, which ended when Benedict managed to escape from
Avignon on March 12, 1403 and seek shelter in territory belonging to Louis II of Anjou.
By this stage, Benedict's authority was no longer recognised in France, Portugal and Navarre, but he was acknowledged as pope
in Scotland, Sicily, Aragon and Castile. After the Roman Pope Innocent VII died in 1406, the newly elected Roman pope, Gregory
XII, started negotiations with Benedict, suggesting that they both resign so a new pope could be elected to reunite the Catholic
Church. When these talks ended in stalemate in 1408, the French king, Charles VI, declared that France was neutral to both papal
contenders. Charles helped to organise the Council of Pisa in 1409. This council was supposed to arrange for both Gregory and
Benedict to resign, so that a new universally recognised pope could be elected. However, since both Benedict and Gregory refused
to abdicate, the only thing that was achieved was that a third candidate to the Holy See was put forward: Peter Philarghi, who
assumed the name Alexander V.
In part to bolster faltering support for his papacy, Benedict initiated the year-long Disputation of Tortosa in 1413, which became the
most prominent Christian-Jewish disputation of the Middle Ages.
Benedict is also mentioned for his oppressive laws against the Jews. Those laws were repealed by Pope Martin V, after he
received a mission of Jews, sent by the famous synod convoked by the Jews in Forl, in 1418.
In 1415 the Council of Constance brought this clash between papal claimants to an end. Gregory XII and Baldassare Cossa, who
had succeeded Philarghi as the Pisan papal contender in 1410 and had assumed the name John XXIII, both agreed to resign.
Benedict, on the other hand, refused to stand down, so he was declared a schismatic and excommunicated from the Catholic
Church by the Council of Constance on July 27, 1417. Benedict, who had lived in Perpignan from 1408 to 1417, now fled to the
castle at Peiscola near Valencia in Spain. He still considered himself the true pope, but his claim was now only recognised in the
kingdom of Aragon, where he was given protection by King Alfonso V. Benedict remained at Peiscola from 1417 until his death
there on May 23, 1423.
The day before his death, Benedict appointed four cardinals of proven loyalty to ensure the succession of another pope who
would remain faithful to the now beleaguered Avignon line. Three of these cardinals met on 10 June 1423 and elected Sanchez
Muoz as their new pope, with Muoz assuming the papal name of Clement VIII. The fourth cardinal, Jean Carrier, the archdea-
con of Rodez near Toulouse, was absent at this conclave and disputed its validity, whereupon Carrier, acting as a sort of one man
College of Cardinals, proceeded to elect Bernard Garnier, the sacristan of Rodez, as pope, with Garnier taking the name Benedict
XIV.
The castle in Peiscola where he lived from 1417 until his death in 1423 was restored, improved and new walls were added in
1960 when Anthony Mann's film El Cid was partially filmed there. The town and castle of Peiscola were playing the role of
Valencia. The castle is now a popular tourist attraction.
The Anti-pope (Peter de Luna, 1342-1423) A study in obstinacy by Alec Glasfurd, Roy Publishers, New York (1965) B0007IVH1Q
is a somewhat fictionalized or imaginative account of his life.
Pluja seca by Jaume Cabr (2001) is a play based on his death and succession.
The Spanish saying "seguir en sus trece" (to stay in his/her thirteen), meaning a stubborn behavior, refers to the obstination of
Benedict and the numeral he adopted.

Benedict XIII - Anti-Pope(Pedro de Luna), 1394-1423. Benedict XIII - Anti-Pope(Pedro de Luna), 1394-1423.
Carlino. 26 mm 2,17 g. Carlino. 24 mm 2,32 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on throne decorated with lions heads; right Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on throne decorated with lions heads; right
hand raised in blessing, left hand with cross staff. BENEDITVS PP TRDCI- hand raised in blessing, left hand with cross staff. - BENEDICT - PP
HUS Il TREDCM9
Rev.: SANTVS PETRVS ET PAVLVS Crossed keys. Rev.: Crossed keys, +SANTVSPTRVSETPAVLVS
Reference: Muntoni 3. Berman 246. Very rare. Beautiful condition. Reference: Munt. 3 var.. F-VF.
Estimate: EUR 350. Price realized: 500 EUR (approx. 742 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: EUR 150. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 530 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date) the auction date)
Innocent VII - 17 Oct. 1404 to 6 Nov. 1406
Pope Innocent VII, born Cosimo de' Migliorati (c. 1336 November 6, 1406), was briefly Pope
at Rome, from 1404 to his death, during the Western Schism (13781417) while there was a
rival Pope, antipope Benedict XIII (13941423), at Avignon.
Migliorati was born to a simple family of Sulmona in the Abruzzi. He distinguished himself by his
learning in both civil and Canon Law, which he taught for a time at Perugia and Padua. His
teacher Giovanni da Legnano sponsored him at Rome, where Pope Urban VI (137889) took
him into the Curia, sent him for ten years as papal collector to England,[1] made him bishop of
Bologna in 1386, at a time of strife in that city, and archbishop of Ravenna in 1387.
Pope Boniface IX (13891404) made him cardinal-priest of S. Croce in Gerusalemme (1389)

and Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church (1396), and employed him as legate in several deli-
cate and important missions. When Boniface IX died, there were present in Rome delegates
from the rival Pope at Avignon, Benedict XIII. The Roman cardinals asked these delegates if their master would abdicate, if the car-
dinals refrained from holding an election. When they were bluntly told that Benedict XIII would never abdicate (indeed he never
did), the cardinals proceeded to an election. First, however, they all undertook a solemn oath to leave nothing undone, if needs be
even to lay down the tiara, in order to terminate the schism.
Migliorati was unanimously chosen by eight cardinals (October 17, 1404) and took the name of Innocent VII. There was a gen-
eral riot by the Ghibelline party in Rome when news of his election got out, but peace was maintained by the aid of King Ladislaus
of Naples (13991414), who hastened to Rome with a band of soldiers to assist the Pope in suppressing the insurrection. For his
services the King extorted various concessions from Innocent VII, among them the promise that he would not reach any accommo-
dation with the rival Pope in Avignon that would compromise Ladislas' claims to Naples, which had been challenged until very
recently by Louis II of Anjou. That suited Innocent VII, who had no intention of reaching an agreement with Avignon that would
compromise his claims to the Papal States, either. Thus Innocent VII was laid under embarrassing obligations, from which he freed
himself at the earliest possible moment.
Innocent VII had made the great mistake of elevating his highly unsuitable nephew, Ludovico Migliorati a colorful condottiere for-
merly in the pay of Giangaleazzo Visconti of Milan, most of whose violent career as a soldier of fortune lay ahead of him to the
cardinalate, an act of nepotism that cost him dearly. In August 1405, the cardinal waylaid eleven members of the obstreperous
Roman partisans on their return from a conference with the Pope, and had them assassinated in his own house and their bodies
thrown from the windows of the hospital of Santo Spirito into the street. There was an uproar. Pope, court and cardinals, with the
Migliorati faction, fled towards Viterbo. Ludovico took the occasion of driving off cattle that were grazing outside the walls, and the
Papal party were pursued by furious Romans, losing thirty members, whose bodies were abandoned in the flight, including the
Abbot of Perugia, struck down under the eyes of the Pope.
His protector Ladislaus sent a squad of troops to quell the riots, and by January 1406 the Romans once again acknowledged Papal
temporal authority, and Innocent VII felt able to return. (In March, Innocent VII made Ludovico a marchese and conte di Fermo.)
But Ladislas, not content with the former concessions, desired to extend his authority in Rome and the Papal States. To attain his
end he aided the Ghibelline faction in Rome in their revolutionary attempts in 1405. But a squad of troops which King Ladislaus
had sent to the aid of the Colonna faction was still occupying the Castle of Sant' Angelo, ostensibly protecting the Vatican but mak-
ing frequent sorties upon Rome and the neighbouring territory. Only after Ladislaus was excommunicated did he yield to the
demands of the Pope and withdraw his troops.
Shortly after his accession in 1404 Innocent VII took steps to keep his oath by proclaiming a council. These troubles furnished him
with a pretext, of which he was not unwilling to avail himself, for postponing the meeting, which was being urged by Charles VI of
France (13801422), theologians at the University of Paris, like Pierre d'Ailly and Jean Gerson, who were developing the theory
that popes were subject to councils, and Rupert III (140010), King of the Germans, as the only means of healing the Schism
which had prevailed so long. Under the current circumstances, Innocent VII could not guarantee safe passage to Benedict XIII in
the event he came to the council in Rome. His rival, antipope Benedict XIII, made it appear that the only obstacle to the termination
of the Western Schism was the unwillingness of Innocent VII. It is hardly necessary to say that he showed no favour to the propos-
al that he as well as Benedict XIII should resign in the interests of peace.
It is said that Innocent VII planned the restoration of the Roman University, but his death brought an end to such talk.
He died so suddenly at Rome, November 6, 1406, that there were rumors of foul play, which have been denied ever since: there is
no evidence for the truth of the allegation that his death was not due to natural causes. His successor was Pope Gregory XII
(140615).
PAPAL COINS
Innocent VII., 1404 - 1406.
Grosso. 24 mm 2,10 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on throne decorated with lions heads; right hand
raised in blessing, left hand with cross staff.
Rev.: Crossed keys.
Reference: Muntoni 2 var., CNI 6 var. 2,1g. Very rare, rim break. VF.
auction date)
Gregory XII - 30 Nov. 1406 to 4 July 1415

Pope Gregory XII (died October 18, 1417), born Angelo Correr or Corraro, Pope from
1406 to 1415, succeeded Pope Innocent VII (140406) on November 30, 1406. He was
chosen at Rome by a conclave consisting of only fifteen cardinals under the express con-
dition that, should antipope Benedict XIII (13941423), the rival Pope at Avignon,
renounce all claim to the Papacy, he also would renounce his, so that a fresh election
might be made and the Western Schism (13781417) could be ended.
The two pontiffs opened wary negotiations to meet on neutral turf at Savona in Liguria,
but soon began to waver in their resolve. The Correr relatives of Gregory XII and
Ladislaus of Naples (13991414), the supporter of Gregory XII and his predecessor for
political reasons, used all their influence to prevent the meeting, and each Pope was fear-
ful of being captured by the party of the rival Pope.
The cardinals of Gregory XII openly showed their dissatisfaction at his procedure and gave signs of their intention to
abandon him. On May 4, 1408, Gregory XII convened his cardinals at Lucca and ordered them not to leave the city
under any pretext. He tried to supplement his following by creating four of his Correr nephews cardinals - including
the future Pope Eugene IV, despite his promise in the conclave that he would create no new cardinals. Seven of the
cardinals secretly left Lucca and negotiated with the cardinals of Benedict XIII concerning the convocation of a gener-
al council by them, at which both pontiffs should be deposed and a new one elected. Consequently they summoned
the council to Pisa and invited both pontiffs to be present. Neither Gregory XII nor Benedict XIII appeared. Meanwhile
Gregory XII stayed with his loyal and powerful protector, Carlo I Malatesta, who had come to Pisa in person during
the process of the council, in order to support Gregory XII with both sets of cardinals. At the fifteenth session, June 5,
1409, the Council of Pisa deposed the two pontiffs as schismatical, heretical, perjured, and scandalous; they elected
Alexander V (140910) later that month. Gregory XII, who had meanwhile created ten more cardinals, had convoked
a rival council at Cividale del Friuli, near Aquileia; but only a few bishops appeared. Gregory XII's cardinals pro-
nounced Benedict XIII and Alexander V schismatics, perjurers, and devastators of the Church; but their pronounce-
ment went unheeded.
The Council of Constance finally resolved the situation. Gregory XII appointed Carlo Malatesta and Cardinal Giovanni
Dominici of Ragusa as his proxies. The cardinal then convoked the council and authorized its succeeding acts, thus
preserving the formulas of Papal supremacy. Thereupon on July 4 1415, Malatesta, acting in the name of Gregory XII,
pronounced the resignation of the Pope, which the cardinals accepted. According to prior agreement, they agreed to
retain all the cardinals that had been created by Gregory XII, thus satisfying the Correr clan, and appointed Gregory
XII Bishop of Porto and perpetual legate at Ancona. The Council then set aside antipope John XXIII (141015). After
the former follower of Benedict XIII appeared, the council declared him deposed; and the Great Schism was ended. A
new Roman pontiff, Pope Martin V, was not elected before Gregory's death.
The rest of Gregory XII's life was spent in peaceful obscurity in Ancona.
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XII., 1406-1417.
Grosso. 27 mm 2,50 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on throne decorated with lions heads; right
hand raised in blessing, left hand with cross staff. GREGORI VS PP XII
Rev.: Crossed keys. SANCTVS PETRVS
Reference: CNI 5. Muntoni 3. Berman 253. Rare.
Estimate: EUR 600. Price realized: 840 EUR (approx. 1,246 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XII., 1406-1417.
Grosso.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated on throne decorated with lions heads; right
hand raised in blessing, left hand with cross staff. GREGORI VS PP XII
Rev.: Crossed keys. SANCTVS PETRVS
Reference: Muntoni 1. Very rare, VF example with nice toning.
Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 2,146 U.S. Dollars
John XXIII - Anti-Pope - 14101415
Baldassare Cossa (c. 1370 November 22, 1419), also known as John XXIII, was pope
or antipope during the Western Schism (14101415) and is now officially regarded by the
Catholic Church as an antipope.
Baldassare Cardinal Cossa was born in Procida (according to other sources, Ischia).
He was one of the seven cardinals who, in May of 1408, deserted Pope Gregory XII,
and, with those belonging to the obedience of Antipope Benedict XIII, convened the
Council of Pisa, of which Cossa became the leader. They elected Pope Alexander V in
1409. Cossa succeeded him a year later.
Edward Gibbon asserts in The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire that
John XXIII was charged with piracy, murder, rape, sodomy, and incest, with the more
serious charges being suppressed. Of course, this must be viewed in the light of the
political situation of the time, as the charges were likely trumped up; note the similarity to
the charges against the Knights Templar.
He should not be confused with Pope John XXIII of the twentieth century. The fact that
there were a number of Popes named John during the first 1400 years of the Church and then no more for over 500 years is prob-
ably due to the controversial figure this Antipope represented. When Angelo Cardinal Roncalli was elected and became Pope John,
there was some confusion as to whether he would be John XXIII or John XXIV; he then declared that he was John XXIII to put this
question to rest. The decision of the twentieth century Pope John XXIII not to be named John XXIV as might be expected serves
as a confirmation of the antipope status of this first John XXIII. It should be noted, however, that the numbering of the Popes called
John is debatable (as there was no John XX); for example, Gibbon refers to the Antipope John as John XXII.
With the aid of the Emperor Sigismund, Pope John convened the Council of Constance in 1415. During the third session rival Pope
Gregory XII authorized the council as well, and soon both Popes abdicated in favor of Pope Martin V. Cossa, as he was again, was
briefly imprisoned in Germany before being freed by Martin V in 1418.
He died in Florence, as cardinal bishop of Tusculum, in 1419. He is buried in a tomb in the Battistero di San Giovanni in Florence.

John XXIII, Antipope. 1410-1419. John XXIII, Antipope. 1410-1419.
Grosso. Rome mint. 2.10 g. Grosso. Rome mint. 2.51 g.
Obv.: Pope seated facing, raising hand in benediction and holding cru- Obv.: Pope seated facing, raising hand in benediction and holding cru-
ciform sceptre. IOVANNES PP XXIII ciform sceptre. IOVANNES PP XXIII
Rev.: Crossed papal keys; leg above. SANCTVS PETRVS Rosette Rev.: Crossed papal keys; leg above. SANCTVS PETRVS star
dividers. dividers.
Reference: CNI XV pg. 206, 4 var. (symbols); Muntoni IV pg. 148, 1 Reference: Muntoni 2. Rare Attractive Patina, VF +
var. (same); Berman 256. Good VF. Very rare with the heraldic symbol.
Schtzpreis: 500.00 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 1,681
Estimate $2500. Price realized: 2,500 USD. U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Sede Vacante (1415 1417)
PAPAL COINS
Sede Vacante (1415 1417). Camerlengo Francesco de Conzie
Grosso. Avignon mint. 23 mm 1,97 g.
Obv.: D/ () DE : V / AC ANTE, Pope seated facing, raising hand in benedic-

tion and holding cruciform sceptre.
Rev.: + : SANTVS: PETRVS: ET PAVLVS: crossed keys.
Reference: Muntoni 3. Serafini 2. Berman 269. Very rare! VF+
Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 1,250 EUR (approx. 1,535 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Martin V - 11 Nov. 1417 to 20 Feb. 1431

The son of Agapito Colonna and Caterina Conti, he belonged to one of the oldest and
most distinguished families of Rome. He became apostolic protonotary under Pope
Urban VI (137889), was created Cardinal Deacon by Pope Innocent VII (140406),
and in 1410 was the delegate of antipope Alexander V (140910) to hear the appeal
which had been taken in that year to the Papacy by Jan Hus.
He was elected pope on St. Martin's Day (November 11) at the Council of Constance
by a conclave consisting of twenty-three cardinals and thirty delegates of the council,
which after deposing antipope John XXIII (141015), had been for long divided by the
conflicting discourses of Pope Gregory XII (140615) and antipope Benedict XIII
(13941423)
Martin V was widely esteemed for moderation, learning, uprightness and business abili-
ty, but he is not seen as a reforming Pope. His first act after his election was to publish
a brief confirming all the regulations made by his predecessors with regard to the papal
chancery, regulations which had long been the subject of complaint. When the "nations" of the council pressed their
plans for reform, Martin V submitted a counter scheme, and ultimately entered into negotiations for separate concor-
dats, for the most part vague and illusory, with Germany, England, and France.
He left Constance at the close of the council (May 1418), but travelled slowly through Italy, lingered at Florence, and
did not venture to enter Rome until September 1420, when his first task was to seek to restore it to the prosperity and
order to which it had become a stranger.
In that period, in 1418, a famous synod convoked by the Jews in Forl, sent a deputation with costly gifts to the new
pope, Martin V, praying him to abolish the oppressive laws promulgated by antipope Benedict XIII and to grant the
Jews those privileges which had been accorded them under previous popes. The deputation succeeded in its mission.
In accordance with the decree of Constance, confirmed by himself, ordering that councils should be held every five
years, in 1423 Martin V summoned the council which met at Pavia and afterwards at Siena (the Council of Siena) - it
was rather poorly attended, and in this circumstance gave the pope a pretext for dissolving it as soon as it had come
to the resolution that "internal church union by reform ought to take precedence over external union". It was prorogued
for seven years, and then met at Basel (the Council of Basel); shortly after its opening Martin V died of apoplexy.
When the second Pope to take the name Martin was elected, there was confusion over how many Popes had taken
the name before. It was believed at the time that there were three, so the second Pope named Martin was called
Martin IV. Therefore, the third Pope named Martin was called V. But, in reality, those believed to be Martin II and
Martin III were actually called Marinus I and Marinus II, although they are sometimes still known as Martin II and
Martin III. This has advanced the numbering of all subsequent Popes Martin by two. Popes Martin IV-V are really the
second and third popes by that name.
Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Rome mint. 3,40 g. Grosso. Rome mint. 3,37 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions
heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. MART- heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. MARTINVS
INVS PP V PP V
Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + SANTVS PETRVS SP QR Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + SANTVS PETRVS SP Q
Reference: Muntoni 10. Patina, good VF. Reference: Munt., 10; Berman, 271. Beautiful patina, rare in this quality.
XF.
Schtzpreis: 150.00 EUR. Price realized: 260 EUR (approx. 312 U.S.

Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Rome mint. 25 mm 2,87 g. Grosso. Rome mint. 3,27 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with
heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. MART- lions heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff.
INVS PP V MARTINVS PP V
Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + SANTVS PETRVS SPQR Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + SANTVS PETRVS
SPQR
Reference: Muntoni 10 var. Dark toning. F.
Reference:Berman 272; CNI 10; Muntoni 11. VF.
Estimate: EUR 50. Price realized: 85 EUR (approx. 100 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimation DM 500. Price realized: 625 DEM (approx. 284 U.S.
Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 25 mm Grosso. Avignon mint. 25 mm 2,00 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with
lions heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. lions heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff.
MARTINVS PP QVINTVS MARTINVS PP QVINTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + : SANTVS: PETRVS: Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + : SANTVS: PETRVS:
ET PAVLVS: ET PAVLVS:
Reference: Muntoni 32, Berman 285. Scarce. Slightly curved. VF. Reference: Muntoni 32. Serafini 85. Berman 285. Rare! VF.
Estimate EUR 100. Price realized: 130 EUR (approx. 163 U.S. Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 400 EUR (approx. 491 U.S.

Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,10 g. Grosso. Avignon mint. 1,91 g.
Reference: Muntoni 32. Fine Patina, VF. Reference: Berman 285; Muntoni 32; Poey dAvant 4240. Very
scarce. VF.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimation DM 500. Price realized: 400 DEM (approx. 182 U.S.
Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Avignon mint. Grosso. Avignon mint. 2,10 g.
Reference: Muntoni 32. Rare, good XF. Reference: Ber. 285 - Munt. 32. Rare. Nice condition!
Estimate: 500 EUR. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 555 U.S. Estimate: 800 / 1.000.

Martin V., 1417-1431. Martin V., 1417-1431.
Grosso. Avignon mint. 1,97g. Grosso. Avignon mint.
Reference: B., 923; Munt., 32; Berman, 285; P.A., 4240. Nice patina. Reference: Muntoni 32. Rare, VF.
VF - EF
Estimate: 350 EUR. Price realized: 440 EUR (approx. 674 U.S.
Estimate: EUR 500. Dollars as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Martin V., 1417-1431.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions

heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. MARTINVS
PP QVINTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + : SANTVS: PETRVS: ET

PAVLVS:
Reference: Muntoni 33. Berman 286. Good VF.
PAPAL COINS
Martin V., 1417-1431.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions

heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. MARTINVS
PP QVINTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys, column mark above; + : SANTVS: PETRVS: ET

PAVLVS:
Reference: Muntoni 33. Rare, VF.
PAPAL COINS
Martin V., 1417-1431.
Obv.: Mitred bust facing. MARTINUS V
Rev.: U R B I arranged in cruciform; chalice in center. Balls in angles.

Legend around: (crossed keys) ...PETRUS
Nice portrait, VF+
Eugenius IV - 3 March 1431 to 23 Feb. 1447
He was born in Venice to a rich merchant family, a Correr on his mother's side.
Condulmer entered the Augustinian order at the monastery of St. George in his native
city. At the age of twenty-four he was appointed by his uncle Pope Gregory XII
(140615), as Bishop of Siena, and came into prominence. In Siena, the political
class objected to a 24-year old bishop who was a foreigner. Therefore, the issue was
not pressed, and he resigned the appointment, becoming instead his uncle's papal
treasurer, protonotary, Cardinal Priest of San Marco and San Clemente, and later
Cardinal Priest of Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere.
He made himself useful to Pope Martin V (141731) and was quickly elected to suc-
ceed him. Eugene was crowned as Eugene IV at St. Peter's, March 11, 1431. By a
written agreement made before his election he agreed with the cardinals to distribute
to them one-half of all the revenues of the Church and promised to consult with them
on all questions of importance, both spiritual and temporal. Upon taking the Papal
Chair, Eugene IV took violent measures against the numerous Colonna relations of
his predecessor, Pope Martin V (Ottone Colonna), who had rewarded his numerous
clan with castles and lands. This at once involved him in a serious contest with the
powerful house of Colonna that nominally supported the local rights of Rome against
the interests of the Papacy. A truce was soon arranged.
But by far the most important feature of Eugene IV's pontificate was the great struggle
between the Pope and the Council of Basel, commonly referred to as the Council of
Florence, (143139), part of the historic Conciliar movement. On July 23, 1431, his
legate, Giuliano Cesarini, opened the council, which had been convoked by Martin V,
but, distrustful of its purposes and emboldened by the small attendance, the pope
issued a bull on December 18, 1431, dissolving the council and calling a new one to
meet in eighteen months at Bologna. The council resisted this premature expression of papal prerogative, as it appeared to the
majority of them. Eugene IV's action gave some weight to the contention that the Curia was opposed to any authentic measures of
reform. The council refused to dissolve; instead they renewed the resolutions by which the Council of Constance had declared a
council superior to the Pope, and cited Eugene IV to appear at Basel. A compromise was arranged by Sigismund, Holy Roman
Emperor, who had been crowned emperor at Rome on May 31, 1433. By its terms the Pope recalled his bull of dissolution, and,
reserving all the rights of the Holy See, acknowledged the council as ecumenical (December 15, 1433). The pope agreed to name
presidents to lead the council on his behalf.
These concessions also were due to the invasion of the Papal States by the former Papal condottiero Niccol Fortebraccio and the
troops of Filippo Maria Visconti led by Niccol Piccinino, in retaliation to Eugene's support to Florence and Venice against Milan
(see also Wars in Lombardy). This situation led also to establishment of an insurrectionary republic at Rome, controlled by the
Colonna family. In early June, disguised in the robes of a Benedictine monk, he was rowed down the center of the Tiber, pelted by
stones from either bank, to a Florentine vessel waiting to pick him up at Ostia. The city was restored to obedience by Giovanni
Vitelleschi, the militant Bishop of Recanati, in the following October. In August of 1435 a peace treaty was signed at Ferrara by the
various belligerents. The Pope moved to Bologna in April of 1436. His condottieri Francesco Sforza and Vitelleschi in the meantime
reconquered much of the Papal States. Traditional papal enemies such as the Prefetti di Vico were destroyed, while the Colonna
were reduced to obedience after the destruction of their stronghold in Palestrina (August, 1436).
Meanwhile the struggle with the council sitting at Basel broke out anew. Eugene IV at length convened a rival council at Ferrara on
January 8, 1438, and excommunicated the prelates assembled at Basel. The result was that the Council of Basel suspended him
on January 24, 1438, then formally deposed him as a heretic on June 25, 1439, and in the following November elected the ambi-
tious Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy, antipope under the name of Felix V. The conduct of France and Germany seemed to warrant
this action, for Charles VII of France had introduced the decrees of the Council of Basel, with slight changes, into France through
the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges (July 7, 1438), and the Diet of Mainz had deprived the Pope of most of his rights in the Empire
(March 26, 1439).
At Florence, where the council of Ferrara had been transferred on account of an outbreak of the plague, a union with the Eastern
Orthodox Church was effected in July, 1439, which, as the result of political necessities, proved but a temporary bolster to the
papacy's prestige.
This union was followed by others of even less stability. Eugene IV signed an agreement with the Armenians on November 22,
1439, and with a part of the Jacobites in 1443, and in 1445 he received the Nestorians and the Maronites. He did his best to stem
the Turkish advance, pledging one-fifth of the papal income to the crusade which set out in 1443, but which met with overwhelming
defeat at Varna. Cardinal Cesarini, the papal legate, perished in the rout.
His rival, Felix V, meanwhile, obtained small recognition, even in the Empire. Eventually Frederick III, king of the Romans, moved
toward acceptance of Eugene. The king's ablest adviser, the humanist Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, who was later to be Pope Pius
II, made peace with Eugene IV in 1442. The Pope's recognition of the claim to Naples of King Alfonso V of Aragon (treaty of
Terracina, signed by Eugene at Siena somewhat later) withdrew the last important support from the council of Basel. In 1442
Eugene, Alfonso and Visconti sent Niccol Piccinino to reconquer the March of Ancona from Francesco Sforza, but the defeat of
the allied army at the Montolmo pushed the Pope to reconcile with Sforza.
So enabled, Eugene IV made a victorious entry into Rome on 28 September 1443, after an exile of nearly ten years.
His protests against the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges were ineffectual, but by means of the Concordat of the Princes, negotiated
by Piccolomini with the electors in February, 1447, the whole of Germany declared against the antipope. This agreement was final-
ized only after Eugene's death.
Although his pontificate had been so stormy and unhappy that he is said to have regretted on his deathbed that he ever left his
monastery, nevertheless Eugene IV's victory over the council of Basel and his efforts on behalf of church unity contributed greatly
to the breakdown of the conciliar movement and restore the papacy to the dominant position it had held before the Western
Schism (13781417).
Eugene IV was dignified in demeanour, but inexperienced and vacillating in action and excitable in temper. Bitter in his hatred of
heresy, he nevertheless displayed great kindness to the poor. He laboured to reform the monastic orders, especially the
Franciscans, and was never guilty of nepotism. Although austere in his private life, he was a sincere friend of art and learning, and
in 1431 he re-established the university at Rome. Eugene was buried at Saint Peter's by the tomb of Pope Eugene III, the former
pupil of Bernard of Clairvaux.Later his tomb was transferred in San Salvatore in Lauro-a parish church on the other bank of the
Tiber river.
Eugene IV was against the enslavement of natives from the Canary Islands: in January 13, 1435, at Florence, Eugene enacted the
Papal Bull "Sicut Dudum" about the enslaving by Spanish slave trader. The Pope wrote: ".... These people are to be totally and per-
petually free, and are to be let go without the exaction or reception of money"... But the Spanish didn't listen to the Pope and
asserted that the natives weren't men but a sort of animal.

Eugenius IV., 1431-1447. Eugenius IV., 1431-1447.
Ducato. Rome mint. 3,34 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3,51 g.
Obv.: EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys Obv.: EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys
over coat-of-arms in quatra-lobe. over coat-of-arms in quatra-lobe.
Rev.: S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing Rev.: S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing
with key and book, all in quatralobe. with key and book, all in quatralobe.
Rim damage. VF-XF. Reference: CNI 1. Muntoni 1. Berman 300. Friedberg 3. Rare. XF.
Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,839 U.S. Estimate: EUR 1800. Price realized: 1,800 EUR (approx. 2,398 U.S.
Ducato. Rome mint. 22 mm 3,46 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 24 mm 3,51 g.
Obv.: EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys Obv.: EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys
over coat-of-arms in quatra-lobe. over coat-of-arms, in pearled circle.
Rev.: S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing Rev.: S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing
with key and book, all in quatralobe. with key and book, in pearled circle.
Reference: Muntoni 2; Fr. 3a. GOLD. Slight rim damage, VF. Reference: CNI 5. Muntoni 2. Berman 301. Friedberg 3. Rare. XF.
Estimate CHF 500. Price realized: 750 CHF (approx. 589 U.S. Estimate: EUR 1200. Price realized: 3,600 EUR (approx. 4,797 U.S.

Ducato. Rome mint. 3,49 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 3,49 g.
Obv.: +EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys Obv.: +EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys
over coat-of-arms in quatra-lobe. over coat-of-arms in quatra-lobe. Rosette divider.
Rev.: +S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands fac- Rev.: +S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands fac-
ing with key and book, all in quatralobe. ing with key and book, all in quatralobe.
Reference: 3,49 g. Fb. 3 a; Muntoni 3. GOLD. VF. Reference: CNI.3. Munt.4. F.3a. VF.
Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 900 EUR (approx. 1,142 U.S. Estimate: FRF 5000. Price realized: 4,250 FRF (approx. 578 U.S.
Ducato. Bologna mint. 22 mm 3,43 g. Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS Papal tiara and crossed keys Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with
over coat-of-arms, in rope circle. lions heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff.
EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS
Rev.: S PETRVS -BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing
with key and book, in rope circle. Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + ROMA CAPVT MVNDI
SPQR
Reference: CNI 1. Munt. 30. Berman 312. Frd. 323. Ver rare.
Beautiful! Beautiful dark toning, rim damage, small hole. Still VF-XF.
Estimate: EUR 700. Price realized: 1,800 EUR (approx. 2,398 U.S. Estimate: 400 EUR. Price realized: 700 EUR (approx. 1,073 U.S.

Grosso. Rome mint. Grosso. Rome mint. 3,84 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions
lions heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff.
EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS EVGENIVS PAPA QVARS
Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + ROMA CAPVT MVNDI Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + ROMA CAPVT MVNDI
SPQR SPQR
Reference: Biaggi 2152 (R2); Muntoni 8. Very rare, VF. Reference: Muntoni 8 Var. II. Very rare. Nice Patina, VF.
Estimate: 1250 EUR. Estimate: 300.00 EUR. Price realized: 600 EUR (approx. 720 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date
Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope seated facing on throne decorated with lions Obv.: Condulmer coat-of-arms surmounted by tiara and keys, all
heads, right hand raised in blessing, left hand with corss staff. within quadrilobe +EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS
EVGENIVS PA QVARTVS
Rev.: + S PETR VS S PAVLVS ALMA ROMA, Nimbate St.
Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + ROMA CAPVT MVNDI Peter and St. Paul standing, holding swords and books.
SPQR
Reference: Muntoni I pg. 47, 17; CNI XV pg. 229, 43; Berman 305.
Reference: CNI XV pg. 223, 34; cf. Muntoni I pg. 47, 13; Berman Good VF, very attractive.
303. VF, warped flan.
Estimate $400. Price realized: 658 USD
Estimate $400. Price realized: 400 USD

Grosso. Rome mint. Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: Condulmer coat-of-arms surmounted by tiara and keys, all Obv.: Condulmer coat-of-arms surmounted by tiara and keys, all
within quadrilobe +EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS within quadrilobe +EVGENVS(rosette) PP QVARTVS+
Rev.: + S PETR VS S PAVLVS ALMA ROMA, Nimbate St. Rev.: +S PETR-VS S PAVLVS- ALMA- ROMA , Nimbate St.
Peter and St. Paul standing, holding swords and books. Peter and St. Paul standing, holding swords and books.
Reference:Biaggi 2155 (R2); Muntoni 19. Very rare. F-VF. Reference: Munt., 19 var; Berman, 306. 3,91g. Rare. Beautiful pati-
na. - VF - EF.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 600. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,384 U.S.
Carlino. Avignon. mint. Carlino. Avignon. mint.
EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + SANTVS PETRVS ET Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + SANTVS PETRVS ET
PAVLVS PAVLVS
Beautiful toning, VF+. Reference: Muntoni 27. Rare, VF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 480 EUR (approx. 736 U.S. Estimate: 300 EUR. Price realized: 240 EUR (approx. 368 U.S.

Carlino. Avignon. mint. 26 mm 2,00 g. Carlino. Avignon. mint. 2,08 g.
EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS EVGENIVS PP QVARTVS
Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + SANTVS PETRVS ET Rev.: Crossed keys, coat of arms above; + SANTVS PETRVS ET
PAVLVS PAVLVS
Reference: Muntoni 27. Berman 319. VF. Reference: Berman 319; Muntoni 27; Poey dAvant 4245-4246. VF.
Estimate: EUR 200. Price realized: 380 EUR (approx. 564 U.S. Estimation DM 450. Price realized: 625 DEM (approx. 284 U.S.
PAPAL COINS
Eugenius IV., 1431-1447.
Bolognino. Fermo.
Obv.: (Crossed keys)EVG PP QVA Ringlet dividers; around 4 let-

ters arranged in cruciform, in pearled circle.
Rev.: A monogram, ringlet flanking 4 sides; in pearled circle.

Legend around.
VF+

PAPAL COINS
Eugenius IV., 1431-1447.
Cu picciolo. Foligno mint. 0,55 g.
Obv.: EVGE PP QVA around R-T-V-S arranged in cruciform, in

pearled circle.
Rev.: VB FVLGNEI Floreate cross in pearled circle. Rosette

dividers.
Reference: Munt., 41 var; Berman, 318 var. Rare. Nice dark patina.
VF.
Estimate: EUR 275. Price realized: 220 EUR (approx. 316 U.S.
Nicholas V - 6 March 1447 - 24 March 1455
Nicholas V (Italian: Niccol V; November 15, 1397 March 24, 1455), born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from March 6, 1447
to his death in 1455.
He was born at Sarzana, Liguria, where his father was a physician. His father died while he was young, but in Florence,
Parentucelli became a tutor in the families of the Strozzi and Albizzi, where he made the acquaintance of the leading humanist
scholars. He studied at Bologna, gaining a degree in theology in 1422, whereupon the bishop, Niccol Albergati, was so much
struck with his capacities that he took him into his service and gave him the chance to pursue his studies further, by sending him
on a tour through Germany, France and England. He was able to collect books, for which he had an intellectual's passion, wherev-
er he went. Some of them survive, with his marginal annotations.
He distinguished himself at the Council of Florence, and in 1444, when his patron died, he was appointed bishop of Bologna in his
place. Civic disorders at Bologna were prolonged, so Pope Eugene IV (14311447) soon named him as one of the legates sent to
Frankfurt to negotiate an understanding between the Papal States and the Holy Roman Empire, with regard to undercutting or at
least containing the reforming decrees of the Council of Basel (14311439). His successful diplomacy gained him the reward, on
his return to Rome, of the title of Cardinal priest of Santa Susanna (December 1446). He was elected Pope in succession to
Eugene IV on 6 March of the following year, taking the name of Nicholas V in honour of his early benefactor.
The eight scant years of his pontificate (14471455) were important in the political, scientific and literary history of the world.
Politically, he made the Concordat of Vienna, or Aschaffenburg (February 17, 1448) with the German King, Frederick III
(14401493), by which the decrees of the Council of Basel against papal annates and reservations were abrogated so far as
Germany was concerned; and in the following year he secured a still greater tactical triumph, when the resignation of the antipope
Felix V (14391449) (7 April) and his own recognition by the rump of the council of Basel (143139), assembled at Lausanne, put
an end to the Western Schism (13781417). The next year, 1450, Nicholas V held a Jubilee at Rome; and the offerings of the
numerous pilgrims who thronged to Rome gave him the means of furthering the cause of culture in Italy, which he had so much at
heart. In March 1452 he crowned Frederick III as Emperor in St. Peter's, the last occasion of the coronation of an Emperor at
Rome.
Within the city of Rome, Nicholas V introduced the fresh spirit of the Renaissance. His plans were of embellishing the city with new
monuments worthy of the capital of the Christian world. His first care was practical, to reinforce the city's fortifications, cleaning
and even paving some main streets and restoring the water supply. The end of ancient Rome is sometimes dated from the
destruction of its magnificent array of aqueducts by 6th century invaders. In the Middle Ages Romans depended for water on wells
and cisterns, and the poor dipped their water from the yellow Tiber. The Aqua Virgo aqueduct, originally constructed by Agrippa,
was restored by Pope Nicholas V, and emptied into a simple basin that Leon Battista Alberti designed, the predecessor of the Trevi
Fountain.
But the works on which he especially set his heart were the rebuilding of the Vatican and the Borgo district, and St Peter's Basilica,
where the reborn glories of the papacy were to be focused. He got as far as pulling down part of the ancient basilica, made some
alterations to the Lateran Palace (of which some frescos by Fra Angelico bear witness), and laid up 2,522 cartloads of marble from
the dilapidated Colosseum for use in the later constructions.
Under the generous patronage of Nicholas V, humanism made rapid strides as well. The new humanist learning had been looked
on with suspicion in Rome, a possible source of schism and heresy, an unhealthy interest in paganism. Nicholas V instead
employed Lorenzo Valla as a notary and kept hundreds[dubious discuss] of copyists and scholars, with the special aim of whole-
sale translations of Greek works, pagan as well as Christian, into Latin, giving as much as ten thousand gulden for a metrical
translation of Homer. This industry, coming just before the dawn of printing, contributed enormously to the sudden expansion of the
intellectual horizon. Nicholas V founded a library of nine thousand volumes. The Pope himself was a man of vast erudition, and his
friend Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini, later Pope Pius II (14581464), said of him that "what he does not know is outside the range of
human knowledge".
In 1452, Nicholas V issued the papal bull Dum Diversas, granting the king of Portugal the right to reduce any "Saracens, pagans
and any other unbelievers" to hereditary slavery. Dum Diversas legitimised the colonial slave trade that begun around this time
with the expeditions by Henry the Navigator to find a sea route to India, which were financed with African slaves. This approval of
slavery was reaffirmed and extended in his Romanus Pontifex of 1455.
He was compelled, however, to add that the lustre of his pontificate would be forever dulled by the fall of Constantinople, which the
Turks took in 1453. The Pope bitterly felt this catastrophe as a double blow to Christendom and to Greek letters. "It is a second
death," wrote Aeneas Silvius, "to Homer and Plato". Nicholas V preached a crusade, and endeavoured to reconcile the mutual ani-
mosities of the Italian states, but without much success. He did not live long enough to see the effect of the Greek scholars armed
with unimagined manuscripts, who began to find their way to Italy.
In undertaking these works Nicholas V was moved "to strengthen the weak faith of the populace by the greatness of that which it
sees". The Roman populace, however, appreciated neither his motives nor their results, and in 1452 a formidable conspiracy for
the overthrow of the papal government, under the leadership of Stefano Porcaro, was discovered and crushed. This revelation of
disaffection, together with the fall of Constantinople in 1453, darkened the last years of Pope Nicholas V; "As Thomas of Sarzana,"
he said, "I had more happiness in a day than now in a whole year".

Nicolas V., 1447-1455. Nicolas V., 1447-1455.
Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3.54 g Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3.47 g
Obv.: + NICOLAVS PP QVINTVS Papal tiara-crowned coat of arms Obv.: + NICOLAVS PP QVINTVS Papal tiara-crowned coat of arms
with crossed keys, in quadralobe. with crossed keys, in quadralobe.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing, Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing,
holding key and book. holding key and book.
Reference:. Muntoni 4; Fr. 6. aXF. Reference: CNI 3. Muntoni 4. Berman 326. Friedberg 6. VF.
Estimate CHF 2500. Price realized: 2,000 CHF (approx. 1,705 U.S. Estimate: EUR 550. Price realized: 800 EUR (approx. 1,187 U.S.

Nicolas V., 1447-1455. Nicolas V., 1447-1455.
Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3.50 g Grosso. Rome mint. jUBILEE YEAR (1450)
Obv.: + NICOLAVS PP QVINTVS Papal tiara-crowned coat of arms Obv.: N PP V ANNO IVBILEI Papal tiara-crowned coat of arms with
with crossed keys, in quadralobe. crossed keys, in quadralobe.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands facing, Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter (with key and book) and St. Paul (with sword)
holding key and book. facing, looking slightly toward each other. .S. PETRVS. S. PAVLVS
[.....] A ROMA
Reference: Fb. 6; Muntoni 5. GOLD. VF-XF.
Reference: Biaggi 2163 (R3); Muntoni 10. Very rare. F.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 190 EUR (approx. 291 U.S.
Callixtus III - 8 Apr. 1455 to 6 Aug. 1458
Calixtus III (December 31, 1378 August 6, 1458), n Alfonso de Borja, was Pope from April 8,
1455 to his death in 1458.
Alfonso de Borja was born near Xtiva, Valncia, today Spain but then Kingdom of Valencia under
the Crown of Aragon. His early career was spent as a professor of law at University of Lleida and
then as a diplomat in the service of the Kings of Aragon, especially during the Council of Basel
(14311439). He became a cardinal after reconciling Pope Eugene IV (14311447) with King
Alfonso V of Aragon (14161458).
He was raised to the papal chair in 1455 as Calixtus III at a very advanced age as a compromise
candidate. He was viewed by historians as being feeble and incompetent. In the same year, he
issued a Papal bulle (bulletin/edict) to Portugal. This bulle authorized it to reduce to servitude
(enslave) "infidels" (non-christian) people. Thus, the Catholic Church gave permission to Portugal
and its other subjugate countries to engage in the Trans-Atlantic, African Slave Trade. Therefore,
assuring that the enslavement of Africans was not contradictory to the word of God nor the teach-
ings of the church itself - without retaliation or penalization from either.
The great object of his policy was the urging of a crusade against the Turks, who had captured Constantinople in 1453, but he did
not find the Christian princes responsive to his call despite his every effort.
Pope Calixtus III made two of his nephews cardinals, one of whom, Roderic de Borgia, later became Pope Alexander VI
(14921503) and was infamous for corruption.
On June 29, 1456, he ordered the bells to be rung at noon (see noon bell) in all the Church to call Christians for prayer. As news
spread with some delay, this order became connected with the crusade to lift the Siege of Belgrade (which happened on July 22),
which was a signal victory against the Turks. To commemorate this victory, Calixtus III ordered the feast of the Transfiguration to be
held on August 6.
He ordered a new trial for St. Joan of Arc (c. 14121431), at which she was posthumously vindicated after being controversially
tried and executed.
Calixtus III's pre-papal coat of arms featured a grazing ox.
According to one story, first appearing in a posthumous biography in 1475 and later embellished and popularized by Pierre-Simon
Laplace, Calixtus III excommunicated the 1456 apparition of Halley's Comet, believing it to be an ill omen for the Christian defend-
ers of Belgrade, who were at that time being besieged by the armies of the Ottoman Empire. No known primary source supports
the authenticity of this account. Calixtus III's papal bull of June 29, 1456, which called for public prayer for the success of the cru-
sade, makes no mention of the comet, and by August 6, when the Turkish siege was broken, the comet had not been visible from
Europe or Turkey for several weeks.
PAPAL COINS
Calixtus III., 1455-1458.
Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3.48 g
Obv.: +CALISTVS . PP TERTIVS Papal tiara and crossed keys over popes
coat-of-arms.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter seated in boat, facing right, holding mast in form of a
cross. MODICE FIDEI QVARE DUBITATVS
Reference: Muntoni 1; Fr. 7. GOLD. VF.
auction date)
Calixtus III., 1455-1458. Calixtus III., 1455-1458.
Ducato. Rome mint. 3.43 g Ducato. Rome mint. 3.43 g
Obv.: +CALISTVS (rosette) PP TERTIVS Papal tiara and crossed keys over Obv.: +CALISTVS (rosette) PP TERTIVS Papal tiara and crossed keys over
popes coat-of-arms. popes coat-of-arms.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter seated in boat, facing right, holding mast in form of Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands facing, looing slightly to right, holding key
a cross. MODICE FIDEI QVARE DUBITATVS and book. +S. PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Fb. 7; Muntoni 1. GOLD. Very rare. Slight curvature, VF. Reference: Fb. 8; Muntoni 3. GOLD. Rare, small scratches, VF-XF.
Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 1,850 EUR (approx. 2,836 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,839 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) as of the auction date)

Calixtus III., 1455-1458. Calixtus III., 1455-1458.
Grosso. Rome mint. 3.75 g Grosso. Rome mint. 3.79 g
Obv.: +CALISTVS (rosette) PP TERTIVS Papal tiara and crossed keys over Obv.: +CALISTVS (rosette) PP TERTIVS Papal tiara and crossed keys over
popes coat-of-arms. popes coat-of-arms.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter seated in boat, facing right, holding mast in form of Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter seated in boat, facing right, holding mast in form of
a cross. MODICE FIDEI QVARE DUBITATVS a cross. MODICE FIDEI QVARE DUBITATVS
Reference: Berman 350; CNI 21; Muntoni 8. Plugged hole. VF. Reference: (CNI 39; M -; B 350). Slightly short of flan and weakness at the
very end of reverse legend but very pleasing, well-toned, good very fine and
Estimation DM 100. Price realized: 950 DEM (approx. 431 U.S. Dollars as very rare.
Estimate: 700. Price realized: 1,150 GBP (approx. 2,184 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Pius II - 19 Aug. 1458 to 15 Aug. 1464
Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini (Latin Aeneas Sylvius; October 18, 1405
August 14, 1464) was Pope from August 19, 1458 until his death in 1464. Pius II,
"whose character reflects almost every tendency of the age in which he lived", was
born at Corsignano in the Sienese territory of a noble but decayed family. His longest
and most enduring work is the story of his life, Commentaries, which is the only auto-
biography ever written by a reigning Pope.
After studying at the universities of Siena and Florence, he settled in the former city
as a teacher, but in 1431 accepted the post of secretary to Domenico Capranica,
bishop of Fermo, then on his way to the Council of Basel (143139) to protest
against the injustice of the new Pope Eugene IV (14311447), in refusing him the
cardinalate for which he had been designated by Pope Martin V (14171431).
Arriving at Basel after numerous adventures, he successively served Capranica, who
ran short on money, and then other masters.
In 1435 he was sent by Cardinal Albergati, Eugenius IV's legate at the council, on a
secret mission to Scotland, the object of which is variously related even by himself.
He visited England as well as Scotland, underwent many perils and vicissitudes in
both countries, and has left a valuable account of each. The journey to Scotland
proved so tempestuous that Piccolomini swore that he would walk barefoot to the
nearest shrine of Our Lady from their landing port. This proved to be Dunbar, and the
nearest shrine 10 miles distant at Whitekirk, The journey through the ice and snow
left Aeneas afflicted with pain in his legs for the rest of his life.
Upon his return to Basel, Aeneas sided actively with the council in its conflict with the
Pope, and, although still a layman, obtained a leading share in the direction of its
affairs. He supported the creation of the antipope Felix V (14391449), Amadeus,
Duke of Savoy. Aeneas then withdrew to the Emperor Frederick III's (14401493) court at Vienna. He was crowned imperial poet
laureate, and obtained the patronage of the Emperor's chancellor, Kaspar Schlick. Some identify the love adventure at Siena
Aeneas related in his romance, The Tale of the Two Lovers with an escapade of the Chancellor.
Aeneas' character had hitherto been that of an easy man of the world, with no pretence to strictness in morals or consistency in
politics. He now began to be more regular in the former respect, and in the latter adopted a decided line by making his peace with
Rome. Being sent on a mission to Rome in 1445, with the ostensible object of inducing Eugenius to convoke a new council, he
was absolved from ecclesiastical censures, and returned to Germany under an engagement to assist the Pope. This he did most
effectually by the diplomatic dexterity with which he smoothed away differences between the papal court of Rome and the German
imperial electors; and he had a leading part in the compromise by which, in 1447, the dying Eugenius IV accepted the reconcilia-
tion tendered by the German princes, and the council and the antipope were left without support. He had already taken orders, and
one of the first acts of Eugenius IV's successor Pope Nicholas V (14471455) was to make him bishop of Trieste. He later served
as bishop of Siena.
In 1450 Aeneas was sent as ambassador by the Emperor Frederick III to negotiate his marriage with the princess Eleonore of
Portugal, which object he successfully achieved; in 1451 he undertook a mission to Bohemia, and concluded a satisfactory
arrangement with the Hussite leader George of Podebrady; in 1452 he accompanied Frederick III to Rome, where the Emperor
wedded Leonora and was crowned King of the Romans. In August 1455 Aeneas again arrived in Rome on an embassy to proffer
the obedience of Germany to the new Pope Calixtus III (14551458). He brought strong recommendations from the Emperor and
King Ladislaus of Hungary for his nomination to the cardinalate, but delays arose from the Pope's resolution to promote his own
nephews first, and he did not attain the object of his ambition until December in the following year. He achieved temporarily the
bishopric of Warmia (Ermeland).
Calixtus III died on August 6, 1458. On August 10, the cardinals entered into conclave. According to Aeneas' account, the wealthy
cardinal Guillaume d'Estouteville of Rouen, though a Frenchman and of exceptionable character, seemed certain to be elected.
Aeneas has told us in a passage of his own history of his times, long retrenched from that work but printed clandestinely in the
Conclavi de' Pontifici Romani, by what art, energy and eloquence he frustrated this false step. It seemed appropriate to Aeneas
that the election should fall upon himself: although the sacred college included a few men of higher moral standard, he believed his
abilities made him most worthy of the tiara. It was the peculiar faculty of Aeneas to accommodate himself perfectly to whatever
position he might be called upon to occupy; it was his peculiar good fortune that every step in life had placed him in circumstances
appealing more and more to the better part of his nature, an appeal to which he had never failed to respond.
The party pamphleteer had been more respectable than the private secretary, the diplomatist than the pamphleteer, the cardinal
than the diplomatist; now the unscrupulous adventurer and licentious novelist of a few short years ago seated himself quite natu-
rally in the chair of St. Peter, and from the resources of his versatile character produced without apparent effort all the virtues and
endowments becoming his exalted station. After allying himself with Ferdinand, the Aragonese claimant to the throne of Naples, his
next important act was to convene a congress of the representatives of Christian princes at Mantua for joint action against the
Turks. On September 26, 1459, he called for a new crusade against the Ottomans and on January 14, 1460, he proclaimed the
official crusade that was to last for three years. His long progress to the place of assembly resembled a triumphal procession; and
the Council of Mantua, a complete failure as regarded its ostensible object, at least showed that the impotence of Christendom
was not owing to the Pope. The Pope did, however, influence Vlad III Draculawhom the Pope held in high regardin starting a
war against Mehmed II[1]a conflict which at its peak involved the Wallachians trying to assassinate the Sultan (see the Night
Attack).
On his return from the congress, Pius II spent a considerable time in his native district of Siena, where he was joined by his erst-
while host in Mantua Ludovico Gonzaga; Pius has described his delight and the charm of a country life in very pleasing language.
He was recalled to Rome by the disturbances occasioned by Tiburzio di Maso, who was ultimately seized and executed. In the
struggle for the Kingdom of Naples between the supporters of the House of Aragon and the House of Anjou, the Papal States were
at this time troubled by rebellious barons and marauding condottieri, whom he gradually, though momentarily, abated. The
Neapolitan War was also terminated by the success of the Pope's ally the Aragonese Ferdinand. In particular, the pope engaged
for most of his reign in what looked a personal war against Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, lord of Rimini, with the result of the
almost complete submission of that condottiero. Pius II tried also mediations in the Thirteen Years' War between Poland and the
Teutonic Knights, but, when he failed to achieve success, cast an anathema over Polish and Prussians both. Pius II was also
engaged in a series of disputes with the Bohemian King George of Podebrady and the Sigismund of Austria (who was excommuni-
cated for having arrested Nicholas of Cusa, bishop of Brixen).
In July 1461, Pius II canonized Saint Catherine of Siena, and in October of the same year he gained at first what appeared to be a
most brilliant success by inducing the new King of France, Louis XI (14611483), to abolish the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, by
which the Pope's authority in France had been grievously impaired. But Louis XI had expected that Pius II would in return espouse
the French cause in Naples, and when he found himself disappointed he virtually re-established the Pragmatic Sanction by royal
ordinances.
The crusade for which the Congress of Mantua had been convoked made no progress. The Pope did his best: he addressed an
eloquent letter to the sultan urging him to become a Christian, a letter that probably never was sent. Not surprisingly, if it was deliv-
ered, this invitation was not successful. A public ceremony was staged to receive the relics of the head of Saint Andrew when it
was brought from the East to Rome. Pius II succeeded in reconciling the Emperor and the King of Hungary, and derived great
encouragement as well as pecuniary advantage from the discovery of mines of alum in the papal territory. But France was
estranged; the Duke of Burgundy broke his positive promises; Milan was engrossed with the attempt to seize Genoa; Florence
cynically advised the Pope to let the Turks and the Venetians wear each other out. Pius II was unaware he was nearing his end,
and his malady probably prompted the feverish impatience with which on June 18, 1464, he assumed the cross and departed for
Ancona to conduct the crusade in person. It seemed certain that the issue of such an enterprise could only be ridiculous or disas-
trous. Pius II's good genius again stepped in, and rendered it pathetic.
He was suffering from fever when he left Rome. The crusading army melted away at Ancona for want of transport, and when at
last the Venetian fleet arrived, the dying Pope could only view it from a window. He expired two days afterwards, August 14, 1464,
in his death as in his life a figure picturesque and significant far beyond the wont of Roman pontiffs. He was succeeded by Pope
Paul II (146471). Pius II's body was buried in Sant'Andrea della Valle, while an empty cenotaph was built in St. Peter's Basilica.
Later, the cenotaph was moved in Sant'Andrea. The bodies of Pope Pius II and his nephew, Pope Pius III (1503), were discovered
in Sant'Andrea during the works to rebuild the floor, but buried soon later in an unknown place.
Pius II had sincere, loving nature, frank and nave even in his aberrations and defects. The leading trait of Pius II's character was
his extreme impressionableness. Chameleon-like, he took colour from surrounding circumstances, and could always depend on
being what these circumstances required him to be. As, therefore, his prospects widened and his responsibilities deepened, his
character widened and deepened too; and he who had entered upon life a shifty character quitted it a model chief shepherd. While
he vied with any man in industry, prudence, wisdom, and courage, he excelled most men in simplicity of tastes, constancy of
attachments, kindly playfulness, magnanimity, and mercy. As chief of the church he was able and sagacious, and showed that he
comprehended the conditions on which its monopoly of spiritual power could for a season be maintained; his views were far-see-
ing and liberal; and he was but slightly swayed by personal ends.
Pius II was a versatile and voluminous author, one of the best and most industrious of his period. His most important and longest
work is his autobiography Commentaries in 13 books, first published in 1584 by Cardinal Francesco Bandini Piccolomini, a distant
relative. Piccolomini altered it to some extent, removing words, phrases and whole passages that were unflattering to his relative.
Piccolomini published it under the name of scribe Gobellinus, who was then misattributed as the author, a natural mistake because
Pius II chose to write Commentaries from the third-person perspective. Pius II was also the author of numerous erotic poems and
an obscene comedy titled Chrysis (such ethics were not unusual for his period).
His Epistles, which were collected by himself, are also an important source of historical information. The most valuable of his minor
historical writings are his histories of Bohemia and of the Emperor Frederick III, the latter partly autobiographical. He sketched biog-
raphical treatises on Europe and Asia, and in early and middle life produced numerous tracts on the political and theological contro-
versies of his day, as well as on ethical subjects. Pius II was greatly admired as a poet by his contemporaries, but his reputation in
belles lettres rests principally upon his The Tale of the Two Lovers, which continues to be read to this day, partly from its truth to
nature, and partly from the singularity of an erotic novel being written by a Pope. He also composed some comedies, one of which
alone is extant. All these works are in Latin. Pius was not an eminent scholar: his Latin is frequently incorrect, and he knew little
Greek; but his writings have high literary qualities.
Pope Pius II inaugurated an unusual urban project, perhaps the first city planning exercise in modern Europe. He refurbished his
home town which is now by his name called Pienza (province of Siena, Tuscany). A cathedral and palaces were built in the best
style of the day to decorate the city. They survive to this day.

Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Ducato. Rome mint. 24 mm 3.56 g Ducato. Rome mint. 3.06 g
Obv.: oPIVSPAPA -SECVNDVS Coat of arms topped by papal tiara over Obv.: +PIVSPAPA -SECVNDVS Coat of arms topped by papal tiara over
crossed keys; all in quadralobe. crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: +SPETRVS - ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look- Rev.: +SPETRVS - ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look-
ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe. ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe.
Reference:CNI 17. Muntoni 3. Berman 362. Friedberg 12. Beautiful! Reference: Fb. 12; Muntoni 3. GOLD. Rare, slightly curved. VF.
Estimate: EUR 1200. Price realized: 1,600 EUR (approx. 2,132 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 600.00 EUR. Price realized: 550 EUR (approx. 660 U.S. Dollars
PAPAL COINS
Pius II., 1458-1464.
Ducato. Rome mint. 24 mm 3.53 g
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An (sign of Andrea Nicolai). Coat of arms

topped by papal tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: +S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking

slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe.
Reference: CNI 7 var. Muntoni 5. Berman 362. Friedberg 12. XF.
Estimate: EUR 1300. Price realized: 2,800 EUR (approx. 3,731 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Ducato. Rome mint. 25 mm 3.44 g Ducato. Rome mint. 3.48 g
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An (sign of Andrea Nicolai). Coat of Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An (sign of Andrea Nicolai). Coat of
arms topped by papal tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. arms topped by papal tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: +S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look- Rev.: +S PETRVS - ALMAROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look-
ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe. Ringlet dividers. ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe.
Reference: CNI 7. Muntoni 5. Berman 362. Friedberg 12. XF. Reference: Fb. 12; Muntoni 5. GOLD. Very rare. XF example.
Estimate: EUR 1800. Price realized: 1,600 EUR (approx. 2,374 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,800 EUR (approx. 2,759 U.S. Dollars

Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Ducato. Rome mint. 3.48 g Ducato. Rome mint. 3.48 g
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An (sign of Andrea Nicolai). Coat of
over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. arms topped by papal tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: +S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look- Rev.: +S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, look-
ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe. ing slightly to right, holding keys and book; in quadralobe.
XF. Reference: Fr:12. VF/XF.
Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 2,400 EUR (approx. 3,679 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: EUR 700. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,411 U.S. Dollars as
of the auction date) of the auction date)
Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Grosso. Rome mint. 3.50 g Grosso. Rome mint. 3.82 g
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara
over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. over crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword
and book stand side-by-side facing. AN between figures. +S.PETRVS S. and book stand side-by-side facing. AN between figures. +S.PETRVS S.
PAVLVS ALMA ROMA PAVLVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Muntoni 18. Rare. Small scratches. VF. Reference: Berman 365; CNI 42-44; Muntoni 18. VF/XF.
Schtzpreis: 150.00 EUR. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 336 U.S. Dollars Estimation DM 400. Price realized: 950 DEM (approx. 431 U.S. Dollars as of
as of the auction date) the auction date)

Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Grosso. Rome mint. 28 mm 3.62 g Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara
and book stand side-by-side facing. AN between figures. +S.PETRVS S. and book stand side-by-side facing. AN between figures. +S.PETRVS S.
PAVLVS ALMA ROMA PAVLVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: M 18 var. B 365. Beautiful coin. Reference: Biaggi 2177 (Rare); Muntoni 18 var. Good VF.
Estimate CHF 250. Price realized: 400 CHF (approx. 296 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 429 U.S. Dollars as of
Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Grosso. Ancona mint. 3.75 g Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,60 g.
Obv.: +PIVSPAPA - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: Bust facing crowned with papal tiara. Rosettes at beginning and end of
over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. legend, flanking tiara. PIVS P P SECV
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword Rev.: URBI arranged in cruciform, around crescent moon. (Rosette) S.
and book stand side-by-side facing. AN between figures. +S.PETRVS S. PETRV . S. PAVLV
PAVLVS f in patriarchal cross-topped cartouche.
Reference: Berman 366; CNI 101; Muntoni 24. VF.
Reference: Berman 373; CNI 90 (Rom); Muntoni 31. Nice patina. Holed, VF.
Estimation DM 150. Price realized: 260 DEM (approx. 118 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)

Pius II., 1458-1464. Pius II., 1458-1464.
Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,60 g. Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,60 g.
Obv.: Bust facing crowned with papal tiara. Rosettes at beginning and end of Obv.: Bust facing crowned with papal tiara. Rosettes at beginning and end of
legend, flanking tiara. PIVS P P SECV legend, flanking tiara. +PIVS.P APA.II+
Rev.: URBI arranged in cruciform, around crescent moon. (Rosette) S. Rev.: URBI arranged in cruciform, around crescent moon. (Rosette) S.
PETRV . S. PAVLV PETRVS . S. PAVLVS
Reference: B.366; CNI 105; Munt. 25. Scarce. VF. Reference: Biaggi 2179. XF.
Estimation CHF 250. Price realized: 275 CHF (approx. 207 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 150 EUR (approx. 217 U.S. Dollars as of
Paul II - 30 Aug. 1464 to 26 July 1471
Paul II (February 23, 1417 July 26, 1471), born Pietro Barbo, was Pope from 1464 until his
death in 1471.
He was born in Venice, and was a nephew of Pope Eugene IV (14311447), through his moth-
er. His adoption of the spiritual career, after having been trained as a merchant, was prompted
by his uncle's election as Pope. His consequent promotion was rapid; he became a cardinal in
1440 and gained popularity through his tender-hearted generosity.
He was elected Pope by the accessus in the first ballot, by a majority of fourteen of the nine-
teen cardinals in conclave on August 30, 1464, to succeed Pope Pius II (14581464).
Beforehand, in order to secure to the cardinals a greater share of power than they had enjoyed
under Pius II, a capitulation was subscribed by all except Ludovico Trevisan; it bound the future
pope to continue the Turkish war, but he was not to journey outside Rome without the consent
of a majority of the cardinals, nor to leave Italy without the consent of all. The maximum num-
ber of cardinals was limited to twenty-four, and any new pope was to be limited to only one
cardinal-nephew. All creations of new cardinals and advancements to certain important
benefices, were to be made only with the consent of the College of Cardinals. Upon taking
office, Paul II was to convene an ecumenical council within three years. But these terms of
subscription were modified by Paul II at his own discretion, and this action lost him the confi-
dence of the College of Cardinals. The justification for setting aside the capitulations, seen to
be under way by the Duke of Milan's ambassador as early as 21 September, lay in connecting any abridgement of the pope's
absolute monarchy in the Papal States with a consequent abridgement of his sole authority in spiritual matters. Almost from his
coronation, Paul withdrew and became inaccessible: audiences were only granted at night; even good friends waited a fortnight to
see him; his suspiciousness was widely attested.
A sore point was his abuse of the practice of creating cardinals in pectore, without publishing their names. Anxious to raise new
cardinals to increase the number who were devoted to his interests, but restricted by the terms of the capitulation, which gave the
College a voice in the creation of new members, in the winter of 1464-65 Paul created two secret cardinals both of whom died
before their names could be published. In his fourth year he created eight new cardinals (18 September, 1467); five were candi-
dates pressed by kings, placating the rulers of England, Hungary, Naples, France and Cyprus; one was the able administrator of
the Franciscans; the last two elevated his old tutor and a first cardinal-nephew. Two further cardinal-nephews were added on 21
November, 1468. In a sign of his increasing secretiveness and paranoia, he added two more cardinals secretly at the same consis-
tory, and four more at the beginning of 1471, expecting to reveal them only in his testament.
Tensions with the College of Cardinals came to the fore when in 1466, attempting to downsize redundant offices, Paul II proceeded
to annul the college of abbreviators, whose function it was to formulate papal documents; a storm of indignation arose, inasmuch
as rhetoricians and poets with humanist training, of which Paul deeply disapproved, had long been accustomed to benefiting from
employment in such positions. Bartolomeo Platina, who was one of these, wrote a threatening letter to the Pope, and was impris-
oned but later discharged. However, in 1467 Platina was again imprisoned on the charge of having participated in a conspiracy
against the Pope, and was tortured along with other abbreviators, like Filip Callimachus who fled to Poland in 1478, all of whom
had been accused of pagan views. Not unaccountably, Platina, in his Vitae pontificum, set forth an unfavorable delineation of the
character of Paul II.
Pope Paul rejected King George of Podebrady of Bohemia on the grounds that he upheld the conventions of Basel in favor of the
Utraquists. In August 1465, Paul II summoned Podebrady before his Roman tribunal, and, when the King failed to come, allied him-
self with the insurgents in Bohemia, and released the King's subjects from their oath of allegiance. In December, 1466, he pro-
nounced the ban of excommunication and sentence of deposition against Podebrady.
Just when ultimately the King's good success disposed the Pope in favor of reconciliation, Paul II died, on July 26, 1471 of a stroke
after eating some melons.
The chronicler Stefano Infessura's republican and anti-papal temper makes his diary a far from neutral though well-informed wit-
ness. But it is certain that though Paul II opposed the humanists, he was second to none in providing for popular amusements: in
1466 he permitted the horse-race that was a feature of Carnival to be run along the main street, the Via Lata, which now became
known from this annual event as the Via del Corso. He displayed an extravagant love of personal splendor that gratified his sense
of self-importance. After his death Sixtus IV and a selected group of cardinals inspected the treasure laid up against expenditures
against the Turks: they found fifty-four silver shells filled with pearls, to a value of 300,000 ducats, jewels and gold intended for
refashioning, worth another 300,000 ducats, and a magnificent diamond worth 7000 ducats, which was sent to Cardinal
d'Estouteville to cover monies he had advanced to the pontiff. The coin was not immediately found. The story of Cardinal Ammanati
that he meant to take the name Formosus II ("handsome"), but was persuaded not to, is more often repeated than the story that he
was dissuaded from Marcus, being Venetian and the Cardinal of San Marco, because it was also the war-cry of Venice.[
"However", the Catholic Encyclopedia asserts, "justice requires notice of his strict sense of equity, his reforms in the municipal
administration, and his fight against official bribery and traffic in posts of dignity."[10]
In statecraft, Paul II lacked eminence and achieved nothing of consequence for Italy. In the Papal States, however, he terminated,
in 1465, the regime of the counts of Anguillara, a house that had played a consistent anti-papal role since the plot of Stefano
Porcari and the unruly insurrection of Tiburzio di Maso in 1460.
After Paul II's death, one of his successors suggested that he should be called Maria Pietissima, "Our Lady of Pity", because he
was inclined to break into tears at times of crisis. However, some commentators have suggested that the nickname was rather due
to Paul II's propensity to enjoy dressing up in sumptuous ecclesiastical finery, though there is a possibility that the rumours of
homosexuality may have been introduced by critics to undermine his reputation.

Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Obv.: PAVLVS PP - SECVNDV An Coat of arms topped by papal Obv.: PAVLVS PP - SECVNDVS An Coat of arms topped by papal
tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. tiara over crossed keys.
Rev.: Christ standing to left, giving keys to kneeling pope at left. . CLA . Rev.: Nimbate St. Veronica with her veil. ALMA ROMA
RE. CELOR .ACCIPE.
Reference: Fb. 20; Muntoni 7. GOLD. Very rare. Slight rim damage, VF.
Reference: Fb. 16; Muntoni 5. GOLD. Of greatest rarity. Minimally
curved. VF+ Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,900 EUR (approx. 2,912 U.S.
PAPAL COINS
Paul II., 1464-1471.
Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3,43 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS PP - SECVNDV An Coat of arms topped by papal tiara over

crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: Christ standing to left, giving keys to kneeling pope at left. . CLA . RE.
CELOR .ACCIPE.
Reference: Muntoni 9; Fr. 16. VF-XF.
Estimate CHF 750. Price realized: 1,900 CHF (approx. 1,491 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Ducato. Rome mint. 3,47 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 23 mm 3,25 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS II - PONT AN I Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: *SECVNDVS. - .PAVLVS.PP* Coat of arms topped by papal
over crossed keys; all in quadralobe. tiara over crossed keys; all in quadralobe.
Rev.: Christ standing to left, giving keys on ribbon to kneeling pope at Rev.: .S.PETRVS. - .S - . - .PAVLVS./.ROMA Nimbate Saint Peter
left. . APOSTOLVS . PETRVS with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand
frontal, next to each other.
Reference: Fb. 15 a; Muntoni 12. GOLD. Rare, VF.
Reference: CNI. 16, Muntoni 16, Friedberg 14. 3,25g. Sehr schn.
Estimate: 1,000.00 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,456
U.S. Dollars as of the auction date) Estimation: EUR 500. Price realized: 600 EUR (approx. 708 U.S.

Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Ducato. Rome mint. 25 mm 3,44 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 3,48 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS PP SECVNDVS Coat of arms topped by papal tiara Obv.: PAVLVS PP SECVNDVS Coat of arms topped by papal tiara
Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS/.ROMA Nimbate Saint Peter with key Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS/.ROMA Nimbate Saint Peter with key
and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal, and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal,
next to each other. next to each other.
Reference: CNI 16. Muntoni 16. Berman 401. Friedberg 19. Rare. VF. Reference: Fb. 19; Muntoni 16. GOLD. Rare. VF-XF.
Estimate: EUR 400. Price realized: 320 EUR (approx. 475 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,839 U.S.
Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Ducato. Rome mint. 3,45 g. Grosso. Rome mint. 28 mm 3,83 g.
Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS/.ROMA Nimbate Saint Peter with key Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS/.ROMA Nimbate St. Paul with sword and
and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal, book and Nimbate Saint Peter with key and book,stand frontal, next to
next to each other. each other.
GOLD. Rare, VF+ Reference: Muntoni 21, Berman 403. XF.
Estimate: 500 EUR. Price realized: 950 EUR (approx. 1,456 U.S. Estimate EUR 200. Price realized: 360 EUR (approx. 437 U.S. Dollars

Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Grosso. Rome mint. 1/3-Grosso. Ancona mint. 1,29 g.
Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS/.ROMA Nimbate St. Paul with sword and Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS Nimbate Saint Peter with key and book,
book and Nimbate Saint Peter with key and book,stand frontal, next to and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal, next to each
each other. other. Mintmark between saints.
Beautiful patina, VF-XF. Reference: Berman 424; CNI 92 (Rom); Muntoni 59. XF-VF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 750 EUR (approx. 1,150 U.S. Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 470 DEM (approx. 213 U.S.
Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
1/3-Grosso. Ancona mint. 1/3-Grosso. Ancona mint.
Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS Nimbate Saint Peter with key and book, Rev.: S PETRVS S PAVLVS Nimbate Saint Peter with key and book,
and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal, next to each and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, stand frontal, next to each
other. Mintmark between saints. other. Mintmark between saints.
Reference: Biaggi 50 var.; Muntoni 59. Rare, VF. Beautiful toning, VF-XF.
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 200 EUR (approx. 307 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 380 EUR (approx. 582 U.S. Dollars

Paul II., 1464-1471. Paul II., 1464-1471.
Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,51 g. Bolognino. Rome mint. 0,51 g.
Obv.: Tiara-crowned bust facing. . PAVLVS . PAPA . II. Mintmark at Obv.: Tiara-crowned bust facing. . PAVLVS . PAPA . II. Mintmark at
bottom. bottom.
Rev.: URBI in cruciform around ball. S. PETRV S. PAVLVS . Rev.: URBI in cruciform around ball. S. PETRV S. PAVLV .
Reference: Berman 411; CNI 117; Muntoni 36. VF. Reference: Munt. 36 kl. Sfr., VF.
Estimation DM 150. Price realized: 190 DEM (approx. 86 U.S. Dollars Starting Price EUR 30. Price realized: 62 EUR (approx. 91 U.S.
PAPAL COINS
Paul II., 1464-1471.
Bolognino. Ancona mint.
Obv.: **PAVLVS PP SECVNDVS ** Coat of arms topped by papal tiara over crossed
keys.
Rev.: *S*PETRVS*S*PAVLVS* (mintmark at bottom) - Busts of St. Peter and St. Paul
facing each other
Very rare! VF-XF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 2,400 EUR (approx. 3,679 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
Sixtus IV - 9 Aug.1471 to 12 Aug. 1484

Sixtus IV (July 21, 1414 August 12, 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was Pope from
1471 to 1484. He founded the Sistine Chapel where the team of artists he brought together
introduced the Early Renaissance to Rome with the first masterpiece of the city's new artis-
tic age (Michelangelo's frescoes were added in a later phase).
He was born to a modest family near Savona, Liguria, Italy: the precise town is variously
stated to be Albisola or, more often, Celle Ligure, a town near Savona in the Republic of
Genoa. He joined the Franciscan Order, an unlikely choice for a political career, and his
intellectual qualities were revealed while he was studying philosophy and theology at the
University of Pavia. He went on to lecture at many eminent Italian universities. He was
elected Minister General of the Franciscan order in 1464. In 1467, he was made a Cardinal
by Pope Paul II (14641471).
With his election to pope, Sixtus IV declared a renewed crusade against the Ottoman Turks
in Smyrna. Fund-raising for the crusade was more successful than the half-hearted
attempts to storm Smyrna, with little to show in return. Some fruitless attempts were made
in unification with the Greek Church. For the remainder of his pontificate he turned to tem-
poral issues and dynastic considerations. Sixtus continued the dispute with Louis XI of
France (14611483), who upheld the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges (1438), according to
which papal decrees needed royal assent before they could be promulgated in France. This
was a cornerstone of the privileges claimed for the Gallican Church and could never be
shifted as long as Louis XI maneuvered to replace Ferdinand I of Naples with a French prince, thus being in conflict with the papa-
cy, which as a princely strategist could not permit it.
Like a number of Popes, Sixtus IV adhered to the system of nepotism. In the fresco by Melozzo da Forl he is accompanied by his
Della Rovere and Riario nephews, not all of whom were made cardinals: the protonotary apostolic Raffaele Riario (on his right), the
future Pope Julius II (15031513) standing before him, and Girolamo Riario and Giovanni della Rovere behind the kneeling Platina,
author of the first humanist history of the Popes. His nephew Pietro Riario also benefited of his nepotism, becoming one of the rich-
est men in Rome and being entrusted of Sixtus IV's foreign policy, but died prematurely in 1474, his role passing to Giuliano della
Rovere.
The secular fortunes of the Della Rovere began when Sixtus invested his nephew Giovanni with the signoria of Senigallia and
arranged his marriage to the daughter of Federico III da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino; from the union came a line of Della Rovere
dukes of Urbino that lasted until the line expired, in 1631.
In his territorial aggrandizement of the Papal States Sixtus IV's niece's son Cardinal Raffaele Riario, for whom the Palazzo della
Cancelleria was constructed, was a leader in the 1478 failed "Pazzi conspiracy" to assassinate both Lorenzo de' Medici and his
brother and replace them in Florence with Sixtus IV's other nephew, Girolamo Riario. Francesco Salviati, archbishop of Pisa and a
main organizer of the plot, was hanged on the walls of the Florentine Palazzo della Signoria. To this Sixtus IV replied with an inter-
dict and two years' of war with Florence. He also encouraged the Venetians to attack Ferrara, which he wished to obtain for anoth-
er nephew. The angered Italian princes allied to force Sixtus IV to make peace, to his great annoyance.
As a temporal prince who constructed stout fortresses in the Papal States, Sixtus IV committed himself to Venice's aggression
against Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, inciting the Venetians to attack in 1482 in the so-called War of Ferrara. Their combined
assault was opposed by an alliance of the Sforzas of Milan, the Medicis of Florence along with the King of Naples, normally a
hereditary ally and champion of the Papacy. For refusing to desist from the very hostilities that he himself had instigated (and for
being a dangerous rival to Della Rovere dynastic ambitions in the Marche), Sixtus IV placed Venice under interdict in 1483.
Sixtus IV consented to the Spanish Inquisition and issued a bull in 1478 that established an Inquisitor in Seville, under political
pressure from Ferdinand of Aragon, who threatened to withhold military support from his kingdom of Sicily. Nevertheless, Sixtus IV
quarrelled over protocol and prerogatives of jurisdiction, was unhappy with the excesses of the Inquisition and took measures to
condemn the most flagrant abuses in 1482. In ecclesiastical affairs, Sixtus IV instituted the feast (December 8) of the Immaculate
Conception of the Virgin Mary. He formally annulled (1478) the confusedly reformist decrees of the Council of Constance.
Sixtus IV is one of several Popes suspected of being homosexual.
As a civic patron in Rome, even the anti-papal chronicler Stefano Infessura agreed that Sixtus IV should be admired. The dedicato-
ry inscription in the fresco by Melozzo da Forl in the Vatican Palace records: "You gave your city temples, streets, squares, fortifi-
cations, bridges and restored the Acqua Vergine as far as the Trevi..." In addition to restoring the aqueduct that provided Rome an
alternative to the river water that had made the city famously unhealthy, he restored or rebuilt over 30 of Rome's dilapidated
churches, among them San Vitale (1475) and Santa Maria del Popolo, and added seven new ones. The Sistine Chapel was spon-
sored by Sixtus IV, as was the Ponte Sisto, the Sistine Bridge the first new bridge across the Tiber since antiquity and the
building of Via Sistina (later named Borgo Sant'Angelo), a road leading from Castel Sant'Angelo to Saint Peter. All this was done to
facilitate the integration of the Vatican Hill and Borgo with the heart of old Rome. This was part of a broader scheme of urbaniza-
tion carried out under Sixtus IV, who swept the long-established markets from the Campidoglio in 1477 and decreed in a bull of
1480 the widening of streets and the first post-Roman paving, the removal of porticoes and other post-classical impediments to
free public passage.
At the beginning of his papacy in 1471, Sixtus IV donated several historically important Roman sculptures that founded a papal col-
lection of art that would eventually develop into the collections of the Capitoline Museums. He also refounded, enriched and
enlarged the Vatican Library. He had Regiomontanus attempt the first sanctioned reorganization of the Julian calendar and
increased the size and prestige of the papal chapel choir, bringing singers and some prominent composers (Gaspar van
Weerbeke, Marbrianus de Orto, and Bertrandus Vaqueras) to Rome from the North.
His bronze funerary monument, now in the basement Treasury of St. Peter's Basilica, like a giant casket of goldsmith's work, is by
Antonio Pollaiuolo. The top of the casket is a lifelike depiction of the pope lying in state. Around the sides are bas relief panels,
depicting with allegorical female figures the arts and sciences (Grammar, Rhetoric, Arithmetic, Geometry, Music, Painting,
Astronomy, Philosophy, and Theology). Each figure incorporates the oak tree ("rovere" in Italian) symbol of Sixtus IV. The overall
program of these panels, their beauty, complex symbolism, classical references, and arrangement relative to each other is one of
the most compelling and comprehesive illustrations of the Renaissance worldview.
In addition to being a patron of the arts, Sixtus IV was a patron of the sciences. Before becoming Pope, spent time at the then very
liberal and cosmopolitan University of Padua, which maintained considerable independence from the Church and had a very inter-
national character. As pope, he issued a papal bull allowing local bishops to give the bodies of executed criminals and unidentified
corpses to physicians and artists for dissection. It was this access to corpses which allowed the anatomist Vesalius along with
Titian's pupil Jan Stephen van Calcar to complete the revolutionary medical/anatomical text De humani corporis fabrica.
At the death of Sixtus IV, the conclave of cardinals that met to elect his successor numbered thirty-two surviving cardinals, a
greater number than at any time since the close of the twelfth century, excepting perhaps for the multiplied rival cardinalatial col-
leges of the Great Schism (13781417). Of the thirty-two, only three cardinals survived from before Pope Paul II: the two nephews
of Pope Calixtus III (14551458), Rodrigo and Luis Borgia, and the nephew of Pope Pius II (14581464), Francesco di Nanni
Todeschini de' Piccolomini. Six further cardinals survived from the pontificate of Paul II: Thomas Bourchier, Oliviero Carafa, Marco
Barbo, Jean Balue, Giovanni Battista Zeno and Giovanni Michiel. The remaining twenty-three had been made cardinals by Sixtus
IV, and the roster of the princely houses of Italy, France and Spain echoes the chronicles of Renaissance history: Giuliano della
Rovere, Stefano Nardini, Pedro Gonsalvez de Mendoza, Giovanni Battista Cybo (later Pope Innocent VIII), Giovanni Arcimboldi,
Philibert Hugonet, Giorgio da Costa, Charles de Bourbon l'ancien, Pierre de Foix le jeune, Girolamo Basso della Rovere, Gabriele
Rangoni, Pietro Foscari, Juan of Aragon, Raffaele Sansoni Riario, Domenico della Rovere, Paolo Fregoso, Giovanni Battista
Savelli, Giovanni Colonna, Giovanni Conti, Juan Moles de Margarit, Giovanni Giacomo Sclafenati, Giovanni Battista Orsini, and
Ascanio Maria Sforza-Visconti.
Sixtus IV., 1471-1484. Sixtus IV., 1471-1484.
Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 23 mm 3,38 g. Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3,36 g.
Obv.: SIXTVSPP QVARTVS Coat of arms topped with papal tiara Obv.: SIXTVSPP QVARTVS Coat of arms topped with papal tiara
over crossed keys. over crossed keys.
Rev.: oSANCTVSPE - TRVSALMAROMA S. Nimbate St. Peter fish- Rev.: oSANCTVSPE - TRVSALMAROMA S. Nimbate St. Peter fish-
ing from a boat. ing from a boat.
Reference: CNI 41. Muntoni 12 var. Berman 448. Friedberg 23. XF. Reference: Fb. 23; Muntoni 12 var. GOLD. Some rim damage, VF.
Estimate: EUR 1200. Price realized: 3,400 EUR (approx. 4,530 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 500 EUR. Price realized: 750 EUR (approx. 1,150 U.S. Dollars as
as of the auction date) of the auction date)

Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. (c.1475) 21.22 mm 3,39 g. Ducato. Rome mint. 24 mm 3,50 g.
Obv.: Arms in quatrefoil. .SIXTVS.PP*. - .*QVARTVS. Obv.: SIXTVSPP QVARTVS Coat of arms topped with papal tiara
over crossed keys.
Rev.: St. Peter in fishing boat. *.SANCTVS.PE TRVS.ALMA.ROMA.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword
Fr-23; CNI XV pl.XV,17; Berman-448. The portrayal of St. Peter in a ship and book, stand frontal S PETRUS S PAVLVS /ROMA
would later become a very standard design. Here is one of the first (and sure-
ly one of the finest), examples of this type. Well struck and a visually stun- Reference: Muntoni 5; Fr. 25. XF.
ning coin. NGC graded MS-64.
Estimate CHF 2000. Price realized: 4,000 CHF (approx. 3,410 U.S. Dollars
Estimated Value $3,000-3,500. Price realized: 5,000 USD. as of the auction date)
Obv.: SIXTVSPP QVARTVS Coat of arms topped with papal tiara Obv.: SIXTVSPP QVARTVS Coat of arms topped with papal tiara
over crossed keys. over crossed keys.
and book, stand frontal S PETRUS S PAVLVS /ROMA and book, stand frontal S PETRUS S PAVLVS /ROMA (MA ligate).
Reference: Fb. 25; Muntoni 6. GOLD. Rare. XF. Reference: Fr:25. Good XF.
Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 2,146 U.S. Dollars Estimate: EUR 1000. Price realized: 1,300 EUR (approx. 1,668 U.S. Dollars

Ducato. Rome mint. 23.89 mm. 3,50 g. Doppio grosso. Rome mint. 6,45 g.
Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv.: Capped bust of pope left. SIXTVS IIII PONT MAX VRBE REST
.SIXTVS.PP* *QVARTVS.
Rev.: Two nimbate saints fishing in boat. oNAVIS AETERNAE SALVTIS
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword
and book, stand frontal .S .PETRVS - S. - .PAVLVS. / ROMA. Reference: Berman 450; CNI 13. Some porosity. VF.
Reference: Fr-25; CNI XV, pl.23; Berman-447v.NGC graded MS-62. St. Estimation CHF 600. Price realized: 3,900 CHF (approx. 2,960 U.S. Dollars
Peter and St. Paul together is not a common design. The quality here is very as of the auction date)
special.
Estimated Value $4,000-4,500.

Obv.: Capped bust of pope left. SIXTVS IIII PONT MAX VRBE REST Obv.: Capped bust of pope left. SIXTVS IIII PONT MAX VRBE REST
Rev.: PVBLIC VTILITATI Coat of arms surmounted by keys topped with Rev.: PVBLIC VTILITATI Coat of arms surmounted by keys topped with
papal tiara; in quadralobe. papal tiara; in quadralobe.
Reference: CNI 63. Muntoni 14. Berman 451. Good VF. Reference: Muntoni 14. Rare Patina, good VF.
Estimate: EUR 800. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,632 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 300.00 EUR. Price realized: 475 EUR (approx. 570 U.S. Dollars as

Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
.SIXTVS.PP* *QVARTVS. .SIXTVS.PP* *QVARTVS.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key
and book, stand frontal S. - .PAVLVS S .PETRVS -. / ROMA. and book, stand frontal S. - .PAVLVS S .PETRVS -. / ROMA.
Reference: Muntoni 16. Good XF. Reference: Muntoni 16. Beautiful Patina, VF.
Estimate: 125,00 EUR. Price realized: 170 EUR (approx. 188 U.S. Dollars as Schtzpreis: 125.00 EUR. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 504 U.S. Dollars
of the auction date) as of the auction date)
Grosso. Rome mint. 3,80 g. Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
Reference: Berman 452; CNI 87; Muntoni 16. XF. Reference: Muntoni 16. VF +
Estimation DM 350. Price realized: 700 DEM (approx. 318 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 564 U.S. Dollars as of
of the auction date) the auction date)

Obv: Arms in quatrefoiL surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
Reference: Munt:17, some rim damage, good XF. Reference: Muntoni I pg. 81, 17 var.; Serafini pg. 141, 42; CNI XV pg. 296,
89; Berman 452. Toned, good VF.
the auction date) Estimate $300. Price realized: 300 USD.
Grosso. Rome mint. 3,79 g. Grosso. 1475. Rome mint. 3,35 g.
Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv: surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. .SIXTVS.PP IIII AN IV
.SIXTVS.PP* *QVARTVS. IVBILEI
Reference: Muntoni I pg. 81, 18; Berman 452. Good VF. Reference: Berman 453; CNI 21; Muntoni 24. VF. Holy Year issue.
Estimate $250. Price realized: 185 USD. Estimation DM 350. Price realized: 440 DEM (approx. 200 U.S. Dollars as

Obv.: Capped bust of pope left. SIXTVS IIII PONT MAX VRBE REST Obv: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
.SIXTVS.PP* *QVARTVS.
Rev.: PVBLIC VTILITATI Coat of arms surmounted by keys topped with
papal tiara; in quadralobe. Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key
and book, stand frontal S. - .PAVLVS S .PETRVS -. / ROMA.
Very rare. Dark toning, VF-XF.
Small scratches, VF+
as of the auction date) Estimate: 150 EUR. Price realized: 360 EUR (approx. 552 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus IV., 1471-1484.
Bolognino. Viterbo mint. . 0,72 g.
Obv.: Arms in quatrefoil surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.

SIXTVS PP IIII
Rev.: Nimbate St. Laurence facing, holding martyrs palm branch, standing
over grille. S LAVREN-D VITERB
Reference: Munt., 63; Berman, 480. Rare. Beautiful patina. EF.
Estimate: EUR 1.200. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,269 U.S. Dollars
Innocent VIII - 29 Aug. 1484 to 25 July 1492

Pope Innocent VIII (1432 July 25, 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was Pope from
1484 until his death.
Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo) was born at Genoa of Greek extraction, the son of Aran Cybo who
under Pope Calixtus III (145558) had been a senator at Rome. His early years were spent at the
Neapolitan court, and subsequently he went to Padua and Rome for his education. In Rome he
became a priest in the retinue of cardinal Calandnini, half-brother to Pope Nicholas V (144755); the
influence of his friends procured for him, from Pope Paul II (146471) the bishopric of Savona, and in
1473, with the support of Giuliano Della Rovere, later Pope Julius II, he was made cardinal by Pope
Sixtus IV (147184), whom he succeeded on August 29, 1484 as Pope Innocent VIII.
The conclave was riven with faction, while gangs rioted in the streets. Cardinal Giuliano did not have sufficient votes at the con-
clave to be elected, so he turned his energies towards the election of Cybo, whom he was confident that he could control.
Shortly after his coronation Innocent VIII addressed a fruitless summons to Christendom to unite in a crusade against the infidels;
the amount of his own zeal may in some degree be estimated from the fact that in 1489, in consideration of a yearly stipend of
40,000 ducats and a gift of the Holy Lance, he consented to favour Bayazid II (14811512) by detaining the Sultan's fugitive broth-
er Cem in close confinement in the Vatican.
Innocent VIII, in his papal bull Summis desiderantes (5 December, 1484) instigated severe measures against magicians and witch-
es in Germany. In 1487, he confirmed Tomas de Torquemada as grand inquisitor of Spain; he was a strong supporter of the
Spanish Inquisition; he also urged a crusade against the Waldensians, offering plenary indulgence to all who should engage in it.
In 1486, he prohibited, on pain of severe ecclesiastical censures, the reading of the nine hundred propositions of Pico Mirandola.
In Rome he built for summer use the Belvedere of the Vatican, on an unarticulated slope above the Vatican Palace, which his suc-
cessor would turn into the Cortile del Belvedere. In season he hunted at Castello della Magliana, which he enlarged. Invariably
short of money, he institutionalized simony at the papal court, creating new titles of offices that were discreetly auctioned.
In 1489, Ferdinand I of Naples having repeatedly refused to pay the tariff for his investiture, and a shaky peace of 1486 having
failed, Innocent found reason to excommunicate Ferdinand and invite Charles VIII of France to come to Italy with an army and
take possession of the Kingdom of Naples.The conflict was not ended until 1494, after Innocent's death.
An important event that coincided with his pontificate was the fall of Granada in January 1492, which was celebrated in the Vatican
with great rejoicings. The Pope was sent a hundred fine Moorish slaves, whom he distributed among the Curia and to friends, and
granted Ferdinand II of Aragon the epithet "Catholic Majesty."
Innocent VIII died on July 25, 1492, leaving behind him numerous children, of whom only two were publicly acknowledged, the
others presented in the usual way as nephews (Octo nocens pueros genuit, totidemque puellas; Hunc merito poterit dicere Roma
patrem "The wicked man begat eight boys, and just as many girls, so that Rome might justly call him Father"), "towards whom
his nepotism had been as lavish as it was shameless" (Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911). He married his elder son Franceschetto to
Maddalena de' Medici, the natural daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici, who in return obtained the cardinal's hat for his thirteen-year-
old son Giovanni, later Pope Leo X. Savonarola chastised him for his worldly ambitions. The unsympathetic Roman chronicler
Stefano Infessura provides many lively details, among them the apparent attempt to revive Innocent VIII on his deathbed by blood
transfusions from three young male children (who died as well in the process).
Innocent VIII., 1484-1492. Innocent VIII., 1484-1492.
Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3,41 g. Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3,37 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, all in qua- Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, all in qua-
tralobe. o INNOCENTIVS PP VIII o tralobe. o INNOCENTIVS PP VIII o
Rev. Nimbate St. Peter fishing from boat, looking to left. o SANCTVS Rev. Nimbate St. Peter fishing from boat, looking to left. o SANCTVS
PETRVS o oALMA o ROMA PETRVS o oALMA o ROMA
Reference: Fr:26. VF+ About XF.
Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 560 EUR (approx. 718 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,533 U.S. Dollars

Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 21.62 mm 3,40 g. Ducato. Avignon mint. 23 mm 3,44 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, all in qua- Obv.: +INOCECIV PP OCTAVS
tralobe. INNOCENTIVS PP VIII
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter standing frontal with key and book. +S PETRVS
Rev. Nimbate St. Peter fishing from boat, looking to left. SANCTVS AVIGLIONIS
PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Muntoni 19, F. 39. Very rare, VF.
Reference: Fr-26; CNI XV, pl.XVI,7; Berman-497. NGC graded MS-63.
Estimate: EUR 3000.
Estimated Value $2,000-2,500. Price realized: 2,700 USD.
1/2-Ducato. Avignon mint. 23 mm 1,41 g. Grosso. Rome mint. 2,56 g.
Obv.: INOCENCIUS PP OCTAVVS around papal tiara. Obv.: INNOCENTIVS PP VIII Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
under papal tiara, all in quatralobe.
Rev.: Crossed keys with papal tiara above. S PETRVS AV....NIS
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key
Reference: Unpublished. - Ber. manque cf. 515 Extremely rare. - Munt. and book stand frontal, side by side. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA
manque cf. 20
Reference: Munt., 6; Berman, 498.VF - EF
Estimate: 7.000 / 10.000. Price realized: 7,250 EUR (approx. 9,220 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 350. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 352 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)

Grosso. Rome mint. 2,57 g. 1/2 Carlino. Avignon mint. 1,37 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys under papal tiara, all in qua- Obv.: Tiara-crowned pope enthroned facing, with right hand raised in bless-
tralobe. ing, cross staff in left hand. INNOCENTIVS PP OCTAVV
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key Rev.: Long footed cross; in each angle crossed keys. SANCTVS (n retro-
and book stand frontal, side by side. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA grade) PETRVS
Reference: Muntoni 25. Rare, Fine Patina, VF.

Innocenz VIII., 1484-1492.
Grosso o. J., Rom. 2,57 g. Mit Mitra belegtes Wappen in Vierpa//St. Paulus Schtzpreis: 300.00 EUR. Price realized: 525 EUR (approx. 630 U.S.
mit Schwert und Buch und St. Petrus mit Schlssel und Buch stehen einan- Dollars as of the auction date)
der gegenber. Muntoni 16. Sehr schn
Schtzpreis: 75.00 EUR. Price realized: 140 EUR (approx. 168 U.S. Dollars
PAPAL COINS
Innocent VIII., 1484-1492.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in circle.
INNOCENTIVS PP VIII
Rev.: St. Peter fishing from boat, facing to left. S PETRVS MARCEVA
(mintmark)
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in circle.
INNOCENTIVS PP VIII
Rev.: St. Peter fishing from boat, facing to left. S PETRVS MARCEVA
(mintmark)
Reference:. Muntoni 15, Biaggi -. Nice patina!
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Quattrino. Rome mint.
Obv.: INNOCENTIVS PP VIII Coat of arms over crossed keys, surmounted

by papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate saints Peter and Paul seated at table. S PETRVS S. PAVLVS
ALM ROM
Somewhat corroded, VF.
the auction date)
Alexander VI - 11 Aug. 1492 to 18 Aug. 1503
Pope Alexander VI (1 January 1431 18 August 1503), born Roderic
Llanol, later Roderic de Borja y Borja (Italian: Borgia) was Pope
from 1492 to 1503. He is the most controversial of the secular popes
of the Renaissance, and his surname (Italianized as Borgia) became
a byword for the debased standards of the papacy of that era.
Roderic Llanol was born at Xativa, Valencia, in what is now Spain.

His parents were Jofr Llanol y Escriv (died bef. 24 March 1437)
and his wife and relative Isabel de Borja (y Llanol?) (died 19
October 1468). His family name is written Llanol in Catalan and
Lanzol in Castilian. Roderic assumed his mother's family name of
Borja on the elevation of his maternal uncle Alonso de Borja, to the
papacy as Calixtus III in 1455; she was Dame de Lugar et de La Tour
de Canali, daughter of Domingo de Borja and Francisca (Mart).
Roderic de Borja studied law at Bologna and after his uncle's elec-
tion as pope, was created successively bishop, cardinal and vice-
chancellor of the church, nepotistic appointments characteristic of the
age. He served in the Roman Curia under five popes (Calixtus III,
Pius II, Paul II, Sixtus IV and Innocent VIII) and acquired much
administrative experience, influence and wealth, though not great
power.
On the death of Pope Innocent VIII (14841492), the three likely can-
didates for the Holy See were cardinals Borgia, Ascanio Sforza and
Giuliano della Rovere. While there was never substantive proof of
simony, the rumour was that Borgia, by his great wealth, succeeded
in buying the largest number of votes, including that of Sforza, whom, popular rumour had it, he bribed with four mule-loads of sil-
ver. According to some historians, however, Borgia had no need of such an unsubtle exchange - the benefices and offices granted
Sforza for his support would be worth considerably more than four mule-loads of silver. John Burchard, the conclave's master of
ceremonies and a leading figure of the papal household under several popes, recorded in his diary that the 1492 conclave was a
particularly expensive campaign. Della Rovere was bankrolled to the cost of 200,000 gold ducats by the King of France, with
another 100,000 supplied by the Republic of Genoa. Borgia was elected on 11 August 1492, assuming the name of Alexander VI.
Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, later to become Pope Leo X, sharply criticized the election and warned of dire things to come:
Now we are in the power of a wolf, the most rapacious perhaps that this world has ever seen. And if we do not flee, he will
inevitably devour us all.
At first, Alexander's reign was marked by a strict administration of justice and an orderly method of government, in contrast to the
mismanagement of the previous pontificate, as well as by great outward splendour. But it was not long before his passion for
endowing his relatives at the church's and his neighbours' expense became manifest. Alexander VI had four children by his mis-
tress (Vannozza dei Cattani), three sons and a daughter: Giovanni, Cesare, Goffredo (or Gioffre or, in Catalan, Jofr) and Lucrezia.
Cesare, while a youth of seventeen and a student at Pisa, was made Archbishop of Valencia (hence the nickname of Valentino),
and Giovanni received the dukedom of Ganda, the Borgias' ancestral home in Spain. For the Duke of Ganda and for
Giuffr/Goffredo the Pope proposed to carve fiefs out of the papal states and the Kingdom of Naples. Among the fiefs destined for
the duke of Ganda were Cerveteri and Anguillara, lately acquired by Virginio Orsini, head of that powerful house. This policy
brought Ferdinand I, King of Naples, into conflict with Alexander, who was also opposed by Cardinal della Rovere, whose candida-
ture for the papacy had been backed by Ferdinand. Della Rovere fortified himself in his bishopric of Ostia at the Tiber's mouth as
Alexander formed a league against Naples (25 April 1493) and prepared for war.
Ferdinand allied himself with Florence, Milan, and Venice. He also appealed to Spain for help; but Spain was anxious to be on
good terms with the papacy in order to obtain the title to the newly discovered continent of America. Alexander, in the bull Inter
Caetera, 4 May 1493, divided the title between Spain and Portugal along a demarcation line. (This and other related bulls are
known collectively as the Bulls of Donation.)
Alexander VI arranged great marriages for his children. Lucrezia had been promised to the Venetian Don Gasparo da Procida, but
on her father's elevation to the papacy the engagement was cancelled and in 1493 she married Giovanni Sforza, lord of Pesaro,
the ceremony being celebrated at the Vatican Palace with unparalleled magnificence.
In spite of the splendours of the Pontifical court, the condition of Rome became every day more deplorable. The city swarmed
with Spanish adventurers, assassins, prostitutes and informers; murder and robbery were committed with impunity, and the Pope
himself cast aside all show of decorum, living a purely secular life; indulging in the chase, and arranging dancing, and stage plays.
The wild orgies that Alexander was reported to have sponsored within the papal palaces has now been found to be purely of the
imaginations of his enemies. One of his close companions was Cem, the brother of the Sultan Bayazid II (14811512), detained
as a hostage. The general outlook in Italy was of the gloomiest and the country was on the eve of foreign invasion.
Alexander VI made many alliances to secure his position. He sought help from Charles VIII of France, who was allied to Ludovico
il Moro Sforza, the de facto ruler of Milan who needed French support to legitimise his regime (14831498). As King Ferdinand I
of Naples was threatening to come to the aid of the rightful duke Gian Galeazzo the husband of his granddaughter Isabella
Alexander VI encouraged the French king in his scheme for the conquest of Naples.
But Alexander VI, always ready to seize opportunities to aggrandize his family, then adopted a double policy. Through the inter-
vention of the Spanish ambassador he made peace with Naples in July 1493 and cemented the peace by a marriage between his
son Giuffre and Doa Sancha, another granddaughter of Ferdinand I. In order to dominate the Sacred College of Cardinals more
completely, Alexander, in a move that created much scandal, created twelve new cardinals, among them his own son Cesare,
then only eighteen years old, and Alessandro Farnese (later Pope Paul III), the brother of one of the Pope's mistresses, the beau-
tiful Giulia Farnese.
On 25 January 1494 Ferdinand I died and was succeeded by his son Alfonso II (14941495). Charles VIII of France now
advanced formal claims on the kingdom, and Alexander VI authorized him to pass through Rome ostensibly on a crusade against
the Turks, without mentioning Naples. But when the French invasion became a reality he was alarmed, recognized Alfonso II as
King, and concluded an alliance with him in exchange for various fiefs for his sons (July 1494). A military response to the French
threat was set in motion: a Neapolitan army was to advance through the Romagna and attack Milan, while the fleet was to seize
Genoa; but both expeditions were badly conducted and failed, and on 8 September Charles VIII crossed the Alps and joined
Lodovico il Moro at Milan. The papal states were in turmoil, and the powerful Colonna faction seized Ostia in the name of France.
Charles VIII rapidly advanced southward, and after a short stay in Florence, set out for Rome (November 1494).
Alexander VI appealed to Ascanio Sforza for help, and even to the Sultan. He tried to collect troops and put Rome in a state of
defence, but his position was precarious. When the Orsini offered to admit the French to their castles, Alexander had no choice
but to come to terms with Charles, who on 31 December entered Rome with his troops, the cardinals of the French faction, and
Giuliano della Rovere. Alexander now feared that the king might depose him for simony and summon a council, but he won over
the bishop of Saint-Malo, who had much influence over the king, with a cardinal's hat. Alexander VI agreed to send Cesare, as
legate, to Naples with the French army, to deliver Cem to Charles VIII and to give him Civitavecchia (16 January 1495). On 28
January Charles VIII departed for Naples with Cem and Cesare, but the latter slipped away to Spoleto. Napolitan resistance col-
lapsed; Alfonso II fled and abdicated in favour of his son Ferdinand II, who also had to escape, abandoned by all, and the king-
dom was conquered with surprising ease.
A reaction against Charles VIII soon set in, for all the powers were alarmed at his success, and on 31 March 1495 a so-called
Holy League was formed between the pope, the emperor, Venice, Lodovico il Moro and Ferdinand of Spain, ostensibly against the
Turks, but in reality to expel the French from Italy. Charles VIII had himself crowned King of Naples on 12 May but a few days
later began his retreat northward. He encountered the allies at Fornovo and after a drawn battle cut his way through them and
was back in France by November. Ferdinand II was reinstated at Naples soon afterwards, with Spanish help. The expedition, if it
produced no material results, demonstrated the foolishness of the so called 'politics of equilibrium' (the Medicean doctrine of pre-
venting one of the Italian principates from overwhelming the rest and uniting them under its hegemony), since it rendered the
country unable to defend itself against the powerful nation states, France and Spain, that had forged themselves during the previ-
ous century. Alexander VI, following the general tendency of all the princes of the day to crush the great feudatories and establish
a centralized despotism, now took advantage of the defeat of the French to break the power of the Orsini and begin building him-
self an effective power base in the papal states.
Virginio Orsini, who had been captured by the Spaniards, died a prisoner at Naples, and the Pope confiscated his property; but
the rest of the clan still held out, defeating the papal troops sent against them under Guidobaldo, Duke of Urbino and Giovanni
Borgia, Duke of Gandia, at Soriano (January 1497). Peace was made through Venetian mediation, the Orsini paying 50,000
ducats in exchange for their confiscated lands, while the Duke of Urbino, whom they had captured, was left by the Pope to pay his
own ransom. The Orsini remained very powerful, and Alexander VI could count on none but his 3,000 Spaniards. His only success
had been the capture of Ostia and the submission of the Francophile cardinals Colonna and Savelli.
Then occurred the first of those ugly domestic tragedies for which the house of Borgia remains notorious. On 14 June the Duke of
Gandia, lately created Duke of Benevento, disappeared: the next day his corpse was found in the Tiber.
Alexander, overwhelmed with grief, shut himself up in Castel Sant'Angelo and then declared that the reform of the church would
be the sole object of his life henceforth a resolution he did not keep. Every effort was made to discover the assassin, and suspi-
cion fell on various highly placed people. When the rumour spread that Cesare, the Pope's second son, had done the deed, the
inquiries ceased. No conclusive evidence ever came to light about the murder, although Cesare remained the most widely sus-
pected.
Violent and vengeful, Cesare now became the most powerful man in Rome, and even his father quailed before him. Because
Alexander needed funds to carry out his various schemes, he began a series of confiscations, of which one of the victims was his
own secretary. The process was a simple one: any cardinal, nobleman or official who was known to be rich would be accused of
some offence; imprisonment and perhaps murder followed at once, and then the confiscation of his property. The least opposition
to the Borgia was punished with death.
Even in that corrupt age the debased state of the curia was a major scandal. Opponents such as the demagogic monk Girolamo
Savonarola, who appealed for a general council to confront the papal abuses, launched invectives against papal corruption.
Alexander VI, unable to get the excommunicated Savonarola into his own hands, browbeat the Florentine government into con-
demning the reformer to death (23 May 1498). The houses of Colonna and Orsini, after much fighting between themselves, allied
against the Pope, who found himself unable to maintain order in his own dominions.
In these circumstances, Alexander, feeling more than ever that he could only rely on his own kin, turned his thoughts to further
family aggrandizement. He had annulled Lucrezia's marriage to Giovanni Sforza who had responded to the suggestion that he
was impotent with the counter-claim that Alexander and Cesare indulged in incestuous relations with Lucrezia in 1497, and,
unable to arrange a union between Cesare and the daughter of King Frederick IV of Naples (who had succeeded Ferdinand II the
previous year), he induced Frederick by threats to agree to a marriage between the Duke of Bisceglie, a natural son of Alfonso II,
and Lucrezia. Cesare, after resigning his cardinalate, was sent on a mission to France at the end of the year, bearing a bull of
divorce for the new French king Louis XII, in exchange for which he obtained the duchy of Valentinois (a duchy chosen because it
was consistent with his already known nickname of Valentino), a promise of material assistance in his schemes to subjugate the
feudal princelings of papal Romagna, and a marriage to a princess of Navarre.
Alexander VI hoped that Louis XII's help would be more profitable to his house than that of Charles VIII had been. In spite of the
remonstrances of Spain and of the Sforza, he allied himself with France in January 1499 and was joined by Venice. By the
autumn Louis XII was in Italy expelling Lodovico Sforza from Milan. With French success seemingly assured, the Pope deter-
mined to deal drastically with the Romagna, which although nominally under papal rule was divided into a number of practically
independent lordships on which Venice, Milan, and Florence cast hungry eyes. Cesare, empowered by the support of the French,
proceeded to attack the turbulent cities one by one in his capacity as nominated gonfaloniere (standard bearer) of the church. But
the expulsion of the French from Milan and the return of Lodovico Sforza interrupted his conquests, and he returned to Rome
early in 1500.
This year was a jubilee year, and crowds of pilgrims flocked to the city from all parts of the world bringing money for the purchase
of indulgences, so that Alexander VI was able to furnish Cesare with funds for his enterprise. In the north the pendulum swung
back once more in favour of the French, who reoccupied Milan in April, causing the downfall of the Sforza, much to Alexander VI's
satisfaction.
In July the Duke of Bisceglie, whose existence was no longer advantageous, was murdered on Cesare's orders, leaving Lucrezia
free to contract another marriage. The Pope, ever in need of money, now created twelve new cardinals, from whom he received
120,000 ducats, and fresh conquests for Cesare were considered. A crusade was talked of, but the real object was central Italy;
and so in the autumn, Cesare, backed by France and Venice, set forth with 10,000 men to complete his interrupted business in
the Romagna.
The local despots of Romagna were duly dispossessed, and an administration was set up, which, if tyrannical and cruel, was at
least orderly and strong, and which aroused the admiration of Machiavelli. On his return to Rome in June 1501 Cesare was creat-
ed Duke of Romagna. Louis XII, having succeeded in the north, determined to conquer southern Italy as well. He concluded a
treaty with Spain for the division of the Neapolitan kingdom, which was ratified by the Pope on 25 June, Frederick being formally
deposed. While the French army proceeded to invade Naples, Alexander VI took the opportunity, with the help of the Orsini, to
reduce the Colonna to obedience. In his absence on campaign he left Lucrezia as regent, providing the remarkable spectacle of a
pope's natural daughter in charge of the Holy See. Shortly afterwards he induced Alfonso d'Este, son of the Duke of Ferrara, to
marry Lucrezia, thus establishing her as wife of the heir to one of the most important duchies in Italy (January 1502). At about this
time a Borgia of doubtful parentage was born Giovanni, described in some papal documents as Alexander VI's son and in oth-
ers as Cesare's.
As France and Spain were quarrelling over the division of Naples and the Campagna barons were quiet, Cesare set out once
more in search of conquests. In June 1502 he seized Camerino and Urbino, the news of whose capture delighted the Pope; but
his attempt to draw Florence into an alliance failed. In July, Louis XII of France again invaded Italy and was at once bombarded
with complaints from the Borgias' enemies. Alexander VI's diplomacy, however, turned the tide, and Cesare, in exchange for prom-
ising to assist the French in the south, was given a free hand in central Italy.
A danger now arose in the shape of a conspiracy on the part of the deposed despots, the Orsini, and of some of Cesare's own
condottieri. At first the papal troops were defeated and things looked black for the house of Borgia. But a promise of French help
quickly forced the confederates to come to terms. Cesare, by an act of treachery, then seized the ringleaders at Senigallia and put
Oliverotto da Fermo and Vitellozzo Vitelli to death (31 December 1502). As soon as Alexander VI heard the news he lured
Cardinal Orsini to the Vatican and cast him into a dungeon, where he died. His goods were confiscated, his aged mother turned
into the street and many other members of the clan in Rome were arrested, while Giuffre Borgia led an expedition into the
Campagna and seized their castles. Thus the two great houses of Orsini and Colonna, who had long fought for predominance in
Rome and often flouted the Pope's authority, were subjugated and the Borgias' power increased. Cesare then returned to Rome,
where his father asked him to assist Giuffre in reducing the last Orsini strongholds; this for some reason he was unwilling to do,
much to Alexander VI's annoyance; but he eventually marched out, captured Ceri and made peace with Giulio Orsini, who surren-
dered Bracciano.
Three more high personages fell victim to the Borgias' greed this year: Cardinal Michiel, who was poisoned in April 1503, J. da
Santa Croce, who had helped to seize Cardinal Orsini, and Troches or Troccio, Alexander's chamberlain and secretary; all these
murders brought immense sums to the Pope. About Cardinal Ferrari's death there is more doubt; he probably died of fever, but
Alexander VI immediately confiscated his goods anyway. The war between France and Spain for the possession of Naples
dragged on, and Alexander VI was forever intriguing, ready to ally himself with whichever power promised the most advantageous
terms at any moment. He offered to help Louis XII on condition that Sicily be given to Cesare, and then offered to help Spain in
exchange for Siena, Pisa and Bologna.
Although there is no doubt that Alexander VI liked to eliminate any cardinal and immediately confiscate their property, there is no
sufficient evidence on the methods used in these murders. It has been suggested that the family used their favorite poison
Cantarella, an arsenic variation, which was offered to their poor victim in a form of drink with an innovative nickname, the 'liquor of
succession'. Since raw forms of arsenic, known at that time, were not immediately fatal, Alexander VI must had invented a method
for preparation of that substance, for which no information exists. The famous cup of Borgia, a golden cup with a hidden area stor-
ing the poison so it could be mixed with the wine, is often mentioned as the family's favorite murdering method, and it has been
the base for many legendary and science fiction stories, including Agatha Christie's short story The Apples of Hesperides pub-
lished in the 1947 collection The Labours of Hercules.
Burchard recorded the events that surrounded the death of the Pope. Cesare was preparing for another expedition in August 1503
when, after he and Alexander had dined with Cardinal Adriano da Corneto on August 6th, they were taken ill with fever. Cesare
had eventually recovered, but Alexander VI was too old to have any chance. According to Burchard, Alexander VI's stomach
became swollen and turned to liquid, while his face became wine-coloured and his skin began to peel off. Finally his stomach and
bowels bled profusely. After more than a week of intestinal bleeding and convulsive fevers, and after accepting last rites and mak-
ing a confession, the despairing Alexander VI expired on 18 August 1503 at the age of 72. He is said to have uttered the last
words "Wait a minute" before expiring.
His death was followed by scenes of wild disorder, and Cesare, too ill to attend to the business himself, sent Don Michelotto, his
chief bravo, to seize the Pope's treasures before the death was publicly announced. When the body was exhibited to the people
the next day it was in a shocking state of decomposition. Writing in his Liber Notarum, Burchard elaborates: "The face was very
dark, the colour of a dirty rag or a mulberry, and was covered all over with bruise-coloured marks. The nose was swollen; the
tongue had bent over in the mouth, completely double, and was pushing out the lips which were, themselves, swollen. The mouth
was open and so ghastly that people who saw it said they had never seen anything like it before." It has been suggested that, hav-
ing taken into account the unusual level of decomposition, Alexander VI was accidentally poisoned to death by his son with
Cantarella (which was prepared to eliminate Cardinal Adriano), although some commentaries (including the Encyclopdia
Britannica) doubt these stories and attribute Alexander's death to malaria, at that time prevalent in Rome, or to another such pesti-
lence. The ambassador of Ferrara wrote to Duke Ercole that it was no wonder the pope and the duke were sick because nearly
everyone in Rome was ill as a consequence of bad air ("per la mala condictione de aere").
Burchard described how the Pope's mouth foamed like a kettle over a fire and how the body began to swell so much that it
became as wide as it was long. The Venetian ambassador reported that Alexander VI's body was "the ugliest, most monstrous and
horrible dead body that was ever seen, without any form or likeness of humanity". Finally the body began to release sulphurous
gasses from every orifice. Burchard records that he had to jump on the body to jam it into the undersized coffin and covered it with
an old carpet, the only surviving furnishing in the room.
Such was Alexander VI's unpopularity that the priests of St. Peter's Basilica refused to accept the body for burial until forced to do
so by papal staff. Only four prelates attended the Requiem Mass. Alexander's successor on the Throne of St. Peter, Francesco
Todeschini-Piccolomini, who assumed the name of Pope Pius III (1503), forbade the saying of a Mass for the repose of Alexander
VI's soul, saying, "It is blasphemous to pray for the damned". After a short stay, the body was removed from the crypts of St.
Peter's and installed in a less well-known church, the Spanish national church of Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli.
Alexander gave away the temporal estates of the papacy to his children as though they belonged to him. The secularization of the
church was carried to a pitch never before dreamed of, and it was clear to all Italy that he regarded the papacy as an instrument
of worldly schemes with no thought of its religious aspect. During his pontificate the church was brought to its lowest level of
degradation. The condition of his subjects was deplorable, and if Cesare's rule in Romagna was an improvement on that of the
local tyrants, the people of Rome have seldom been more oppressed than under the Borgia.
Alexander VI has become almost a mythical character, and countless legends and traditions are attached to his name. Alexander
was not the only figure responsible for the general unrest in Italy or for the foreign invasions, but he was ever ready to profit by
them. Even if the stories of his murders (including the rumor that his first murder was at the age of 12), poisonings and immorali-
ties are not all true, there is no doubt that his greed for money and his essentially vicious nature led him to commit a great number
of crimes. For many of his misdeeds his son Cesare was as guilty as his father as well.
The one pleasing aspect of his life is his patronage of the arts, and in his days a new architectural era was initiated in Rome with
the coming of Bramante. Raphael, Michelangelo and Pinturicchio all worked for him, and a curious contrast, characteristic of the
age, is afforded by the fact that a family so steeped in vice and crime could take pleasure in the most exquisite works of art.[8]
Alexander VI, allegedly a marrano according to papal rival Giuliano della Rovere [9], distinguished himself by his relatively benign
treatment of Jews. After the 1492 expulsion of Jews from Spain, some 9,000 famished Iberian Jews arrived at the borders of the
Papal States. Alexander welcomed them into Rome, declaring that they were "permitted to lead their life, free from interference
from Christians, to continue in their own rites, to gain wealth, and to enjoy many other privileges." He similarly allowed the immi-
gration of Jews expelled from Portugal in 1497 and from Provence in 1498. [10]
It has been noted that the crimes of Alexander VI are similar in nature to those of other Renaissance princes, with the one excep-
tion being his position in the Church. As De Maistre said in his work Du Pape, "The latter are forgiven nothing, because everything
is expected from them, wherefore the vices lightly passed over in a Louis XIV become most offensive and scandalous in an
Alexander VI."
Of Alexander's many mistresses the one for whom his passion lasted longest was a certain Vannozza (Giovanna) dei Cattani,
born in 1442, and wife of three successive husbands. The connection began in 1470, and she bore him four children whom he
openly acknowledged as his own: Giovanni, afterwards duke of Gandia (born 1474), Cesare (born 1476), Lucrezia (born 1480),
and Goffredo or Giuffre (born 1481 or 1482). His other children Girolamo, Isabella and Pier Luigi were of uncertain parentage.
Before his elevation to the papacy Cardinal Borgia's passion for Vannozza somewhat diminished, and she subsequently led a very
retired life. Her place in his affections was filled by the beautiful Giulia Farnese (Giulia Bella), wife of an Orsini, but his love for his
children by Vannozza remained as strong as ever and proved, indeed, the determining factor of his whole career. He lavished vast
sums on them and loaded them with every honour. The atmosphere of Alexander's household is typified by the fact that his
daughter Lucrezia lived with his mistress Giulia, who bore him a daughter, Laura, in 1492.
He is the ancestor of virtually all Royal Houses of Europe, mainly the Southern and Western ones, for being the ancestor of Doa
Luisa de Guzmn, wife of King John IV of Portugal.
PAPAL COINS
Alexander VI., 1492-1503.
2 Fiorini di camera. Rome mint. 6,36 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in

quadrilobe. .ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with a net from boat.
SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Fb. 30; Muntoni 4, Var. I. GOLD. Very rare. VF. R
Alexander VI., 1492-1503. Alexander VI., 1492-1503.
Fiorini di camera. Rome mint. 24 mm 3,30 g. Fiorini di camera. Rome mint. 3,16 g.
Obv.: ALEXANDER PP SEXTVS Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: ALEXANDER PP SEXTVS Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
keys and papal tiara; in circle. keys and papal tiara; in circle.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with a net from boat. Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with a net from boat.
SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: CNI 27. Muntoni 11. Berman 529. Friedberg 31. VF. Reference: Fb. 31; Muntoni 11. GOLD. About XF example.
Estimate: EUR 600. Price realized: 660 EUR (approx. 979 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 1,850 EUR (approx. 2,836 U.S. Dollars

Fiorini di camera. Ancona mint. 24 mm 3,34 g. Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: ALEXANDER PP SEXTVS Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in
keys and papal tiara; in circle. quadrilobe. .ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with a net from boat. Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key
SANCTVS PETRVS MARCHIA Heart-shape surmounted by cross mark in and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Rosette between them
legend at right. at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA
Reference: Fb. 297 a; Muntoni 21. GOLD. GExtremely rare. VF exmaple. Beautiful dark toning. VF+
Estimate: 2000 EUR. Price realized: 2,600 EUR (approx. 3,985 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 340 EUR (approx. 521 U.S. Dollars as of
as of the auction date) the auction date)
Grosso. Ancona mint. Grosso. Rome mint. 2.71 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in Obv.: ALEXANDER VI PONT MAX, papal arms; above crossed keys and
quadrilobe. .ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX. tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and nimbate St. Peter with key Rev.: .S.PETRVS -S.PAVLVS, Saints Peter ( holding naked sword ) and Paul
and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Mintmark between standing ( holding keys to a better world ), in exergue ROMA.
them at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /MARCI
Reference: Berman 532. About extremely fine, some striking weakness and
Rare. VF+ small flan split on edge.Above average condition for this Pope.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 750 EUR (approx. 1,150 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 165.00.

Grosso. Ancona mint. Grosso. Rome mint. 3,29 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in
quadrilobe. .ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX. quadrilobe. .ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX.
and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Mintmark between and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Rosette between them
them at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /MARCI at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA
Reference: Berman-538, Choice VF/XF. Reference: Berman 532; CNI 48; Muntoni 16. VF.
Estimate: 200-250 USD. Price realized: 200 USD. Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 330 DEM (approx. 150 U.S. Dollars as
and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Rosette between them and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Rosette between them
at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /ROMA
Reference: Muntoni 16. Attractive example, VF+ Reference:Munt., 16; Berman, 532. VF
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 320 EUR (approx. 423 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: EUR 150. Price realized: 180 EUR (approx. 227 U.S. Dollars as of

Grosso. Ancona mint. Grosso. Ancona mint. 2.65 g.
and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Mintmark between and book stand frontal, both facing slightly to center. Mintmark between
them at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /MARCI them at bottom. S PAVLVS S PETRVS /MARCI
Reference: Munt: 96, 23. XF. Reference: Muntoni I pg. 96, 23; Berman 538. Toned VF.
Estimate: EUR 250. Price realized: 320 EUR (approx. 406 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate $150. Price realized: 272 USD.
the auction date)
1/3 Grosso. Ancona mint. 0,97 g. Doppio quattrino. Ascoli mint.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in quadrilobe. Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. ALEXA
.ALEXANDER. .VI.PONT..MAX. VI PO MA
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter frontal, with key and book, standing over mintmark. Rev.: 2-towered church with star above. Rosette at top. DE ASCVLO
S. PETRVS MARCHIA
Rare, green patina. VF-XF.
the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Alexander VI., 1492-1503.
Cu-Quattrino. Ascoli mint. 2 Coins*
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. ALEXA VI PO MA
Rev.: 2-towered church with star above. Rosette at top. DE ASCVLO
Reference:. Berman 543; CNI 1; Muntoni 28. VF.
ANONYMOUS ISSUE - 16th CENTURY
PAPAL COINS
Anonymous Papal issues. 16th Century.
AR Carlino. Bologna mint. 1.90 g.
Obv.: Civic arms DOCET PONONIA
Rev.: St. Petronius with crozier and city model. S PETRONIVS
Reference: Muntoni IV pg. 164, 30; CNI X pg. 80, 25; Berman 762. VF,
lightly toned.
Pius III - 22 Sept. 1503 to 18 Oct.1503

Pope Pius III (May 29, 1439 October 18, 1503), born Francesco
Todeschini Piccolomini, was Pope from September 22 to October 18,
1503.
He was born in Siena, the nephew of Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini, the

future Pope Pius II, by his sister Laodamia. He was received as a boy into
the household of Aeneas Silvius, who permitted him to assume the name
and arms of the Piccolomini family (his brother Antonio being made Duke
of Amalfi during the pontificate of Pius II). Pius II appointed him in 1460,
when only 22 years of age, to the see of Siena, which he had just raised
to an archbishopric and made him a cardinal, at his first consistory, 5
March 1460. Within months he sent him as legate to the March of Ancona,
with the experienced bishop of Marsico as his counsellor. He proved stu-
dious and effective.
Cardinal Piccolomini participated in the conclave that elected Pope Paul II

(146471) in 1464 but was absent when Pope Sixtus IV (147184) was
elected in 1471. He was employed in several important legations, as by
Paul II at the Imperial diet at Regensburg/Ratisbon, and by Sixtus IV to
secure the restoration of ecclesiastical authority in Umbria. He participated
in the conclave of 1484 which elected Innocent VIII and in the conclave of 1492 which elected Alexander VI. The car-
dinal was involved in Alexander's brief-lived effort to reform the Roman curia, following the murder of his son Giovanni
Borgia (1474) in 1497.
In 1502 the Cardinal commissioned a library with access from an aisle of the Duomo di Siena, which was intended to
house the library of humanist texts assembled by his uncle, and commissioned the artist Pinturicchio to fresco its
vault and ten narrative panels along the walls depicting scenes from the life of Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini. Though
Pinturrichio labored for five years, in the event, the books never reached their splendid destination; yet the
Piccolomini Library is a monument of the High Renaissance in Siena. It gives an edited version of Pius' life, passing
over his former support of the antipope Felix V.
Amid the disturbances consequent upon the death of the Borgia Pope Alexander VI (14921503), it took the com-
bined pressures of all the ambassadors to induce Cesare Borgia to withdraw from Rome, so that an unpressured con-
clave might take place. In it, Cardinal Piccolomini was elected Pope Pius III on September 22, 1503. This selection
can be seen as a compromise between factions, Borgia and della Rovere, picking a frail cardinal with long experience
in the Curia over the kin of either Sixtus IV or Alexander VI. His coronation took place on October 8, 1503. He at once
took in hand the reform of the papal court and arrested Cesare Borgia; but after a brief pontificate of twenty-six days
he died (October 18, 1503) of an ulcer in the leg, or, as some have alleged, of poison administered at the instigation
of Pandolfo Petrucci, governor of Siena.
PAPAL COINS
Piis III, 22 Sept.-17 Oct. 1503.
AV Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 22 mm 3,36 g.
Obv.: PIVS PAPA TERTIVS Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara.
Rev.: SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimate St. Peter facing to left,
fishing with net from boat.
Reference: CNI 1 var. M 1 var. B 551. Extremeley rare. VF.
Estimate CHF 20000. Price realized: 21,500 CHF (approx. 15,892 U.S. Dollars
Julius II - 31 Oct. 1503 to 21 Feb. 1513

Pope Julius II (December 5, 1443 February 21, 1513), born Giuliano della
Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513. His reign was marked by an aggres-
sive foreign policy, ambitious building projects, and patronage for the arts.
There is disagreement about Julius' date of birth. Some sources put his
birth as late as 1453.
Giuliano della Rovere was an altar boy of Pope Sixtus IV Francesco della
Rovere (147184). He was educated among the Franciscans by his uncle,
who took him under his special charge and later sent him to a convent in La
Prouse with the purpose of obtaining knowledge of the sciences. However,
he does not appear to have joined the order of St. Francis, but rather
remained a member of the secular clergy until his elevation to bishop of
Carpentras, France, in 1471; very shortly after his uncle succeeded to the
papal chair.
He was promoted to cardinal, taking the same title formerly held by his
uncle, Cardinal of San Pietro in Vincula. With his uncle as Pope, he
obtained great influence, and he held no fewer than eight bishoprics (e.g.
Lausanne 14721476; Coutances 14761478), in addition to the archbish-
opric of Avignon.
In the capacity of papal legate he was sent to France in 1480, where he

remained four years, and acquitted himself with such ability that he soon
acquired a paramount influence in the College of Cardinals, an influence
which increased rather than diminished during the pontificate of Pope
Innocent VIII.
However, a rivalry had gradually grown up between him and Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, and on the death of Innocent VIII in 1492
Borgia was elected Pope Alexander VI (14921503). Della Rovere, jealous and angry, accused Borgia of being elected over him by
means of simony and a secret agreement with Ascanio Sforza. Della Rovere at once determined to take refuge from Borgia's wrath
at Ostia, and in a few months afterwards went to Paris, where he incited Charles VIII of France (148398) to undertake the con-
quest of Naples. Accompanying the young King on his campaign, he entered Rome along with him, and endeavoured to instigate
the convocation of a council to inquire into the conduct of the Pope with a view to his deposition; but Alexander VI, having gained a
friend in Charles VIII's minister Brionnet by offering him the position of cardinal, succeeded in defeating the machinations of his
enemy.
Alexander VI died in 1503, most likely due to malaria, though his death is often attributed to poison. Alexander VI's son, Cesare
also fell ill at the same time. Della Rovere did not support the candidature of Cardinal Piccolomini of Siena, who was (on October
8, 1503) consecrated under the name of Pope Pius III by Della Rovere, but who died 10 days afterwards. Della Rovere then suc-
ceeded by dexterous diplomacy in tricking the weakened Cesare Borgia into supporting him. He was elected as Pope Julius II to
the papal dignity by the near-unanimous vote of the cardinals (indeed, the only 3 votes he did not receive were those of Georges
D'Amboise, supposedly his main opponent and the favourite of the French monarchy, and the votes of Cardinals Carafa and
Casanova) almost certainly by means of bribery. His election only took a few hours.
Giuliano took the name of his fourth century predecessor, Julius I (337352). From the beginning, Julius II set himself with a
courage and determination rarely equalled, to rid himself of the various powers under which his temporal authority was almost
overwhelmed. By a series of complicated stratagems he first succeeded in rendering it impossible for the Borgia to retain their
power over the Papal States. He then used his influence to reconcile the two powerful Roman families of Orsini and Colonna, and,
by decrees made in their interest, he also attached to himself the remainder of the Roman nobility.
Being thus secure in Rome and the surrounding country, he next set himself to oust the Republic of Venice from Faenza, Rimini,
and the other towns and fortresses of Italy which it occupied after the death of Pope Alexander VI. In 1504, finding it impossible to
succeed with the Doge of Venice by remonstrance, he brought about a union of the conflicting interests of France and the Holy
Roman Empire (Germany), and sacrificed temporarily to some extent the independence of Italy in order to conclude with them an
offensive and defensive alliance against Venice. The combination was, however, at first little more than nominal, and was not
immediately effective in compelling the Venetians to deliver up more than a few unimportant places in the Romagna. But, by a bril-
liant campaign in 1506, Julius II succeeded in freeing Perugia and Bologna from their despots (Giampolo Baglioni and Giovanni II
Bentivoglio, respectively), and raised himself to such a height of influence as to render his friendship of prime importance both to
the King of France and the Holy Roman Emperor.
1506 (namely January 21) was also the official founding date of the Swiss Guard, in order to provide a constant corps of soldiers to
protect the Pope. Given these political struggles during Julius's papacy, it is no surprise that he was their founder.
In 1508, events so favoured the plans of Julius II that he was able to conclude the League of Cambrai with Louis XII, King of
France (14981515), Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (14931519), and Ferdinand II, King of Aragon (14791516). The League
fought against the Republic of Venice during the "War of the Holy League," also known as the "War of the League of Cambrai."
Among other things, Julius II wanted the Venetian possession of Romagna; Emperor Maximilian I wanted Friuli and Veneto; Louis
XII wanted Cremona; and Ferdinand II wanted the Apulian ports.This war was a conflict in what was collectively known as the
"Italian Wars" (14941559). In the spring of 1509, the Republic of Venice was placed under an interdict by Julius II. During the
course of the "War of the Holy League" and the "Italian Wars" in general, alliances and participants changed dramatically. For
example, in 1510 Venice and France switched places. By 1513, Venice had joined France.
The achievements of the League soon outstripped the primary intention of Julius II. By one single battle, the Battle of Agnadello
(14 May 1509), the dominion of Venice in Italy was practically lost. But, as neither the King of France nor the Holy Roman Emperor
were satisfied with merely effecting the purposes of the Pope, the latter found it necessary to enter into an arrangement with the
Venetians to defend himself from those who immediately before had been his allies against them. The Venetians on making hum-
ble submission were absolved in the beginning of 1510, and shortly afterwards France was placed under the papal ban. Attempts
to bring about a rupture between France and England proved unsuccessful. On the other hand, at a synod convened by Louis XII
at Tours in September 1510 the French bishops withdrew from the papal obedience, and resolved, with Maximilian I's cooperation,
to seek the deposition of Julius II. In November 1511, a council actually met for this object at Pisa.
Julius II thereupon entered into the "Holy League of 1511." He was now allied with Ferdinand II and the Venetians against France.
In short time, both Henry VIII, King of England (150947), and Maximilian I also joined the "Holy League of 1511."
Julius II also convened a general council (that afterwards was known as the Fifth Council of the Lateran) to be held at Rome in
1512, which, according to an oath taken on his election, he had bound himself to summon, but which had been delayed, he
affirmed, on account of the occupation of Italy by his enemies.
In 1512 the French were driven across the Alps, but it was at the cost of the occupation of Italy by the other powers, and Julius II,
though he had securely established the papal authority in the states immediately around Rome, was practically as far as ever from
realizing his dream of an independent Italian kingdom when he died of fever in February 1513.
Julius II. 1503-1513. Julius II. 1503-1513.
Doppio fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 7,05 g. Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3.35 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS. II. LIGVR. P. M. Capped bust of pope to right. Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX, arms in double quadrilobe surmounted by
crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: NAVIS. AETERNAE. SALVTIS St. Peter and St. Andrew fishing
from boat Rev.: SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA * RO(MA) in monogram, nimbate St.
Peter facing to left, fishing in boat with net.
Reference: Berman 556; CNI 3; Muntoni 4; Friedberg 36. Rare. XF.
Reference: Muntoni I pg. 101, 15 var.; Serafini pg. 160, 4 var.; CNI XV pg.
Estimation CHF 8000. Price realized: 14,500 CHF (approx. 11,007 U.S. 323, 39; Berman 561. VF. Scarce variety.

Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. Ecu dor. Avignon mint. 3.43 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX, arms in double quadrilobe surmounted by Obv.: IVLIVS PAPA SECVNDVS :T: Shield with crossed keys topped by
crossed keys and papal tiara. Trilobe marks either side orf arms. papal tiara over ribbon. Arms of Legate Georges dAmbien at right.
Rev.: SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, Rev.: Florate cross in circle. GEORGIVS LE AMBASIA CAR ET LEG A T
fishing in boat with net, nimbate St. Andrew on right in boat.
Reference: Fr:41 (France), Munt:78. VF.
Reference: Friedb. 40, Munt. 15 var. VF.
Estimate: EUR 3000. Price realized: 3,000 EUR (approx. 3,854 U.S. Dollars
Starting Price EUR 500. Price realized: 650 EUR (approx. 951 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Ducato. Bologna mint. 3,41 g. Ducato. Bologna mint. 3,43 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by
papal tiara; all in double quadrilobe. papal tiara; all in double quadrilobe.
Rev.: DOCET BONONI Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key and Rev.: DOCET BONONI Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key and
book., flanked by family and Bologna coats of arms at bottom. book., flanked by family and Bologna coats of arms at bottom.
Reference: Fr:332a. VF. Reference: Fb. 332; Muntoni 84. GOLD. Rare. VF.
Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 800 EUR (approx. 1,074 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 1.500 EUR. Price realized: 1,200 EUR (approx. 1,523 U.S. Dollars

Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by Obv.: IVLIVS PAPA II Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by papal
papal tiara; all in double quadrilobe. tiara; all in double quadrilobe.
Rev.: DOCET BONONI Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key and Rev.: DOCET BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key and
book., flanked by family and Bologna coats of arms at bottom. book., flanked by coats of arms at bottom. (Bologna and shield with letters
LIHTA.
Reference: Fb. 332; Muntoni 84. GOLD. Attractive, VF example.
Reference: Fb. 332; Muntoni 85. GOLD. Rare. VF.
as of the auction date) Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,686 U.S. Dollars
Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Arms over crossed keys, surmounted by
papal tiara; all in double quadrilobe. papal tiara; all in double quadrilobe.
Rev.: S PETRVS DE BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key Rev.: S PETRVS DE BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal with key
and book. and book.
Reference: Fb. 332 a (incorrect picture in the book); Muntoni 89 var. GOLD. Reference: Fb. 332 a (incorrect picture in the book); Muntoni 89 var. GOLD.
Rare, VF. Rare, minor rim damage, VF.
Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 850 EUR (approx. 1,303 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 800 EUR (approx. 1,226 U.S. Dollars as

Giulio. Rome mint. Giulio. Rome mint. 29 mm 3,88 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. IVLIVS II Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. IVLIVS II
PONT MAX PONT MAX
Rev.: Nimbate St.. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with key Rev.: Nimbate St.. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with key
and book, side by side, both looking to center. ALMA ROMA Fugger and book, side by side, both looking to center. ALMA ROMA Fugger
Trident mark field left. Trident mark field left.
Reference: Munt. 20. VF. Reference: Muntoni 20, CNI 58, Berman 566. Selten. Sehr schn.
Starting Price EUR 75. Price realized: 160 EUR (approx. 234 U.S. Dollars Estimate: EUR 250.
Giulio. Rome mint. 29 mm 3,44 g. Giulio. Rome mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS II PONTIFEX MAXIMVS Capped bust of Pope Julius II to Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. IVLIVS II
right. PONT MAX
Rev. Sts. Peter and Paul embracing each other; below right, Fugger symbol. Rev.: PE APLVS PAV DOC GENTIVM RO below in field. Nimbate St.
LVMINIARIA VERA FIDEI Peter with key and book and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book frontal,
looking to each other at center.
Reference: Berman 570. CNI XV, p. 324, 48. Muntoni 24. Attractively
toned. Fields lightly smoothed and with traces of corrosion, otherwise, good Muntoni 27. R Winz. Schrtlingsfehler am Rand, sehr schn +
very fine.
Schtzpreis: 400,00 EUR. Price realized: 360 EUR (approx. 413 U.S.
Estimate: CHF 750.00. Price realized: 1,200 CHF (approx. 798 U.S. Dollars Dollars as of the auction date)

Giulio. Rome mint. 3,78 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 3,78 g.
quadrilobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX quadrilobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and St. Paul with key and book Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book and nimbate St. Paul with sword
stand frontal, looking to each other at center. Rosette between their feet. S and book frontal, looking to each other at center. Rosette between them at
PAVLVS S PETRVS ROMA in exurge. feet. S PETRVS S PAVLVS ROMA in exurge.
Reference: Berman 574; CNI 103; Muntoni 30. VF. Reference: Berman 576; CNI 102; Muntoni 32. VF.
Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 450 DEM (approx. 204 U.S. Dollars as Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 450 DEM (approx. 204 U.S. Dollars as
Giulio. Ancona mint. Giulio. Ancona mint.
quadrilobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX quadrilobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and St. Paul with key and book Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and St. Paul with key and book
stand frontal, looking to each other at center. Mint mark between their feet. stand frontal, looking to each other at center. Mint mark between their feet.
S PAVLVS S PETRVS MARC in exurge. S PAVLVS S PETRVS MARC in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 59. VF. Reference: Muntoni 59. Scratches, VF.
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 250 EUR (approx. 316 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 340 EUR (approx. 450 U.S. Dollars as of

Giulio. Ancona mint. Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,92 g.
quadralobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX quadralobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and St. Paul with key and book Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book and St. Paul with key and book
stand frontal, looking to each other at center. Mint mark between their feet. stand frontal, looking to each other at center. Mint mark between their feet.
S PAVLVS S PETRVS MARC in exurge. S PAVLVS S PETRVS MARC in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 62. Fine Patina, VF/XF. Reference: Berman 591; CNI 35; Muntoni 65. VF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 400 EUR (approx. 537 U.S. Dollars as of Estimation DM 300. Price realized: 525 DEM (approx. 238 U.S. Dollars as
the auction date) of the auction date)
Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,44 g. Giulio. Bologna. mint. 4,18 g.
Obv.: Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara, in Obv.: IVLIVS II PONTIFEX MAXIMVS Capped bust of pope right, in cir-
quadralobe. IVLIVS II PONT MAX cle. Neck ornament breaks through circle into legend.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter with key and book and nimbate St. Paul with sword Rev. Enthroned St. Petronius facing, over coat of arms of Cardinal
and book frontal, looking to each other at center. Mintmark between them at Francesdo Alidosi. DOCET S P BONONIA
feet. S PETRVS S PAVLVS MARC in exurge.
Reference: Berman 605 b; CNI 54; Muntoni 96. VF.
Reference: Berman 592; CNI 27; Muntoni 68. 3,44 g. Rim damage, VF/F.
Estimation CHF 2000. Price realized: 3,000 CHF (approx. 2,277 U.S.
Estimation DM 175. Price realized: 190 DEM (approx. 86 U.S. Dollars as of Dollars as of the auction date)
the auction date)

1/2-Giulio. Rome. mint. 27 mm 1/3-Giulio. Rome. mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS II PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: Haloed bust of Ss. Peter and Paul facing left. ECCE FVNDATORES
and papal tiara. RO
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking to right, holding key and Rev.: IVLIVS/LIGVR II/PONT/M over leaf design.
book; in double quadrilobe. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Muntoni 39. Rare, good VF.
Reference: Muntoni 37f, Berman 578. Slightly curved, minimal scratches.
VF. Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 180 EUR (approx. 216 U.S. Dollars
the auction date)
Leo X - 9 March 1513 to 1 Dec. 1521
Pope Leo X, born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici (11 December 1475 1 December
1521) was Pope from 1513 to his death. He is known primarily for the sale of indulgences
to reconstruct St. Peter's Basilica and his challenging of Martin Luther's 95 theses. He
was the second son of Lorenzo de' Medici, the most famous ruler of the Florentine
Republic, and Clarice Orsini. His cousin, Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, would later succeed
him as Pope Clement VII (152334).
For the church, he received the tonsure at the age of six and was soon loaded with rich
benefices and preferments. His father prevailed on Innocent VIII to name him cardinal-
deacon of Santa Maria in Domnica in March 1489, although he was not allowed to wear
the insignia or share in the deliberations of the college until three years later. Meanwhile
he received a careful education at Lorenzo's brilliant humanistic court under such men as
Angelo Poliziano, Pico della Mirandola, Marsilio Ficino and Bernardo Dovizio Bibbiena.
From 1489 to 1491 he studied theology and canon law at Pisa under Filippo Decio and
Bartolomeo Sozzini.
On 23 March 1492 he was formally admitted into the sacred college and took up his resi-
dence at Rome, receiving a letter of advice from his father which ranks among the wisest
of its kind. The death of Lorenzo on the following April 8, however, called the seventeen-
year-old cardinal to Florence. He participated in the conclave of 1492 which followed the death of Innocent VIII, and opposed the
election of Cardinal Borgia. He made his home with his elder brother Piero at Florence throughout the agitation of Savonarola and
the invasion of Charles VIII of France, until the uprising of the Florentines and the expulsion of the Medici in November 1494.
While Piero found refuge at Venice and Urbino, Cardinal Giovanni travelled in Germany, in the Netherlands and in France.
In May 1500 he returned to Rome, where he was received with outward cordiality by Alexander VI, and where he lived for several
years immersed in art and literature. In 1503 he welcomed the accession of Julius II to the pontificate; the death of Piero de' Medici
in the same year made Giovanni head of his family. On 1 October 1511 he was appointed papal legate of Bologna and the
Romagna, and when the Florentine republic declared in favour of the schismatic Pisans Julius II sent him against his native city at
the head of the papal army. This and other attempts to regain political control of Florence were frustrated, until a bloodless revolu-
tion permitted the return of the Medici. Giovanni's younger brother Giuliano was placed at the head of the republic, but the cardinal
actually managed the government.
At the very time of Leo's accession Louis XII of France, in alliance with Venice, was making a determined effort to regain the duchy
of Milan, and Leo, after fruitless endeavours to maintain peace, joined the league of Mechlin on 5 April 1513 with the emperor
Maximilian I, Ferdinand I of Spain and Henry VIII of England. The French and Venetians were at first successful, but were defeated
in June at the Battle of Novara. The Venetians continued the struggle until October. On 9 December the fifth Lateran council, which
had been reopened by Leo in April, ratified the peace with Louis XII and officially registered the conclusion of the Pisan schism.
While the council was engaged in planning a crusade and in considering the reform of the clergy, a new crisis occurred between
the pope and the new king of France, Francis I, an enthusiastic young prince, dominated by the ambition of recovering Milan and
the Kingdom of Naples. Leo at once formed a new league with the emperor and the king of Spain, and to ensure English support
made Thomas Wolsey a cardinal. Francis entered Italy in August and on 14 September won the battle of Marignano. The pope in
October signed an agreement binding him to withdraw his troops from Parma and Piacenza, which had been previously gained at
the expense of the duchy of Milan, on condition of French protection at Rome and Florence. The king of Spain wrote to his ambas-
sador at Rome "that His Holiness had hitherto played a double game and that all his zeal to drive the French from Italy had been
only a mask"; this reproach seemed to receive some confirmation when Leo X held a secret conference with Francis at Bologna in
December 1515. The ostensible subjects under consideration were the establishment of peace between France, Venice and the
Empire, with a view to an expedition against the Turks, and the ecclesiastical affairs of France. Precisely what was arranged is
unknown. During these two or three years of incessant political intrigue and warfare it was not to be expected that the Lateran
council should accomplish much. Its three main objectives, the peace of Christendom, the crusade (against the Turks), and the
reform of the church, could be secured only by general agreement among the powers, and either Leo or the council, or both, failed
to secure such agreement. Its most important achievements were the registration at its eleventh sitting (9 December 1516) of the
abolition of the pragmatic sanction, which the popes since Pius II had unanimously condemned, and the confirmation of the con-
cordat between Leo X and Francis I, which was destined to regulate the relations between the French Church and the Holy See
until the Revolution. Leo closed the council on 16 March 1517. It had ended the Pisan schism, ratified the censorship of books
introduced by Alexander VI and imposed tithes for a war against the Turks. It raised no voice against the primacy of the pope.
The year which marked the close of the Lateran council was also signalized by Leo's war against the duke of Urbino Francesco
Maria I della Rovere. Pope Leo was proud of his family and had practised nepotism from the outset. His cousin Giulio, who subse-
quently became pope as Clement VII, he had made the most influential man in the curia, naming him archbishop of Florence, car-
dinal and vice-chancellor of the Holy See. Leo had intended his younger brother Giuliano and his nephew Lorenzo for brilliant sec-
ular careers. He had named them Roman patricians; the latter he had placed in charge of Florence; the former, for whom he
planned to carve out a kingdom in central Italy of Parma, Piacenza, Ferrara and Urbino, he had taken with himself to Rome and
married to Filiberta of Savoy. The death of Giuliano in March 1516, however, caused the pope to transfer his ambitions to Lorenzo.
At the very time (December 1516) that peace between France, Spain, Venice and the Empire seemed to give some promise of a
Christendom united against the Turks, Leo was preparing an enterprise as unscrupulous as any of the similar exploits of Cesare
Borgia. He obtained 150,000 ducats towards the expenses of the expedition from Henry VIII of England, in return for which he
entered the imperial league of Spain and England against France.
The war lasted from February to September 1517 and ended with the expulsion of the duke and the triumph of Lorenzo; but it
revived the allegedly nefarious policy of Alexander VI, increased brigandage and anarchy in the Papal States, hindered the prepa-
rations for a crusade and wrecked the papal finances. Francesco Guicciardini reckoned the cost of the war to Leo at the prodi-
gious sum of 800,000 ducats. The new duke of Urbino was the Lorenzo de' Medici to whom Machiavelli addressed The Prince. His
marriage in March 1518 was arranged by the pope with Madeleine la Tour d'Auvergne, a royal princess of France, whose daughter
was the Catherine de' Medici celebrated in French history.
The war of Urbino was further marked by a crisis in the relations between pope and cardinals. The sacred college had allegedly
grown especially worldly and troublesome since the time of Sixtus IV, and Leo took advantage of a plot of several of its members
to poison him, not only to inflict exemplary punishments by executing one and imprisoning several others, but also to make a radi-
cal change in the college. On 3 July 1517 he published the names of thirty-one new cardinals, a number almost unprecedented in
the history of the papacy. Among the nominations were notables such as Lorenzo Campeggio, Giambattista Pallavicini, Adrian of
Utrecht (the future Pope Adrian VI), Thomas Cajetan, Cristoforo Numai and Egidio Canisio. The naming of seven members of
prominent Roman families, however, reversed the policy of his predecessor which had kept the political factions of the city out of
the curia. Other promotions were for political or family considerations or to secure money for the war against Urbino. The pope
was accused of having exaggerated the conspiracy of the cardinals for purposes of financial gain, but most of such accusations
appear to be unsubstantiated.
Leo, meanwhile, felt the need of staying the advance of the warlike Ottoman sultan, Selim I, who was threatening western Europe,
and made elaborate plans for a crusade. A truce was to be proclaimed throughout Christendom; the pope was to be the arbiter of
disputes; the emperor and the king of France were to lead the army; England, Spain and Portugal were to furnish the fleet; and the
combined forces were to be directed against Constantinople. Papal diplomacy in the interests of peace failed, however; Cardinal
Wolsey made England, not the pope, the arbiter between France and the Empire; and much of the money collected for the cru-
sade from tithes and indulgences was spent in other ways. In 1519 Hungary concluded a three years' truce with Selim I, but the
succeeding sultan, Suleyman the Magnificent, renewed the war in June 1521 and on 28 August captured the citadel of Belgrade.
The pope was greatly alarmed, and although he was then involved in war with France he sent about 30,000 ducats to the
Hungarians. Leo treated the Uniate Greeks with great loyalty, and by bull of 18 May 1521 forbade Latin clergy to celebrate mass in
Greek churches and Latin bishops to ordain Greek clergy. These provisions were later strengthened by Clement VII and Paul III
and went far to settle the chronic disputes between the Latins and Uniate Greeks.
Leo was disturbed throughout his pontificate by alleged heresy and schisms, especially the kulturkampf touched off by Martin
Luther.
The dispute between the Hebraist Johann Reuchlin and Johannes Pfefferkorn relative to the Talmud and other Jewish books, as
well as censorship of such books, was referred to the pope in September 1513. He in turn referred it to the bishops of Spires and
Worms, who gave decision in March 1514 in favour of Reuchlin. After the appeal of the inquisitor-general, Hochstraten, and the
appearance of the Epistolae obscurorum virorum, however, Leo annulled the decision (June 1520) and imposed silence on
Reuchlin. In the end he allowed the Talmud to be printed.
Against the misconduct from some servants of the church, the Augustinian monk Martin Luther posted (31 October 1517) his
famous ninety-five theses on the church door at Wittenberg, which successively escalated to a widespread revolt against the
church. Although Leo did not fully comprehend the importance of the movement, he directed (3 February 1518) the vicar-general
of the Augustinians to impose silence on the monks. On 30 May Luther sent an explanation of his theses to the pope; on 7 August
he was summoned to appear at Rome. An arrangement was effected, however, whereby that summons was cancelled, and Luther
went to Augsburg in October 1518 to meet the papal legate, Cardinal Cajetan, who was attending the imperial diet convened by
the emperor Maximilian to impose the tithes for the Turkish war and to elect a king of the Romans; but neither the arguments of
the educated cardinal, nor the dogmatic papal bull of the 9th of November requiring all Christians to believe in the pope's power to
grant indulgences, moved Luther to retract. A year of fruitless negotiation followed, during which controversy over the pamphlets of
the reformer set all Germany on fire. A papal bull of 15 June 1520, which condemned forty-one propositions extracted from
Luther's teachings, was taken to Germany by Eck in his capacity of apostolic nuncio, published by him and the legates Alexander
and Caracciolo, and burned by Luther on 10 December at Wittenberg. Leo then formally excommunicated Luther by bull of the 3
January 1521; in a brief the Pope also directed the emperor to take energetic measures against heresy.
On 26 May 1521 the emperor signed the edict of the diet of Worms, which placed Luther under the ban of the Empire; on 21 of the
same month Henry VIII of England (who was later to split from Catholicism himself) sent to Leo his book against Luther on the
seven sacraments. The pope, after careful consideration, conferred on the king of England the title "Defender of the Faith" by bull
of 11 October 1521. Neither the imperial edict nor the work of Henry VIII halted the Lutheran movement, and Luther himself, safe
in the solitude of the Wartburg, survived Leo X.
It was under Leo X also that the Protestant movement emerged in Scandinavia. The pope had repeatedly used the rich northern
benefices to reward members of the Roman curia, and towards the close of the year 1516 he sent the grasping and impolitic
Arcimboldi as papal nuncio to Denmark to collect money for St Peter's. King Christian II took advantage of the growing dissatisfac-
tion on the part of the native clergy toward the papal government, and of Arcimboldi's interference in the Swedish revolt, in order to
expel the nuncio and summon (1520) Lutheran theologians to Copenhagen. Christian approved a plan by which a formal state
church should be established in Denmark, all appeals to Rome should be abolished, and the king and diet should have final juris-
diction in ecclesiastical causes. Leo sent a new nuncio to Copenhagen (1521) in the person of the Minorite Francesco de Potentia,
who readily absolved the king and received the rich bishopric of Skara. The pope or his legate, however, took no steps to remove
abuses or otherwise reform the Scandinavian churches. (Some Scandinavian countries still have Protestant state churches.)
That Leo did not do more to check the anti-papal rebellion in Germany and Scandinavia is to be partially explained by the political
complications of the time, and by his own preoccupation with papal and Medicean politics in Italy. The death of the emperor
Maximilian in 1519 had seriously affected the situation. Leo vacillated between the powerful candidates for the succession, allow-
ing it to appear at first that he favoured Francis I while really working for the election of a minor German prince. He finally accepted
Charles V of Spain as inevitable, and the election of Charles (28 June 1519) revealed Leo's desertion of his French alliance, a step
facilitated by the death at about the same time of Lorenzo de' Medici and his French wife.
Leo was now anxious to unite Ferrara, Parma and Piacenza to the States of the Church. An attempt late in 1519 to seize Ferrara
failed, and the pope recognized the need of foreign aid. In May 1521 a treaty of alliance was signed at Rome between him and the
emperor. Milan and Genoa were to be taken from France and restored to the Empire, and Parma and Piacenza were to be given to
the Church on the expulsion of the French. The expense of enlisting 10,000 Swiss was to be borne equally by pope and emperor.
Charles took Florence and the Medici family under his protection and promised to punish all enemies of the Catholic faith. Leo
agreed to invest Charles with Naples, to crown him emperor, and to aid in a war against Venice. It was provided that England and
the Swiss might join the league. Henry VIII announced his adherence in August. Francis I had already begun war with Charles in
Navarre, and in Italy, too, the French made the first hostile movement (23 June 1521). Leo at once announced that he would
excommunicate the king of France and release his subjects from their allegiance unless Francis laid down his arms and surren-
dered Parma and Piacenza. The pope lived to hear the joyful news of the capture of Milan from the French and of the occupation
by papal troops of the long-coveted provinces (November 1521).
Several historians have suggested the likelihood that Leo may have been homosexual. In particular they have drawn upon the
account of Francesco Guicciardini (1483-1540). Writing in 1525 only a few years after Leos death, Guicciardini declared, At the
beginning of his pontificate most people deemed him very chaste; however, he was afterwards discovered to be exceedingly devot-
ed - and every day with less and less shame - to that kind of pleasure that for honour's sake may not be named. The precise
description around Leos behaviour set out by Guicciardini, suggests that contemporaries would clearly have recognised the
charge. Libellous tracts of the time again reiterated Leos predilection towards sodomy naming Count Ludovico Rangone and
Galeotto Malatesta among his lovers.
Wotherspoon and Aldrich have also drawn upon the evidence presented by Leos modern biographer, Cesare Falconi. In particular,
Falconi has used the story of the Venetian noble Marc'Antonio Flaminio (1498-1550) to illustrate Leos infatuation with younger
men. In 1514 at the age of sixteen, MarcAntonio was taken to Rome by his father. Gian Antonio had been keen to encourage the
Pope to declare a new crusade against the Turks; but instead Leo is said to have fallen in love with MarcAntonio and desired to
arrange the best education that could be offered for the time. Suspecting ulterior motives, Gian Antonio had his son sent speedily
to Bologna to study philosophy at the university, and away from the unwanted attentions of the Pope. Leo intervened, through the
office of his secretary Beroaldo, and arranged a position for MarcAntonio close to him in the papal secretariat. Falconi has
observed that the doors to a career, to which many better educated and more powerful men aspired, effortlessly opened to a 17
year old youth.
Having fallen ill of malaria, Leo X died on 1 December 1521, so suddenly that the last sacraments could not be administered; but
the contemporary suspicions of poison were unfounded. He was buried in Santa Maria sopra Minerva.
Leo was followed as Pope by Adrian VI.
Several minor events of Leo's pontificate are worthy of mention. He was particularly friendly with King Manuel I of Portugal on
account of the latter's missionary enterprises in Asia and Africa. His concordat with Florence (1516) guaranteed the free election of
the clergy in that city. His constitution of 1 March 1519 condemned the king of Spain's claim to refuse the publication of papal bulls.
He maintained close relations with Poland because of the Turkish advance and the Polish contest with the Teutonic Knights. His
bull of 1 July 1519, which regulated the discipline of the Polish Church, was later transformed into a concordat by Clement VII. Leo
showed special favours to the Jews and permitted them to erect a Hebrew printing-press at Rome. He approved the formation of
the Oratory of Divine Love, a group of pious men at Rome which later became the Theatine Order, and he canonized Francis of
Paola.
When he became Pope, Leo X is reported to have said to his brother Giuliano: "Since God has given us the papacy, let us enjoy
it." The Venetian ambassador who related this of him was not unbiased, nor was he in Rome at the time, nevertheless the phrase
illustrates fairly the Pope's pleasure-loving nature and the lack of seriousness that characterized him. And enjoy he did, traveling
around Rome at the head of a lavish parade featuring panthers, jesters, and Hanno, a white elephant.
Under his pontificate, Christianity assumed a pagan character, which, passing from art into manners, gives to this epoch a
strange complexion. Crimes for the moment disappeared, to give place to vices; but to charming vices, vices in good taste, such
as those indulged in by Alcibiades and sung by Catullus. Alexandre Dumas, pre
Leo X was also lavish in charity: retirement homes, hospitals, convents, discharged soldiers, pilgrims, poor students, exiles, crip-
ples, the sick, and the unfortunate of every description were generously remembered, and more than 6,000 ducats were annually
distributed in alms.
His extravagance offended not only people like Martin Luther, but also some cardinals, who, led by Alfonso Petrucci of Siena, plot-
ted an assassination attempt. Eventually, Pope Leo found out who these people were, and had them followed. The conspirators
died of "food poisoning." Some people argue that Leo X and his followers simply concocted the assassination charges in a money-
making scheme to collect fines from the various wealthy cardinals Leo X detested.
As patron of learning Leo X deserves a prominent place among the popes. He raised the church to a high rank as the friend of
whatever seemed to extend knowledge or to refine and embellish life. He made the capital of Christendom the center of culture.
While yet a cardinal, he had restored the church of Santa Maria in Domnica after Raphael's designs; and as pope he had San
Giovanni dei Fiorentini, on the Via Giulia, built, after designs by Jacopo Sansovino and pressed forward the work on St Peter's and
the Vatican under Raphael and Agostino Chigi.
His constitution of 5 November 1513 reformed the Roman university, which had been neglected by Julius II. He restored all its fac-
ulties, gave larger salaries to the professors, and summoned distinguished teachers from afar; and, although it never attained to
the importance of Padua or Bologna, it nevertheless possessed in 1514 a faculty (with a good reputation) of eighty-eight profes-
sors. Leo called Janus Lascaris to Rome to give instruction in Greek, and established a Greek printing-press from which the first
Greek book printed at Rome appeared in 1515. He made Raphael custodian of the classical antiquities of Rome and the vicinity.
The distinguished Latinists Pietro Bembo and Jacopo Sadoleto were papal secretaries, as well as the famous poet Bernardo
Accolti. Other poets such as Marco Girolamo Vida, Gian Giorgio Trissino and Bibbiena, writers of novelle like Matteo Bandello, and
a hundred other literati of the time were bishops, or papal scriptors or abbreviators, or in other papal employ.
Leo's lively interest in art and literature, to say nothing of his natural liberality, his alleged nepotism, his political ambitions and
necessities, and his immoderate personal luxury, exhausted within two years the hard savings of Julius II, and precipitated a finan-
cial crisis from which he never emerged and which was a direct cause of most of what, from a papal point of view, were calamities
of his pontificate. He created many new offices and sold them, a move seen by later Catholics as being "shameless". He sold car-
dinals' hats. He sold membership in the "Knights of Peter". He borrowed large sums from bankers, curials, princes and Jews. The
Venetian ambassador Gradenigo estimated the paying number of offices on Leo's death at 2,150, with a capital value of nearly
3,000,000 ducats and a yearly income of 328,000 ducats. Marino Giorgi reckoned the ordinary income of the pope for the year
1517 at about 580,000 ducats, of which 420,000 came from the States of the Church, 100,000 from annates, and 60,000 from the
composition tax instituted by Sixtus IV. These sums, together with the considerable amounts accruing from indulgences, jubilees,
and special fees, vanished as quickly as they were received. Then the pope resorted to pawning palace furniture, table plate, jew-
els, even statues of the apostles. Several banking firms and many individual creditors were ruined by the death of the pope.
In the past many conflicting estimates were made of the character and achievements of the pope during whose pontificate
Protestantism first took form. More recent studies have served to produce a reportedly fairer and more honest opinion of Leo X. A
report of the Venetian ambassador Marino Giorgi bearing date of March 1517 indicates some of his predominant characteristics:
The pope is a good-natured and extremely free-hearted man, who avoids every difficult situation and above all wants peace; he
would not undertake a war himself unless his own personal interests were involved; he loves learning; of canon law and literature
he possesses remarkable knowledge; he is, moreover, a very excellent musician.
Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
2 1/2 Ducati. Rome. mint. 29 mm 8.69 g. Fiorini di Camera. Rome nint. 3.33 g.
Obv.: LEO.X.PONTIFEX.MAXIMVS. Bust of pope facing left. Obv.: Papal tiara and Keys over arms. LEO. PAPA. - .DECIMVS.
Rev.: LVX.VERA.IN TINEBRIS.LVCET. I The Magi on horseback rid- Rev.: Nimbate Saint Peter and nimbate St. Andrew fishing from boat.
ing to left, following a comet. ROMA in exurge. Fugger trident symbol .SANCTVS. PETRVS. ALMA.ROM.
below.
Reference: Fr-46; CNI-XV pl. XIX, 7; Berman-633. NGC graded AU-
Reference: Berman 628; CNI 1; Fr. 43; Muntoni 1. Extremely rare. XF. 58.
Estimate CHF 30000. Price realized: 44,000 CHF (approx. 36,670 U.S. Estimated Value $2,500-3,000. Price realized: 2,900 USD.

Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
Fiorini di Camera. Rome mint. 3.35 g. Ducato. Ancona mint. 3.45 g.
Obv.: Papal tiara and Keys over arms. LEO. PAPA. - .DECIMVS. Obv.: LEO PAPA DECIMVS Papal tiara and Keys over arms, in
quadrilobe.
Rev.: Saint Peter fishing from boat with net, facing to left.. .SANCTVS.
PETRVS. ALMA.ROM. Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with
key and book stand frontal, both looking somewhat to center. Mintmark
Reference: Munt. 7ff. Fr. 42. VF-XF. between them at feet. PAVLVS PETRV MAR in exurge.
Estimation: CHF 2000. Price realized: 1,700 CHF (approx. 1,375 U.S. Reference: Fb. 302; Muntoni 59 var. GOLD. Extremely rare. Attractive,
Dollars as of the auction date) XF example.
Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
Ducato. Bologna mint. 3.46 g. Ducato. Bologna mint. 3.41 g.
Obv.: Papal tiara and Keys over arms. LEO PAPA DECIMVS Obv.: Coat of arms over crossed keys, Papal tiara above; in quadrilobe.
LEO PAPA DECIMVS
Rev.: DOCET BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking
slightly to left, holding key; between shield of Pope and Bologna coat of Rev.: DOCET BONONIA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking
arms. slightly to left, holding key; between shield of Pope and Bologna coat of
arms.
Reference: Munt. 100ff. Fr. 337. About XF.
Ducato o. J., Bologna. 3,41 g. Mit Mitra belegtes Wappen in Vierpa//St.
Estimation: CHF 2000. Price realized: 2,000 CHF (approx. 1,618 U.S. Petrus mit Schlssel und Buch steht v. v. zwischen den Wappenschilden
Dollars as of the auction date) Medici und Bologna. Fb. 337; Muntoni 101. GOLD. R Winz.
Druckstellen, sehr schn +
Estimate: 2.000 EUR. Price realized: 1,600 EUR (approx. 1,925 U.S.

Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
Giulio. Rome mint. 3.55 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 29 mm 3.16 g.
Obv.: Papal tiara and Keys over arms. LEO PAPA DECIMVS Obv.: Papal tiara and Keys over arms. LEO PAPA DECIMVS
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with
key and book, stand frontal, looking to each other. ALMA ROMA key and book, stand frontal, looking to each other. ALMA ROMA
Trident mark of Fuggers in field lower left. Trident mark of Fuggers in field lower left.
Reference: Berman 638. VF. Reference: CNI 61. Muntoni 21. Berman 639. Rare. VF+
Estimate: CHF 200. Price realized: 400 CHF (approx. 364 U.S. Dollars Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 950 EUR (approx. 1,410 U.S. Dollars
Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
Obv.: Faade of St. Peters Basilica; in exergue, lion crouching left. LEO Obv.: Faade of St. Peters Basilica; in exergue, lion crouching left. LEO
DECIMVS PONT MAX MA - RC in exurge. DECIMVS PONT MAX MA - RC in exurge.
Rev.: Leo, in papal regalia, kneeling right, presenting model of St. Rev.: Leo, in papal regalia, kneeling right, presenting model of St.
Peters Basilica to St. Peter seated slightly right, holding keys and Peters Basilica to St. Peter seated slightly right, holding keys and
Gospels; Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by cardinals hat in exergue. Gospels; Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by cardinals hat in exergue.
PETRE ECCE TEMPLVM TVVM PETRE ECCE TEMPLVM TVVM
Reference: Muntoni III 13; Berman 643. EF, beautifully toned. Very rare Reference: Berman 671; Munt. 71. Rare, beautiful coin!
in this condition and of great historical importance.
Estimate: $3000. Price realized: 3,750 USD. Dollars as of the auction date)

Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,67 g. Giulio. Ancona mint.
Obv.: Faade of St. Peters Basilica; in exergue, lion crouching left. LEO Obv.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with
DECIMVS PONT MAX MA - RC in exurge. key and book, over popes coat of arms, surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara. SP SP LEO X PONT M
Rev.: Leo, in papal regalia, kneeling right, presenting model of St.
Peters Basilica to St. Peter seated slightly right, holding keys and Rev.: Lion standing left, one front paw on ball; angel with wreath flying
Gospels; Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by cardinals hat in exergue. left over lion. MARC and mintmark below in exurge. VICIT LEO DE
PETRE ECCE TEMPLVM TVVM TRIBV IVDA
Reference: Muntoni 73. Very rare, VF. Reference: Muntoni 74. Very rare. VF.
Schtzpreis: 600,00 EUR. Price realized: 875 EUR (approx. 1,076 U.S. Estimate: 750 EUR. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 1,686 U.S.
Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
1/2-Giulio. Rome mint. 1,59 g. 1/2-Giulio. Ancona mint.
Obv.: Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys and papa tiara. LEO Obv.: Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys and papa tiara. LEO
PAPA DECIMVS. PAPA DECIMVS.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, in double- Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter standing frontal, looking slightly to right, with
lined quadrilobe. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA key and book; standing over coat of arms. APOSTOLIS S PETRVS
MARC below.
Reference: Berman 647; CNI 99; Muntoni 32. VF
Reference: Muntoni 81 var. Some rim damage, VF.
Estimation DM 300. Price realized: 340 DEM (approx. 154 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 500 EUR (approx. 766 U.S. Dollars as

Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
1/2-Giulio. Ancona mint. 1,63 g. 1/2-Giulio. Perugia mint.
Obv.: Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys and papa tiara, in Obv.: LEO PAPA DECIMVS Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys
quadrilobe. LEO PAPA DECIMVS. and papa tiara. Rosette legend dividers.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter standing frontal, looking slightly to right, with Rev.: Griffin rampant to left, holding arrows. Coat of arms left in field
key and book; standing over coat of arms; in ornamental circle. APOS- to edge. AVGVSTA PERVSIA
TOLIS S PETRVS MARC below.
Reference: Muntoni 145. Very rare. VF.
Reference: Berman 676; CNI 93; Muntoni 84. F.
Estimation DM 100. Price realized: 160 DEM (approx. 73 U.S. Dollars Dollars as of the auction date)
Leo X., 1513-1521. Leo X., 1513-1521.
1/4-Giulio. Rome mint. 0,91 g. Mezzo bianco (?) Bologna mint. 28 mm 3,12 g.
Obv.: LEO PAPA DECIMVS Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: Bust of pope right. LEO X PONTIFEX MAXIMVS
and papa tiara.
Rev.: Lion standing left, face frontal, holding banner. BONONIA
Rev.: Nimbate 3/4-bust of St. Peter frontal, lookign slightly to right, MATER STVDIORVM Medici arms breaks legend in field left.
holding key and book. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: CNI 42. Muntoni 111 var. I. Berman 692. Rare. VF.
Reference: Berman 650; CNI 110-131; Muntoni 35. VF.

Leo X., 1513-1521. Anonymous issue, 16th Century, time of Leo X., 1513-1521.
Cu Quattrino. Pesaro mint. Soldino. Perugia mint. ca. 1513-1549 21 mm
Obv.: Medici coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara. Obv.: Griffin left. D PERVSIA
LEO PP X
Rev.: Crossed keys over S.HERCVL A-N-V-S in cruciform.
Rev.: PI/SAV/Rx in wreath.
Reference: Muntoni 1, Berman 787. Scarce, VF. In CNI this coin is list-
Reference: Muntoni 157. Very scarece, F-VF. ed under Pope Leo X.
Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 105 EUR (approx. 125 U.S. Dollars as Estimate EUR 100. Price realized: 260 EUR (approx. 326 U.S. Dollars
Sede Vacante 1-12-1521 to 9-1-1522

Sede Vacante, 1521-1522. Sede Vacante, 1521-1522.
Giulio. Rome mint. 27 mm 3.68 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 3.73 g.
Obv.: SEDE VA - CANTE . Crossed keys surmounted by papal tiara; Obv.: SEDE VA - CANTE . Crossed keys surmounted by papal tiara;
coat of arms in exurge. coat of arms in exurge.
Rev.: S PETRVS - S PAVLVS ROMA in exurge. Nimbate St. Rev.: S PETRVS - S PAVLVS ROMA in exurge. Nimbate St.
Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book stand Peter with key and book, and nimbate St. Paul with sword and book stand
frontal; both lookign slightly to left. frontal; both lookign slightly to left.
Reference: Berman 795; Muntoni 2. Very rare. XF. Some rim damage. Reference: (CNI 11; M 3; B 795). A delightful well-toned extremely fine
piece and very rare.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: 1200. Price realized: 2,300 GBP (approx. 4,368 U.S. Dollars as
Adrian VI - 9 Jan. 1522 to 14 Sept. 1523

Pope Adrian VI (Utrecht, March 2, 1459 September 14, 1523), born Adriaan
Florenszoon Boeyens, son of Floris Boeyens, served as Pope of the Roman
Catholic Church from 1522 until his death. He was the last non-Italian pope until
John Paul II, 456 years later. He is, together with Marcellus II, one of two modern
popes to retain his baptismal name as his regnal name. He is buried in the
German national church in Rome, Santa Maria dell'Anima. He has been the only
Dutch Pope in the history of the Roman Catholic Church.
He was born under very modest circumstances in the city of Utrecht, which at
that time was capital of the bishopric of Utrecht, the Netherlands. Utrecht was at
that time part of the Holy Roman Empire. In Germany he is often considered the
7th German pope, as the Holy Roman Empire was largely inhabited by Germans,
but especially because of nationalistic purposes during the 19th century. His
nationality (not ethnicity, which was undoubtly Dutch) more accurately was that of
an 'imperial subject' rather than 'German'. Nevertheless 'German' is often used as
the demonym of the Holy Roman Empire, though not always correctly.
He was the last pope to have come from outside Italy until the election of the
Polish Pope John Paul II in 1978. Adrian VI was in addition the only pope from
the Netherlands as well as the last 'German' pope until the election of Pope
Benedict XVI.
Adrian VI was known for having attempted to launch a Catholic Reformation as a

defense against the Protestant Reformation. He was, however, ignored by his
contemporaries.
Adrian studied under the Brethren of the Common Life, either at Zwolle or Deventer. He was also a student of the Latin school
(now Gymnasium Celeanum) in Zwolle.[2] Some texts mention his name as Adrian or Adriaan Florisz, A. Florisz Boeyens, A.
Florens or any other combination. 'Florens' or 'Florisz' means 'Floriszoon' son of Floris. In fact, his father was called Floris and
his grandfather Boeyen. Therefore, he is sometimes referred to as Adriaan, son of Floris, son of Boeyen: Adriaan Florisz
Boeyens.
At the University of Louvain he pursued philosophy, theology and Canon Law, with a scholarship granted by Margaret, Duchess
of Burgundy, becoming a Doctor of Theology in 1491, dean of St. Peter's and vice-chancellor of the university. His lectures were
published, as recreated from his students' notes among those who attended them was the young Erasmus.
In 1507 he was appointed tutor to the seven-year-old Charles, grandson of the Emperor Maximilian I (1493 1519), who was to
reign as Emperor Charles V (1519 58). He was sent to Spain in 1515 on a diplomatic errand. After his arrival at the Imperial
court in Toledo, Charles V secured his succession to the see of Tortosa, and on 14 November 1516 commissioned him Inquisitor
General of Aragon. The following year, Pope Leo X (1513 21) created him a cardinal, naming him Cardinal Priest of the Basilica
of Saints John and Paul.
During the minority of Charles V, Adrian was named to serve with Francisco Cardinal Jimenez de Cisneros as co-regent of Spain.
After the death of the latter, Adrian was appointed, on 14 March 1518, General of the Reunited Inquisitions of Castile and Aragon,
in which capacity he acted until his departure for Rome on 4 August 1522 to assume his pontificate. During this period, Charles V
left for the Netherlands in 1520, making the future pope Regent of Spain, in which capacity he had to cope with the revolt of the
comuneros.
In the conclave at the death of the Medici Pope Leo X, his cousin, Cardinal Giulio de' Medici was the leading figure. With Spanish
and French cardinals in a deadlock, the absent Adrian VI was proposed and on January 9, 1522 he was elected pope by an
almost unanimous vote. The Emperor Charles V was delighted upon hearing that his tutor was elected to the papacy but soon
realized that Adrian VI was determined to reign impartially. Francis I who feared that Adrian would become a tool of the Emperor,
and had uttered threats of a schism, later relented and sent an embassy to present his homage. Fears of a Spanish Avignon
based on the strength of his relationship with the Emperor as his tutor and regent proved false. Adrian left for Italy at the earliest
possible time and made his solemn entry into Rome on 29 August. Pope Adrian VI was crowned in St. Peter's Basilica on the 31
August, at the age of sixty-three and immediately entered upon the lonely path of the reformer. The Catholic Encyclopedia char-
acterized the task that faced him:
"To extirpate inveterate abuses; to reform a court which thrived on corruption, and detested the very name of reform; to hold in
leash young and warlike princes, ready to bound at each other's throats; to stem the rising torrent of revolt in Germany; to save
Christendom from the Turks, who from Belgrade now threatened Hungary, and if Rhodes fell would be masters of the
Mediterranean-- these were herculean labours for one who was in his sixty-third year, had never seen Italy, and was sure to be
despised by the Romans as a 'barbarian'.
His program was to attack notorious abuses one by one; but in his attempt to improve the system of granting indulgences he was
hampered by his cardinals; and reducing the number of matrimonial dispensations was impossible, for the income had been
farmed out for years in advance by Leo X.
The Italians saw in him a pedantic foreign professor, blind to the beauty of classical antiquity, penuriously docking the stipends of
great artists. Musicians such as Carpentras, the composer and singer from Avignon who was master of the papal chapel under
Leo X, left Rome at this time, due to Adrian VI's indifference or outright hostility to the arts. Musical standards at the Vatican
declined significantly during his tenure. Famous 'speaking statue' Pasquino (actually a mutilated marble statue of Menelaus hold-
ing the body of Patroclus once admired by Cardinal Oliviero Carafa and located in the Piazza di Pasquino near Piazza Navona;
another Roman copy of the ancient Greek statue exists at the Loggia della Signoria in Florence) made many remarks on his
papacy, growing from funny and witty poems, to downright hurtful accusations. This process, going on from right after his election,
arrived at the point where Adrian VI declared he wanted to throw the statue into the Tiber river. The Italian poet Torquato Tasso,
however, convinced him not to.
As a peacemaker among Christian princes, whom he hoped to unite in a protective war against the Turks, he was a failure: in
August 1523 he was forced openly to ally himself with the Empire, England, Venice, etc., against France; meanwhile in 1522 the
Sultan Suleiman I (1520 66) had conquered Rhodes.
In dealing with the early stages of the Lutheran (later to be called Protestant) revolt in what is now Germany, Adrian VI did not
fully recognize the gravity of the situation. At the diet which opened in December 1522 at Nuremberg he was represented by
Francesco Chiericati, whose private instructions contain the frank admission that the whole disorder of the Church had perhaps
proceeded from the Roman Curia itself, and that there the reform should begin. However, the former professor and Inquisitor
General was stoutly opposed to doctrinal changes, and demanded that Luther be punished for heresy.
The statement in one of his works that the pope could err, privately or in a minor decree, in matters of faith (haeresim per suam
determinationem aut Decretalem assurondo) has attracted attention. Catholics claim that it was just a private opinion, not an ex
cathedra pronouncement, therefore it does not conflict with the dogma of papal infallibility, while others claim that the concept of
ex cathedra was only invented in the 19th century. Adrian VI died on 14 September 1523, after a pontificate too short to be effec-
tive.
Most of Adrian VI's official papers disappeared soon after his death. He published Quaestiones in quartum sententiarum praeser-
tim circa sacramenta (Paris, 1512, 1516, 1518, 1537; Rome, 1522), and Quaestiones quodlibeticae XII. (1st ed., Leuven, 1515).
Italian writer Luigi Malerba used the confusion among the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, which was created by Adrian's
unexpected election, as backdrop for his amusing 1995 novel, Le maschere (The Masks), about the struggle between two Roman
cardinals for a well-endowed church office.
PAPAL COINS
Adrian VI, 1522-1523.
Giulio. Rome mint. 30 mm 2,94 g.
Obv.: ADRIANVS VI PON MAX VIII Coat of arms surmounted by

crossed keys and papal tiara, in quadrilobe.
Rev.: S PAVLVS S PETRVS Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book,
and nimbate St. Peter with key and book, frontal, ROMA in exurge.
Reference: CNI 14. Muntoni 8. Berman 798. Rare. Some corrosion. VF.
PAPAL COINS
Adrian VI, 1522-1523.
Giulio. Rome. mint.
Obv.: ADRIANVS VI PON MAX VIII Coat of arms surmounted by

crossed keys and papal tiara, in quadrilobe.
Rev.: S PAVLVS S PETRVS Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book,
and nimbate St. Peter with key and book, frontal, ROMA in exurge.
Reference: Berman-798, VF details with a center crease. A very scarce

issue for the only Dutch Pope who was in office for only a short time.
Estimate: 300-400 USD. Price realized: 500 USD

Clement VII - 26 Nov. 1523 to 25 Sept.1534
Pope Clement VII (May 26, 1478 September 25, 1534),
born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, was a cardinal from 1513
to 1523 and was Pope from 1523 to 1534.
He was born in Florence one month after his father, Giuliano

de' Medici, was assassinated in the Pazzi Conspiracy.
Although his parents had not had a formal marriage, a canon
law loophole allowing for the parents to have been betrothed
per sponsalia de presenti meant that Giulio was considered
legitimate. He was thus the nephew of Lorenzo the
Magnificent, who educated him in his youth.
Giulio was made a Knight of Rhodes and Grand Prior of

Capua, and, upon the election of his cousin Giovanni de'
Medici to the pontificate as Pope Leo X (151321), he soon
became a powerful figure in Rome. Upon his cousin's acces-
sion to the papacy, Giulio became his principal minister and
confidant, especially in the maintenance of the Medici interest
at Florence as archbishop of that city. On 23 September
1513, he was made cardinal and he was consecrated on 29
September. He had the credit of being the main director of
papal policy during the whole of Leo X's pontificate.
At Leo X's death in 1521, Cardinal Medici was considered

especially papabile in the protracted conclave. Although
unable to gain the Papacy for himself or his ally Alessandro
Farnese (both preferred candidates of Emperor Charles V
(151958)), he took a leading part in determining the unex-
pected election of the short-lived Pope Adrian VI (152223),
with whom he also wielded formidable influence. Following
Adrian VI's death on 14 September 1523, Medici finally suc-
ceeded in being elected Pope Clement VII in the next conclave (November 19, 1523).
He brought to the Papal throne a high reputation for political ability, and possessed in fact all the accomplishments of a wily diplo-
mat. However, he was considered worldly and indifferent to what went on around him, including the ongoing Protestant reformation.
At his accession, Clement VII sent the Archbishop of Capua, Nikolaus Cardinal von Schnberg, to the Kings of France, Spain and
England, in order to bring the war then raging in Europe to a peace. But his attempt failed.
Francis I of France's conquest of Milan in 1524 prompted the Pope to quit the Imperial-Spanish side and to ally himself with other
Italian princes, including the Republic of Venice, and France in the January of 1525. This treaty granted the definitive acquisition of
Parma and Piacenza for the Papal States, the rule of Medici over Florence and the free passage of the French troops to Naples.
This policy in itself was sound and patriotic, but Clement VII's zeal soon cooled; by his want of foresight and unseasonable econo-
my he laid himself open to an attack from the turbulent Roman barons, which obliged him to invoke the mediation of the Emperor.
One month later, however, Francis I was crushed and imprisoned in the Battle of Pavia, and Clement VII veered back to his former
engagements with Charles V, signing an alliance with the viceroy of Naples.
But he was to change sides again when Francis I was freed after the Peace of Madrid (January 1526): the Pope entered in the
League of Cognac together with France, Venice and Francesco Sforza of Milan. Clement VII issued an invective against Charles V,
who in reply defined him a "wolf" instead of a "shepherd", menacing the summoning of a council about the Lutheran question.
The Pope's wavering politics also caused the rise of the Imperial party inside the Curia: Pompeo Cardinal Colonna's soldiers pil-
laged the Vatican City and gained control of the whole of Rome in his name. The humiliated Pope promised therefore to bring the
Papal States to the Imperial side again. But soon after, Colonna left the siege and went to Naples, not keeping his promises and
dismissing the Cardinal from his charge. From this point on, Clement VII could do nothing but follow the fate of the French party to
end.
Soon he found himself alone in Italy too, as the duke of Ferrara had sided with the Imperial army, permitting to the horde of
Landsknechts led by Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, and Georg von Frundsberg, to reach Rome without harm.
Charles of Bourbon died during the long siege, and his troops, unpaid and left without a guide, felt free to ravage Rome from May
6, 1527. The innumerable series of murders, rapes and vandalism that followed ended forever the splendours of the Renaissance
Rome. Clement VII, who had displayed no more resolution in his military than in his political conduct, was shortly afterwards (June
6) obliged to surrender himself together with the castle of Sant'Angelo, where he had taken refuge. He agreed to pay a ransom of
400,000 ducati in exchange for his life; conditions included the cession of Parma, Piacenza, Civitavecchia and Modena to the Holy
Roman Empire. (Only the last could be occupied in fact.) At the same time, Venice took advantage of his situation to capture
Cervia and Ravenna while Sigismondo Malatesta returned in Rimini.
Clement was kept as a prisoner in Castel Sant'Angelo for six months. After having bought some Imperial officers, he escaped dis-
guised as a peddler, and took shelter in Orvieto, and then in Viterbo. He came back to a depopulated and devastated Rome only
in October 1528.
Meanwhile, in Florence, Republican enemies of the Medici took advantage of the chaos to again expel the Pope's family from the
city.
In June of the following year the warring parts signed the Peace of Barcelona. The Papal States regained some cities and Charles
V agreed to restore the Medici to power in Florence. In 1530, after an eleven-month siege, the Tuscan city capitulated, and
Clement VII installed his illegitimate son Alessandro as Duke. Subsequently the Pope followed a policy of subservience to the
Emperor, endeavouring on the one hand to induce him to act with severity against the Lutherans in Germany, and on the other to
elude his demands for a general council.
One momentous consequence of this dependence on Charles V was the break with the Kingdom of England occasioned by
Clement VII's refusal in 1533 to sanction the annulment of Henry VIII of England's (150947) marriage to Catherine of Aragon.
Clement VII used various stalling tactics and delays. He paid spies to steal Henry VIII's love letters to his fiance, Anne Boleyn, to
prove that they were lovers. However, no evidence could be uncovered and even Clement VII had to grudgingly admit that all
impartial evidence from England suggested that Anne Boleyn was strong-willed but morally upright. Clement VII's procrastination
on the issue ultimately resulted in the English Parliament passing the Act of Supremacy (1534) that established the independent
Church of England.
During his half-year imprisonment in 1527, Clement VII grew a full beard as a sign of mourning for the sack of Rome. This was a
violation of Catholic canon law, which required priests to be clean-shaven; however, it had the precedent of the beard which Pope
Julius II had worn for nine months in 1511-1512 as a similar sign of mourning for the loss of the Papal city of Bologna.
Unlike Julius II, however, Clement VII kept his beard until his death in 1534. His example in wearing a beard was followed by his
successor, Pope Paul III, and indeed by twenty-four popes who followed him, down to Pope Innocent XII, who died in 1700.
Clement VII was thus the unintentional originator of a fashion that lasted well over a century.
Towards the end of his life Clement VII once more gave indications of a leaning towards a French alliance, which was prevented
by his death in September 1534. He was buried in Santa Maria sopra Minerva.
As for the arts, Pope Clement VII is remembered for having ordered, just a few days before his death, Michelangelo's painting of
The Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel.
PAPAL COINS
Clement VII, 1523-1534.
Doppio fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 6,74g.
Obv.: CLEMEN VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara.
Rev.: +SANC PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter fishing with net in boat,
facing to left. Trident mark at bottom.
Reference: Berman 829; CNI 46; Muntoni 14; Friedberg 59. XF.
Estimation CHF 3000. Price realized: 3,400 CHF (approx. 2,581 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Clement VII, 1523-1534. Clement VII, 1523-1534.
Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3,41g. Fiorino di camera. Rome mint. 3,41g.
Obv.: CLEMEN VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: CLEMEN VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
and papal tiara. and papal tiara.
Rev.: +SANC PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter fishing with net Rev.: +SANC PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter fishing with net
in boat, facing to left. F over crescent mark at bottom. in boat, facing to left. F over crescent mark at bottom.
Reference: Fb. 60; Muntoni 16 light var. GOLD. Some rim damage, but still Reference: Munt., 16 var; Berman, 830; Fr., 60. 3,38g. Rare. a. EF
XF example.
Estimate: EUR 1.500. Price realized: 2,800 EUR (approx. 3,700 U.S. Dollars
Estimate: 500.00 EUR. Price realized: 650 EUR (approx. 780 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)

Silver Ducato. Coined in Saint Castel Angelo during the Sack of Rome. Silver Ducato. Coined in Saint Castel Angelo during the Sack of Rome.
36 mm 35.50 g. 45 mm 36.81 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS.VIII (!) PONTIF MAX. Coat of arms surmounted by Obv.: CLEMENS . VII . . PONTIF . MAX Coat of arms surmounted by
crossed keys and papal tiara; in pearled circle. crossed keys and papal tiara; in pearled circle.
Rev.: S PA + S PE - ALMA ROMA Nimbate busts of St. Paul and St. Rev.: S PA + S PE - ALMA ROMA Nimbate busts of St. Paul and St.
Peter. Peter.
Reference: Berman 832; Brause-Mansfeld Tf. 29,1; Dav. 8362; Slg. Gnecchi Reference: CNI 151. Muntoni 21. Serafini IV, 224, 12a. Spaziani Testa 2 var.
4522; Muntoni 21. Extremely rare. Good F. *NOTE THE ERROR in (R6). Davenport 8326. Berman 832 var. Traina tav. CDII, 3. Martinori,
popes number. Annali, I, p/ 138, nota 2. Extremely rare. Wonderful condition considering
the mintage circumstances.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: CHF 30000. Price realized: 47,000 CHF (approx. 37,305 U.S.
PAPAL COINS
Anonymous issue under Clement VII, 1523-1534.
Ducato. Bologna mint. 3,38 g.
Obv.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking to left, holding

ket and book; flanked by coats of arms of pope and Bologna. S
PETRVS
Rev.: Rampant lion left, holding banner. ROsette below.

DOCET BONONIA
Reference: Fb. 341; Muntoni 22 (Band IV, Teil III: Anonyme

Prgungen). GOLD. Somewhat curved, VF.
Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 1,300 EUR (approx. 1,993

U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)

AR 1/4-Ducato. Rome mint. Anno Iubilaei [1525]. 9,20 g. 1/4-Ducato. Coined during the siege of Castel Angelo by Imeprial troop (1527).
8,21 g.
Obv.: The infant Jesus lying the manger between Joseph and Mary,
and with a donkey and cow looking on from behind; above, star; in Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONTI MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
exergue. HODIE SALVS FACTA EST MVNDO around; in exurge: papal tiara.
CLEMENS VII/.ANNO.IVBI/LATI.
Rev.: Q/VART/DVC over retrograde F above crescent, all in laurel wreath.
Rev.: The Pope standing right, opening the Holy Door; behind, five
pilgrims; above, St. Peter opening the door of Heaven. SVNT ET Reference: Brause-Mansfeld - (like Tf. 29, 6); Maillet - (like Suppl. Tf. 64, 3);
PORTAE CAELI APERTAE Muntoni 36. Very rare. Slight weakness in strike. VF.
Reference: Berman 835. CNI XV, p. 379, 6. Muntoni 26. Very rare. Estimate: 3.000 EUR. Price realized: 6,300 EUR (approx. 8,007 U.S. Dollars as of
Toned. Has been holed, plugged and repaired, otherwise, very fine. the auction date)
Ex Ratto, 25 October 1962, 99. As was noted in the Ratto auction cat-
alogue, virtually all known examples of this coin had at one time
been mounted and used as devotional medals.
Estimate: CHF 1500.00. Price realized: 2,900 CHF (approx. 1,929

Double Giulio. Rome mint 7,07 g. Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. 5,53 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONTIF MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed k Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONTIF MAX Bust of pope left.
eys and papal tiara.
Rev.: QVARE DUBITASTI Jesus pulling St. Peter from water.
Rev.: S PA + ST PE ALMA ROMA Nimbate busts of Sts. Paul and Peter
facing each other; below, mintmark. Reference: Berman 841. Well struck. About extremely fine. Dies cut by
Cellini.
Reference: Berman 840. CNI XV, p. 387, 71. Muntoni 40. Toned. Reverse sur-
faces corroded, otherwise, good very fine. Estimate: US$2400. Price realized: 2,000 USD
Estimate: CHF 1250.00. Price realized: 1,000 CHF (approx. 665 U.S. Dollars

Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. 5,31 g. Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. 30 mm 5,09 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONTIF MAX Bust of pope left. Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONTIF MAX Bust of pope left.
Rev.: QVARE DUBITASTI Jesus pulling St. Peter from water. Rev.: QVARE DUBITASTI Jesus pulling St. Peter from water.
Reference: Berman 841; CNI 60; Muntoni 43. Very rare. VF. Dies cut by Reference: CNI 60. Muntoni 43. Berman 841. Dies cut by Cellini.
Cellini. Minimal porosity. VF.
Estimation CHF 10000. Price realized: 14,000 CHF (approx. 10,627 U.S. Estimate: EUR 800. Price realized: 1,300 EUR (approx. 1,929 U.S. Dollars
Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. 5,36 g. Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. 5,09 g.
Reference: CNI XV pg. 386, 60; Muntoni I pg. 149, 43; Berman 841. Near Referencec: CNI XV 60; Muntoni 43; Berman 841. Good VF.
EF. Marvelous Renaissance portrait with dies engraved by Benvenuto
Cellini. Rome mint, mm: crossed hands. Estimate: $4000. Price realized: 4,600 USD.
Estimate $1500. Price realized: 3,000 USD.

Double Carlino. (1-1/2 Giulio) Rome mint. Double Carlino. Rome mint. 5,33 g.
Reference: (Ber.841; CNI.386.61; Munt.43), possibly slightly clipped, about Reference: CNI XV 60; Muntoni 43; Berman 841. Good VF, lightly toned.
very fine, rare and interesting. Dies by Benvenuto Cellini. Exquisite die workmanship. Dies engraved by Benvenuto Cellini.
Estimate 1,500-1,750. Estimate: 2000 USD. Price realized: 2,400 USD

PAPAL COINS
Giulio. Rome mint. 3,56 g.
Obv.: CLEMEN VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed

keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with
key and book, stand frontal, looking slightly to center. S PAVLUS S
PETRVS Roma in exurge. Mintmark between saints.
Reference: Berman 844; CNI 89-91; Muntoni 52. VF.

Giulio. Rome mint. 3,56 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 3,56 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: CLEMENS VII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
keys and papal tiara. keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with key Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul with sword and book, and nimbate St. Peter with key
and book, stand frontal, looking slightly to center. S PAVLUS + S PETRVS and book, stand frontal, looking slightly to center. S PAVLUS + S PETRVS
Roma in exurge. F above crescent mark between saints. Roma in exurge. F above crescent mark between saints.
Reference: Muntoni 54. VF. Reference: Muntoni I pg. 151, 54; Serafini pg. 207, 51; Berman 844. Good
VF, double struck, crease and scratch.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate $150. Price realized: 205 USD.
PAPAL COINS
3 Coins Bologna mint.
Carlino (2) Arms of Bologna/Entrhoned St. Petronius.
Billon Quattrino, Anonymous issue.
Conditions from F to VF.

Anonymous issue under Clement VII, 1523-1534. Clement VII, 1523-1534.
Carlino. Bologna mint. 1/2-Giulio. 1.81 g.
Obv.: S PETRONIVS Nimbate St. Petronius enthroned facing, holding Obv.: Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by papal tiara and crossed keys.
crozier. CLEMENS PAPA VII
Rev.: Arms of Bologna. DOCET BONONIA. Rev.: R O M A in angles of voided cross. FIAT PAX IN VIRTVTE TUA
Reference: Muntoni 25 ff. (Band IV, Teil III: Anonymous Mintage). VF. Reference: CNI XV pg. 392, 115; Muntoni I pg. 151, 59; Berman 846. VF.
Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 140 EUR (approx. 168 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimate $300. Price realized: 280 USD.
1/2-Giulio. Ancona mint. 1.77 g. Grosso. Ancona mint.
Obv.: Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by papal tiara and crossed keys. Obv.: Medici coat-of-arms surmounted by papal tiara and crossed keys.
CLEM VII P MAX [....] CLEMENS PAPA VII
Rev.: Half-bust of St. Quiriacus above coat of arms. S QVRIA ANCON Rev.: R O M A in angles of voided cross. FIAT PAX IN VIRTVTE TUA
Reference: Berman 867; CNI 22; Muntoni 94. VF. Reference: Muntoni 12 var. (Band IV, Teil III: Anonyme Prgungen). Rare,
small rim damage, good VF.
Estimation DM 300. Price realized: 1,100 DEM (approx. 499 U.S. Dollars as
of the auction date) Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 240 EUR (approx. 368 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)

Anonymous issue under Clement VII, 1523-1534. Clement VII, 1523-1534.
Grosso. Ancona mint. Billon Quattrino. Rome mint. 0,49 g.
Obv.: St. Quiriacus standing frontal, holding cross, right hand raised in Obv.: CLEMENS VII PON{.....} Coat of arms over crossed keys, papal tiara
blessing. S QVIRIACVS EPS above.
Rev.: Figure with shouldered sword riding horse backwards, moving to left. Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter standing frontal S PETRVS ALMA ROMA
D CIVITAS ANCO
Reference: Berman 855; CNI 141; Muntoni 72. VF/F.
the auction date) Estimation DM 50. Price realized: 110 DEM (approx. 50 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Paul III - 13 Oct. 1534 to 10 Nov. 1549
Pope Paul III (February 29, 1468 November 10, 1549), born
Alessandro Farnese, was Pope of the Roman Catholic Church
from 1534 to his death 1549. He also called the Council of Trent
in 1545.
Born in Canino, Latium, Italy, on the peculiar day of February 29,

Farnese was descended through his mother from the Caetani
family, which had also produced Pope Boniface VIII (12941303).
He was one of the few Popes to have fathered children before his
election, one of whom he created Duke of Parma.
Under Pope Clement VII (152334) he became Cardinal Bishop

of Ostia and dean of the College of Cardinals, and on the death
of Clement VII in 1534, was elected as Pope Paul III.
His first appointment to the cardinalate on December 18, 1534,

was to his grandsons Alessandro Farnese and Ascanio Sforza,
aged fourteen and sixteen years respectively; yet subsequent
appointments included Gasparo Contarini, Sadoleto, Reginald
Pole, and Giovanni Pietro Carafa, subsequently Pope Paul IV
(155559).
Paul III was in earnest in the matter of improving the ecclesiasti-

cal situation, and on June 2, 1536, he issued a papal bull convok-
ing a general council to sit at Mantua in 1537. But at the very
start the German Protestant estates declined to send any dele-
gates to a council in Italy, while the duke of Mantua himself set
down such large requirements that Paul III first deferred for a year and then discarded the whole project.
On May 29, 1537 Paul III promulgated the papal bull Sublimus Dei against the enslavement of the indigenous peoples of the
Americas.
In 1536, Paul III invited nine eminent prelates, distinguished by learning and piety alike, to act in committee and to report on the
reformation and rebuilding of the Church. In 1537 they turned in their celebrated Concilium de emendenda ecclesia (in J. le Plat,
Monumenta ad historiam Concilii Tridentini, ii. 596597, Leuven, 1782), exposing gross abuses in the Curia, in the church adminis-
tration and public worship; and proffering many a bold and earnest word on behalf of abolishing such abuses. This report was print-
ed not only at Rome, but at Strasburg and elsewhere.
But to the Protestants it seemed far from thorough; Martin Luther had his edition (1538) prefaced with a vignette showing the cardi-
nals cleaning the Augean stable of the Roman Church with their foxtails instead of with lusty brooms. Yet the Pope was in earnest
when he took up the problem of reform. He clearly perceived that the emperor would not rest until the problems were grappled in
earnest, and a council without prejudice to the Pope was by an unequivocal procedure that should leave no room for doubt of his
own readiness to make changes. Yet it is clear that the Concilium bore no fruit in the actual situation, and that in Rome no results
followed from the committee's recommendations.
On the other hand, serious political complications resulted. In order to vest his grandson Ottavio Farnese with the dukedom of
Camerino, Paul III forcibly wrestled the same from the duke of Urbino (1540). He also incurred virtual war with his own subjects
and vassals by the imposition of burdensome taxes. Perugia, renouncing its obedience, was besieged by Pier Luigi, and forfeited
its freedom entirely on its surrender. The burghers of Colonna were duly vanquished, and Ascanio was banished (1541). After this
the time seemed ripe for annihilating heresy.
It was not foreseen at Rome in 1540, when the Church officially recognized the young society forming about Ignatius of Loyola,
(founder of the Society of Jesus), what large results this new organization was destined to achieve; yet a deliberate and gradual
course of action against Protestantism dates from this period. The second visible stage in the process becomes marked by the
institution, or reorganization, in 1542, of the Holy Office. On another side, the Emperor was insisting that Rome should forward his
designs toward a peaceable recovery of the German Protestants. Accordingly the Pope despatched Cardinal Morone as nuncio to
Hagenau and Worms, in 1540; while, in 1541, Cardinal Contarini took part in the adjustment proceedings at the Conference of
Regensburg. It was Contarini who led to the stating of a definition in connection with the article of justification in which occurs the
famous formula "by faith alone are we justified," with which was combined, however, the Roman Catholic doctrine of good works.
At Rome, this definition was rejected in the consistory of May 27, and Luther declared that he could accept it only provided the
opposers would admit that hitherto they had taught differently from what was meant in the present instance.
The general results of the conference and the attitude of the Curia, including its rejection of Contarini's propositions, shows a defi-
nite avoidance of an understanding with the Protestants. All that could henceforth be expected of Paul III was that he would co-
operate in the violent suppression of heretics in Germany, as he had done in Italy, by creating an arm of the revived Inquisition for
their annihilation.
Yet, even now, and particularly after the Regensburg Conference had proved in vain, the Emperor did not cease to insist on con-
vening the council, the final result of his insistence being the Council of Trent, which, after several postponements, was finally
convoked by the bull Laetare Hierusalem, March 15, 1545. Meanwhile, after the peace of Crespy (September, 1544), the situation
had so shaped itself that Emperor Charles V (151956) began to put down Protestantism by force. Pending the diet of 1545 in
Worms, the emperor concluded a covenant of joint action with the papal legate, Cardinal Alessandro Farnese. Paul III was to aid
in the projected war against the German Evangelical princes and estates. The prompt acquiescence of Paul III in the war project
was probably grounded on personal motives. The moment now seemed opportune for him, since the Emperor was sufficiently
preoccupied in the German realm, to acquire for his son Pier Luigi the duchies of Parma and Piacenza. Although these belonged
to the Papal States, Paul III thought to overcome the reluctance of the Cardinals by exchanging the duchies for the less valuable
domains of Camerino and Nepi. The Emperor agreed, because of his prospective compensation to the extent of 12,000 infantry,
500 mounted troops, and considerable sums of money.
In Germany the campaign began in the west, where Protestant movements had been at work in the archbishopric of Cologne
since 1542. The Reformation was not a complete success there, because the city council and the majority of the chapter
opposed it; whereas on April 16, 1546, Hermann of Wied was excommunicated, his rank forfeited, and he was, in February, 1547,
compelled by the Emperor to abdicate.
In the meantime open warfare had begun against the Evangelical princes, estates, and cities allied in the Schmalkaldic League
(see Philip of Hesse). By the close of 1546, Charles V succeeded in subjugating South Germany, while the victory at the Battle of
Muhlberg, on April 24, 1547, established his imperial sovereignty everywhere in Germany and delivered into his hands the two
leaders of the league.
But while north of the Alps, in virtue of his preparations for the Augsburg Interim and its enforcement, the Emperor was widely
instrumental in recovering Germany to Roman Catholicism, the Pope now held aloof from him because Charles V himself had
stood aloof in the matter of endowing Pier Luigi with Parma and Piacenza, and the situation came to a total rupture when the
imperial vice-regent, Ferrante Gonzaga, proceeded forcibly to expel Pier Luigi.
The Pope's son was assassinated at Piacenza, and Paul III believed that this had not come to pass without the emperor's fore-
knowledge. In the same year, however, and after the death of Francis I of France (151547), with whom the Pope had once
again sought an alliance, the stress of circumstances compelled him to do the Emperor's will and accept the ecclesiastical meas-
ures adopted during the Interim. With reference to the assassinated prince's inheritance, the restitution of which Paul III demand-
ed ostensibly in the name and for the sake of the Church, the Pope's design was thwarted by the Emperor, who refused to sur-
render Piacenza, and by Pier Luigi's heir in Parma, Ottavio Farnese.
In consequence of a violent altercation on this account with Cardinal Farnese, Paul III, at the age of eighty-one years, became so
overwrought that an attack of sickness ensued from which he died, 10 November 1549.
Paul III proved unable to suppress the Protestant Reformation, although it was during his pontificate that the foundation was laid
for the Counter-Reformation.
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
2 Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 6,32 g. 2 Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 25 mm 6,33 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope left. Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope left.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with net from boat. Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter facing to left, fishing with net from boat.
SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA SANCTVS PETRVS ALMA ROMA
Reference: Fb. 62; Muntoni 2. GOLD. Of greatest rarity. Attractive VF Rare. VF.
example.
Estimate: 8000 EUR. Price realized: 12,750 EUR (approx. 19,543 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 20 mm 3,39g. Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 3,44 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PO M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III PO M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara. Mint error on this side; keys and tiara not properly struck. papal tiara.
Rev.: S S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul fishing with net from Rev.: SAN PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul fishing with net
boat, looking backwards to right. from boat, looking backwards to right.
Reference: Muntoni 4, CNI 46, F. 64. Scarce. VF. Reference: Fb. 64; Muntoni 4. GOLD. Very scarce in this condition. XF.
Estimate: EUR 1400 Estimate: 2000 EUR. Price realized: 2,800 EUR (approx. 4,292 U.S. Dollars
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 3,41 g. Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 3,40 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PO M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III P M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal
papal tiara. tiara.
Rev.: SAN PETRVS (Mintmark) ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul fishing Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul fishing to right with net
with net from boat, looking backwards to right. from boat, looking to right.
Reference: Fb. 64; Muntoni 5. GOLD. Rare. XF example. Reference: Fb. 64; Muntoni 10. GOLD. Rare, XF.
Estimate: 1000 EUR. Price realized: 2,800 EUR (approx. 4,292 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 1250 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 2,146 U.S. Dollars

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Fiorini di camera. Rome. mint. 3,40 g. Scudo doro. Rome mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III P M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and papal Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
tiara. and papal tiara.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul fishing to right with net Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with
from boat, looking to right. sword and book, looking slightly to right.
Reference: (CNI 61; F 64). A little buckled, very fine. Reference: Fr-65.Berman-905. NGC graded AU-58.
Estimate: 500. Price realized: 400 GBP (approx. 718 U.S. Dollars as of the Estimated Value $1,600-1,800. Price realized: 1,500 USD.
auction date)
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Rome mint. 3,33 g. Scudo doro. Rome mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with
sword and book, looking slightly to right. sword and book, looking slightly to right.
Reference: Fb. 65; Muntoni 23. GOLD. VF. Reference: Munt., 23; Berman, 905; Fr., 65. 3,31g. Serrure, 55. VF
Estimate: 600 EUR. Estimate: EUR 600. Price realized: 480 EUR (approx. 590 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Rome mint. 3,32 g. Scudo doro. Rome mint. 3,21 g.
Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with
sword and book, looking slightly to right. sword and book, looking left.
Reference: Ref.: Munt., 23; Berman, 905; Fr., 65. 3 Serrure, 56. F - VF Reference: Fb. 65; Muntoni 23 var. GOLD. VF.
Estimate: EUR 400. Price realized: 340 EUR (approx. 418 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 400.00 EUR. Price realized: 320 EUR (approx. 384 U.S. Dollars
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Rome mint. 3,30 g. Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,35 g.
Rev.: S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal with Rev.: Floreate cross. Flanked by coats of arms at bottom. Rosette at bottom.
sword and book, looking right. DOCET BONONIA Left coat of arms topped by cardinals hat. Rosette at
bottom.
Reference: Fb. 65; Muntoni 31. GOLD. Rare. Flan damage through coin.
VF. Reference: Fb. 344; Muntoni 88. GOLD. VF +
Estimate: 300 EUR. Price realized: 260 EUR (approx. 399 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,533 U.S. Dollars

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,31 g. Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,31 g.
Rev.: Floreate cross. Flanked by coats of arms at bottom. Rosette at bottom. Rev.: Floreate cross. Flanked by coats of arms at bottom. Rosette at bottom.
DOCET BONONIA Left coat of arms topped by crown. DOCET BONONIA Left coat of arms topped by cardinals hat. 4-Petal
Flower at bottom.
Reference: Fb. 344; Muntoni 90 var. GOLD. Slight weakness in strike. VF-
XF. Reference: Fb. 344; Muntoni 95. GOLD. VF +
Estimate: 300.00 EUR. Price realized: 625 EUR (approx. 750 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 700 EUR (approx. 1,073 U.S. Dollars as
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Parma mint. 24 mm 3,32 g. Scudo doro. Piacenza mint. 3,33 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: PAV III P M PLAC D Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
and papal tiara. papal tiara.
Rev.: Pallas seated facing left, holding victory. PARMA below seated figure. Rev.: Floreate cross, in the angles: P L A C. NON ALIVNDE SALVS
ECCLESIE SVB VMBRA MATRIS
Reference: Fb. 422; Muntoni 176. Sehr schn +
Reference: Muntoni 157; Fr. 412. Rim tear. VF.
Estimate: 800 EUR. Price realized: 750 EUR (approx. 1,006 U.S. Dollars as
Estimate CHF 500. Price realized: 500 CHF (approx. 392 U.S. Dollars as of of the auction date)
the auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Piacenza mint. 26 mm 3,35 g. Scudo doro. Piacenza mint. 3,35 g.
Obv.: PAV III P M PLAC D Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAV III P M PLAC D Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara. papal tiara.
Rev.: Floreate cross, in the angles: P L A C. NON ALIVNDE SALVS Rev.: Floreate cross, in the angles: P L A C. NON ALIVNDE SALVS
Reference: Fr. 422, Muntoni 176, Berman 968. Scarce! VF-XF. Reference: (C.N.I.XIX 580/1-9; F.422; Munt.176), traces of deposit on
obverse, a little double struck on reverse, otherwise good very fine
the auction date) Estimate 500-600. Price realized: 480 GBP (approx. 860 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Scudo doro. Piacenza mint. 3,32 g. Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,36 g.
Obv.: PAV III P M PLAC D Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
papal tiara. and papal tiara.
Rev.: Floreate cross, in the angles: P L A C. NON ALIVNDE SALVS Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, looking slightly to right, holding
sword and book. S PAVLVS VAS ELECTIONIS
Reference:. Fb. 422; Muntoni 176. GOLD. VF +
Reference: Fr:65. VF.
as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 450. Price realized: 525 EUR (approx. 674 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
1/2-Scudo doro. Parma mint. 1,70 g.. Bianco. Bologna mint. 31 mm 5,27 g..
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
and papal tiara.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STVDIORVM Lion standing to left, holding ban-
Rev.: FIAT PAX VIRTUTE TVA Cross with ball at ends, in the angles: P A ner.
R M.
Reference: Muntoni 98, CNI 18. Good VF.
Reference: Fb. 413; Muntoni 159. GOLD. Extremely rare. VF/XF.
Estimate: EUR 250.
Schtzpreis: 500,00 EUR. Price realized: 6,800 EUR (approx. 8,221 U.S.
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Bianco. Bologna mint. 5,47 g.. Bianco. Bologna mint. 5,47 g..
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right. Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STVDIORVM Lion standing to left, holding ban- Rev.: BONONIA MATER STVDIORVM Lion standing to left, holding ban-
ner. ner.
Reference: (CNI 27; M 100; B 927). Flan somewhat irregular, otherwise Reference: CNI:28, Muntoni:100var.I. XF.
good very fine and rare.
Estimate: 100. Price realized: 240 GBP (approx. 456 U.S. Dollars as of the the auction date)
auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Bianco. Bologna mint. 5,18 g.. Bianco. Bologna mint. 5,18 g..
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right. Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STVDIORVM Lion standing to left, holding ban- Rev.: BONONIA MATER STVDIORVM Lion standing to left, holding ban-
ner. ner.
Reference: Berman 927; Munt. 101. VF. Reference: Muntoni 103. VF.
Estimation CHF 150. Price realized: 200 CHF (approx. 152 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 429 U.S. Dollars as of
of the auction date) the auction date)
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Giulio. Rome mint. Giulio. Rome mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, holding sword and book. S PAVLVS (2 Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, holding sword and book. S PAVLVS (2
mintmarks: Castle and target) ALMA RO mintmarks: Castle and target) ALMA RO
Reference: Muntoni 48. Fine Patina, VF. Reference: Berman 910; CNI 127; Muntoni 55. XF/VF.
Estimate: 75.00 EUR. Price realized: 170 EUR (approx. 204 U.S. Dollars as of Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 310 DEM (approx. 141 U.S. Dollars as of

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Giulio. Ancona mint. Giulio. Macerata mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, holding sword and book. Flanked by 2 Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, holding sword and book. Flanked by 2
shields below. MACE S PAVLVS shields below. {mintmark} MACE S PAVLVS {mintmark}
Reference: Munt:81. VF. Reference: Berman 949; CNI 53; Muntoni 138. VF.
Estimate: EUR 20. Price realized: 40 EUR (approx. 48 U.S. Dollars as of the Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 310 DEM (approx. 141 U.S. Dollars as of
auction date) the auction date)
Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Giulio. Macerata mint. 3,08 g. Grosso. Rome mint. Anno XIII. 1,54 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III P M A XIII Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul stands frontal, holding sword and book. Flanked by 2 Rev.: Nimbate bust of St. Paul left. S PAVLVS ALMA ROMA
shields below. {mintmark} MACE S PAVLVS {mintmark}
Reference: Muntoni 59. Rare! Patina, VF.
Reference: Muntoni 140 var. (MACE.-). Patina, VF.
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 220 EUR (approx. 276 U.S. Dollars as of
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 250 EUR (approx. 314 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
the auction date)

Paul III., 1534-1549. Paul III., 1534-1549.
Grosso. Rome mint. Anno XIII. 1,56 g. Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III P M A XIII Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
papal tiara. and papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate bust of St. Paul left. S PAVLVS ALMA ROMA Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, looking upward to right, holding key
and book. ALMA ROMA S PETRVS {mintmark}
Reference: Berman 912; Munt. 60. about VF.
Reference: Berman 916; CNI 137; Muntoni 71. VF/F.
Estimation CHF 150. Price realized: 150 CHF (approx. 114 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date) Estimation DM 150.
PAPAL COINS
Paul III., 1534-1549.
Grosso. Macerata mint.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, holds downturned swrod and book.
MACER M S PAVLVS
Reference: Muntoni 149. Rare, VF+
Estimate: 350 EUR. Price realized: 360 EUR (approx. 455 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Paul III., 1534-1549.
Grosso. Macerata mint. 1.76 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS III PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, holds downturned swrod and book.
MACER M S PAVLVS
Reference: CNI XIII pg. 374, 62; Muntoni I pg. 178, 149; Berman 952. VF.
PAPAL COINS
Paul III., 1534-1549.
Grosso. Piacenza mint.
Obv.: PAV III P M PIAC D Papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate bust of St. Savinus facing. S SAVINVS II ET [..} PLAC
Reference: Berman 972; CNI 55; Muntoni 183, Var. 3. Scarce. F/VF.
Estimation DM 200. Price realized: 250 DEM (approx. 114 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Julius III - 7 Feb. 1550 to 29 March 1555
Pope Julius III (September 10, 1487 March 23, 1555), born Giovanni
Maria Ciocchi del Monte, was Pope from February 7, 1550 to 1555.
The last of the High Renaissance Popes, Julius III was born Giovanni
Maria Ciocchi del Monte in Rome in 1487. His father was a famous jurist,
and he succeeded his uncle as archbishop of Siponto (Manfredonia) in
Apulia in 1513, adding the diocese of Pavia in 1520. At the Sack of Rome
(1527) he was one of the hostages given by Pope Clement VII (152334)
to the Emperor's forces, and might have been killed in the Campo de'
Fiori as others were, had he not been secretly liberated by Cardinal
Pompeo Colonna.
In 1536 he was created cardinal-bishop of Palestrina by Pope Paul III

(153449), by whom he was employed on several important legations; he
was the first president of the Council of Trent, opening its first session at
Trent, December 13, 1545, with a brief oration. At the council, he was the
leader of the papal party against Emperor Charles V (151956), with
whom he came into conflict on various occasions, especially when, on
March 26, 1547, he transferred the Council to Bologna.
Paul III died on November 10, 1549, and in the ensuing conclave the
forty-eight cardinals were divided into three factions: the Imperials, the
French, and the adherents of the Farnese. The French cardinals were able to prevent the election of the other
two factions, and Cardinal del Monte was duly elected Pope Julius III on February 7, 1550, as a compromise,
after a conclave of ten weeks, although the Emperor had expressly excluded him from the list of acceptable
candidates. Ottavio Farnese, Paul III's grandson, was immediately confirmed as Duke of Parma.
In 1551, at the request of the Emperor Charles V, he consented to the reopening of the council of Trent and
entered into a league against the duke of Parma and Henry II of France (154759), but soon afterwards made
terms with his enemies and suspended the meetings of the council (1553). (For the history of papal conflicts
with councils, see conciliar movement). He was also a friend of the Jesuits, to whom he granted a fresh confir-
mation in 1550.
Julius spent the bulk of his time, and a great deal of Papal money, on entertainments at the Villa Giulia, created
for him by Vignola, where putti play with one another's genitals amidst the vine-covered trellis of the ceiling fres-
co. Julius extended his patronage to the great Renaissance composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, whom
he brought to Rome as his maestro di cappella, Giorgio Vasari, who supervised the design of the Villa Giulia,
and to Michelangelo, who worked there. But the pope's lack of interest in political or ecclesiastical affairs
caused dismay among his contemporaries, Joachim du Bellay the French poet in the retinue of Cardinal du
Bellay, expressing his scandalized opinion of Julius' priorities in two sonnets in his series Les regrets (1558).
Far worse scandal surrounded Julius' relationship with his adoptive "nephew", Innocenzo Ciocchi Del Monte, a
beggar-boy whom he had picked up on the streets of Parma some years earlier. Julius raised the uncouth and
quasi-illiterate Innocenzo to the cardinalate as cardinal-nephew, and showered him with benefices to the point
where his income was one of the highest in Europe. Gossip called the boy Julius's "Ganymede," and the
Venetian ambassador reported that Innocenzo shared the pope's bedroom and bed. The relationship became a
staple of anti-papal polemics for over a century: it was said that Julius, awaiting Innocenzo's arrival in Rome to
receive his cardinal's hat, showed the impatience of a lover awaiting a mistress, and that he boasted of the
boy's prowess. Despite the damage which the affair was inflicting on the church, it was not until after Julius'
death in 1555 that anything could be done to curb Innocenzo's visibility. One outcome of the Innocenzo affair,
however, was the upgrading of the position of Papal Secretary of State, as the incumbent had to take over the
duties Innocenzo was unfit to perform: the Secretary of State eventually replaced the cardinal-nephew as the
most important of official of the Holy See.
Julius III 1550-1555. Julius III 1550-1555.
Scudo DOro. Year 2 Rome mint. 22.45 mm 3.37 g. Scudo DOro. Year 2 Rome mint. 3.40 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS.III - P.M. AN.II. Papal arms curmounted by crossed keys Obv.: IVLIVS.III - P.M. AN.II. Papal arms curmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: *VIA * VERITAS * FT*VITA* Nimbate bust of Christ left. Rev.: *VIA * VERITAS * FT*VITA* Nimbate bust of Christ left.
Reference: Fr-69; CNI XV pl,XXIV, 27; Berman-984. . NGC graded MS- Reference: Berman 984; CNI 37; Muntoni 4; Friedberg 69. XF.
63.
Estimated Value $4,000-4,500. Price realized: 4,400 USD. Dollars as of the auction date)

Scudo DOro. Year 2 Rome mint. 23 mm Bianco. Bologna mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS.III - P.M. AN.II. Papal arms curmounted by crossed keys Obv.: IVLIVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
and papal tiara.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left, holding ban-
Rev.: *VIA * VERITAS * FT*VITA* Nimbate bust of Christ left. ner.
Reference: Munt. 4. Berman 984. Fr. 69. Large plugged hole. F/VF. Reference: Muntoni 66. Rare. Beautiful Patina, VF.
Estimate: EUR 100. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 353 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 200.00 EUR. Price realized: 700 EUR (approx. 840 U.S. Dollars
Bianco. Bologna mint. 31 mm 5,07 g. Doppio Bolognino. Bologna mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right. Obv.: IVLIVS III PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left, holding ban- Rev.: S PETRONIVS DE BO St. Petronius stands frontal, holding staff
ner. and church model.
Reference: Muntoni 66. Scarce. Good VF. Reference: erman 1023; CNI 25; Muntoni 71. VF.
Estimation: EUR 100. Price realized: 320 EUR (approx. 417 U.S. Dollars Estimation DM 100. Price realized: 270 DEM (approx. 123 U.S. Dollars
PAPAL COINS
Julius III 1550-1555.
Giulio. Anno II Rome mint. 3,20 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS III P M A II Bust of pope left.
Rev.: Roma seated to left on rocks, holding victory; ROMA beneath

rocks. Mintmark at feet in field left. OMNIA TVTA VIDES
Reference: Berman 992; Munt 16. Splendid example.
Estimation CHF 250. Price realized: 1,050 CHF (approx. 797 U.S. Dollars
Giulio. Anno II Rome mint. 3,08 g. Giulio. Anno III Rome mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS III P M A II Bust of pope left. Obv.: IVLIVS III P M A III Bust of pope left.
Rev.: Roma seated to left on rocks, holding victory; ROMA beneath Rev.: Roma seated to left on rocks, holding victory; ROMA beneath
rocks. Mintmark at feet in field left. OMNIA TVTA VIDES rocks. Mintmark at feet in field left. OMNIA TVTA VIDES
Reference: (CNI 44; M 16; B 992). Attractive dark tone and an excellent Reference: Berman 992; CNI 69; Muntoni 16. Very scarce, VF.
portrait, nearly extremely fine and rare.
Estimation DM 750.
Estimate: 500. Price realized: 620 GBP (approx. 1,178 U.S. Dollars as

Giulio. Anno III Rome mint. Giulio. Anno III Rome mint.
Obv.: IVLIVS III P M A III Bust of pope left. Obv.: IVLIVS III P M A III Bust of pope left.
Rev.: Roma seated to left on rocks, holding victory; ROMA beneath Rev.: Roma seated to left on rocks, holding victory; ROMA beneath
rocks. Mintmark at feet in field left. OMNIA TVTA VIDES rocks. Mintmark at feet in field left. OMNIA TVTA VIDES
Reference: Muntoni 16 a. Good VF. Giulio A III (1552/1553), Rom. Muntoni 16 a var. Sehr schn +
Giulio. Rome mint. 28 mm 3,21 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 28 mm 3,21 g.
Obv.: IVLIVS III PONT MAX Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: IVLIVS III PONT MAX Papal arms surmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, looking Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, looking
down at book. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark to right of saint in down at book. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark to right of saint in
lower field. lower field.
Reference: Muntoni 19ff, Berman 994. About XF. Reference: Munt. 22 VF.
Estimate EUR 150. Price realized: 185 EUR (approx. 224 U.S. Dollars as Starting Price EUR 75. Price realized: 130 EUR (approx. 190 U.S. Dollars

Giulio. Rome mint. 28 mm 3,21 g. Giulio. Holy Year issue. Dated 1550. Ancona mint. 2,99 g.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, looking Rev.: Doorway with Roman numeral date; ANCO below. IVSTI INTRA-
down at book. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark to left of saint in BVNT [.....]
lower field.
Reference: CNI XIII pg. 90, 3; Muntoni I pg. 191, 48 variety I; Berman
Reference: Muntoni 22. Beautiful Patina, VF/XF. 1009. VF, small dent.
Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 240 EUR (approx. 288 U.S. Dollars Estimate $300. Price realized: 300 USD.
Rev.: {mintmark} ANCONA S PETRVS St. Peter stands frontal, looking Rev.: {mintmark} ANCONA S PETRVS St. Peter stands frontal, looking
slightly left, holding book and scroll(?) slightly left, holding book and scroll(?)
Reference: Muntoni 55 var. VF. Reference: Muntoni 56. Fine Patina, VF +
Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 120 EUR (approx. 184 U.S. Dollars as Schtzpreis: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 115 EUR (approx. 138 U.S.
of the auction date) Dollars as of the auction date)

holding book and key, looking down at book. holding book and key, looking down at book.
Reference: Muntoni 59. Beautiful patina, VF + Reference: Muntoni 59. Patina, VF.
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 280 EUR (approx. 429 U.S. Dollars as Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 260 EUR (approx. 326 U.S. Dollars
Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,25 g. Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,25 g.
slightly left, holding book and key. slightly to left, holding book and scroll(?).
Reference: Muntoni 60 var. Good XF. Reference: Muntoni 60 var. Good XF.
Estimation: 150,00. Price realized: 200 EUR (approx. 251 U.S. Dollars Estimation: 150,00. Price realized: 260 EUR (approx. 326 U.S. Dollars
PAPAL COINS
Julius III 1550-1555.
Carlino. Avignon mint.
Obv.: 3/4-bust of pope facing, right hand raised in blessing, patriarchal

cross staff in left hand.
Rev.: Long cross, crossed keys in angles.
Reference: Muntoni 61. Scarce, good VF.

the auction date)
SEDE VACANTE - 1555

Sede Vacante 1555. Sede Vacante 1555.
Giulio 1555. Rome mint. Giulio. Ancona mint. 2,88 g.
Obv.: SEDE VACANTE AN 1555 Arms topped by crossed keys and Obv.: SEDE VACANTE Arms topped by crossed keys and tiara.
tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, looking to
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key and book, looking right. S PETRVS ANCONA Mintmark in lower left field.
down at book. S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark in lower right field.
Reference: Munt. 5. F/VF.
Estimation: CHF 280. Price realized: 225 CHF (approx. 178 U.S. Dollars
Estimate: 200 EUR. Price realized: 460 EUR (approx. 705 U.S. Dollars as as of the auction date)

Giulio. Ancona mint. 3,02 g. Giulio. Ancona mint.
Obv.: SEDE VACANTE Arms topped by crossed keys and tiara. Obv.: SEDE VACANTE Arms topped by crossed keys and tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding book and scroll(?), looking Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding book and scroll(?), looking
to left. S PETRVS ANCONA Mintmark in lower left field. to left. S PETRVS ANCONA Mintmark in lower left field.
Reference: Munt. 5. F/VF Reference: Berman 1031; CNI 14; Muntoni 5. Very scarce, holed, slightly
curved. F.
Estimation: CHF 320. Price realized: 300 CHF (approx. 238 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimation: 300 EUR. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 523 U.S. Dollars
Marcellus II - 9 April 1555 -April 30 or 1 May 1555
Pope Marcellus II (May 6, 1501 May 1, 1555), born Marcello Cervini degli
Spannochi was Pope from April 5, 1555, succeeding Pope Julius III. Before
his accession as Pope he had been cardinal of Santa Croce. He was also
the last Pope not to change his name on his accession.
A native of Montefano, he was the son of Ricardo Cervini who was the
Apostolic Treasurer in Ancona. He also had an interest in astrology and
upon discovering that his son's horoscope presaged high ecclesiastical hon-
ours, he set the young Cervini on a path to the priesthood.
After a period of study at Siena, Cervini moved to Rome to continue his

studies. In 1534 he was appointed a papal secretary for Pope Paul III
(153449) and served as a close advisor to the pope's nephew Alessandro
Farnese. Paul III later appointed him bishop of Nicastro, Italy in 1539.
Cervini did not undergo the rite of ordination as a bishop at that time. Paul III
created him the cardinal-priest of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme on
December 19, 1539. Over the course of next decade Cervini also became the apostolic administrator of the
dioceses of Reggio and Gubbio. During the Council of Trent he was elected one of the council's three pres-
idents, along with fellow cardinals Reginald Pole and Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte (the future Pope
Julius III). He continued to serve in that role throughout the remainder of Paul III's papacy after which he
was replaced to placate the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (151956). In 1548 he was appointed the
librarian of the Vatican.
On April 9, 1555, the fourth day of the papal conclave following the death of Julius III (155055), Cervini
was elected Pope despite efforts by the Emperor Charles V to veto his election. The new Pope quickly
broke with long standing tradition and chose to reign under his birth name as Marcellus II. He is also the
last Pope to date whose regnal name corresponds with his first name at birth. Marcellus II was both
ordained as a bishop and crowned Pope on the next day in a subdued ceremony on account of it falling
during the Lenten season. His ordination as a bishop was required as although he had administered sev-
eral dioceses as a bishop, he had never previously been ritually consecrated as such.
Though Marcellus II desired to reform many of the inner workings of the church, his feeble constitution suc-
cumbed to the fatigues of the conclave, the exhausting ceremonies connected with his ascension, the anxi-
eties arising from his high office, and overexertion in his performance of the pontifical functions of the Holy
Week and Easter. He quickly fell ill and despite being wrapped in steaming sheep skins, he died on the
22nd day after his election.
Marcellus II had a high reputation for integrity, tact and ability. Palestrina's Missa Papae Marcelli (dating
from 1565 or before) is traditionally believed to have been composed in his honor. Having reigned for just
22 calendar days, Pope Marcellus II ranks sixth on the list of 10 shortest-reigning Popes. His successor
was Pope Paul IV (155559).
PAPAL COINS
Marcellus II., 1555.
AR Medal. 33 mm 5,69 g
Obv.: MARCELLVS II PONT MAX Bust of pope left.
Rev.: Standing figue of Roman god Hilaritas frontal with cornucopia and
branch, next to flaming altar. HILARITAS PONTIFICIA
Reference: Modesti 463 (only bronze in book).
VF.
PAPAL COINS
Marcellus II., 1555.
Giulio. Rome. mint. 28 mm 2,73 g
Obv.: MARCELLVS II PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by

Rev.: St. Peter standing frontal, holding book and key, looking slightly
left. ST PETRVS {mintmark} ALMA ROMA
Paul IV - 23 May 1555 to 18 Aug. 1559
Pope Paul IV (June 28, 1476 August 18, 1559), n Giovanni Pietro Carafa, was Pope
from May 23, 1555 until his death.
Giovanni Pietro Carafa was born in Capriglia Irpina, near Avellino, into a prominent
noble family of Naples. His father Giovanni Antonio Carafa died in West Flanders in
1516 and his mother Vittoria Camponeschi was the daughter of Pietro Lalle
Camponeschi, 5th Conte di Montorio, a Neapolitan nobleman, and wife Dona Maria de
Noronha, a Portuguese noblewoman of the House of Pereira Senhores dos Lagares de
El-Rei and Senhores de Paiva, Baltar e Cabeceiras de Basto. His title in the Prophecy
of St. Malachy is "Of the Faith of Peter." He was mentored by Cardinal Oliviero Carafa,
his relative, who resigned the see of Chieti (Latin Theate) in his favor. Under the direc-
tion of Pope Leo X, he was ambassador to England and then papal nuncio in Spain,
where he conceived a violent detestation of Spanish rule that affected the policies of his
later papacy.
However, in 1524, Pope Clement VII allowed Carafa to resign his benefices and join the
ascetic order of Saint Cajetan, popularly called the Theatines, after Cardinal Carafa,
bishop of Theate. Following the sack of Rome in 1527, the order moved to Venice. But
Carafa was recalled to Rome by the reform-minded Pope Paul III (153449), to sit on a committee of reform of the papal
court, an appointment that forecast an end to a humanist papacy, and a revival of scholasticism, for Carafa was a thorough
disciple of Thomas Aquinas. In December 1536 he was made a cardinal and then Archbishop of Naples. He reorganized the
Inquisition in Italy.
He was a surprise choice as pope to succeed Pope Marcellus II (1555); his rigid, severe and unbending character combined
with his age and patriotism meant he would have declined the honor. He accepted apparently because Emperor Charles V
was opposed to his accession. As pope his nationalism was a driving force; he used the office to preserve some liberties in
the face of four-fold foreign occupation. The Habsburgs disliked Paul IV and he allied with France, possibly against the true
interests of the Papacy. He also alienated Protestants in England and rejected the claim of Elizabeth I of England to the
Crown. The strengthening of the Inquisition continued and Paul IV's rectitude meant that few could consider themselves
safe by virtue of position in his drive to reform the Church; even cardinals he disliked could be imprisoned.
Paul IV believed in extra ecclesiam nulla salus. In 1555 he issued a canon (papal law), Cum nimis absurdum, by which the
Roman Ghetto was created. Jews were then forced to live in seclusion in a specified area of the rione Sant'Angelo, locked
in at night, and he decreed that Jews should wear a distinctive sign, yellow hats for men and veils or shawls for women. The
following Popes would have enforced the creation of other ghettos in most Italian towns. Under conservative pressure from
Pope Pius IX (184678), the Roman ghetto was the last ghetto to be abolished in Western Europe.
Paul IV was violently opposed to the liberal Giovanni Cardinal Morone whom he strongly suspected of being a hidden
Protestant, so much that he had him imprisoned. In order to prevent Morone from succeeding him and imposing what he
believed to be his Protestant beliefs on the Church, Pope Paul IV codified the Catholic Law excluding heretics and non-
Catholics from receiving or legitimately becoming Pope, in the bull Cum ex apostolatus officio.
Paul IV introduced the Index Librorum Prohibitorum or "Index of Prohibited Books" to Venice, then an independent and pros-
perous trading state, in order to crack down on the growing threat of Protestanism and the newly introduced printing press.
Under his authority, all books written by Protestants were banned, together with Italian and German translations of the Latin
Bible.
As was usual with Renaissance popes, Paul IV sought to advance the fortunes of his family as well as that of the papacy.
As Cardinal-nephew, Carlo Carafa became his uncle's chief adviser and the prime mover in their plans to ally with the
French to expel the Spanish from Italy. Carlo's older brother Giovanni was made commander of the papal forces and Duke
of Paliano after the pro-Spanish Colonna were deprived of that town in 1556. Another nephew, Antonio, was given command
of the Papal guard and made Marquis of Montebello. Their conduct became notorious in Rome. However at the conclusion
of the disastrous war with Philip II of Spain and after many scandals, in 1559 the Pope publicly disgraced his nephews and
banished them from Rome.
He was buried in St. Peter's Basilica but was later transferred to Santa Maria sopra Minerva.
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,33 g. Testone. Rome mint. 31 mm 8,87 g.
Obv.: PAVLVS IIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: PAVLVS IIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
Rev.: Floreate cross, flanked at lower part with 2 shields. DOCET Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding
BONONIA key in left hand. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in
exurge.
Reference: Fb. 347; Muntoni 47. GOLD. Fast vorzglich
Reference: CNI 45, Muntoni 7. Rim damage, VF.
Estimate: 1,000.00 EUR. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,213 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: EUR 100. Price realized: 75 EUR (approx. 111 U.S. Dollars as

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Rome mint. 29 mm 8,76 g. Testone. Rome mint.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding
key in left hand. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in
exurge. exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 7. VF. Reference: Muntoni 9. VF
Estimate: EUR 100. Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 270 DEM (approx. 123 U.S. Dollars
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Rome mint. Testone. Rome mint.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding
key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in
exurge. exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 9. Fine Patina, VF Reference: Muntoni 9. VF.
Estimate: 125.00 EUR. Price realized: 150 EUR (approx. 180 U.S. Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 80 EUR (approx. 123 U.S. Dollars as
Dollars as of the auction date) of the auction date)

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Rome mint. Testone. 1557. Ancona mint. 9,11 g.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter enthroned, right hand raisedin blessing, holding Rev.: St. Peter crowned with papal tiara enthroned, right hand raisedin
key in left hand. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS 1557
exurge. ANC {mintmark} ONA in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 10. Attractive Patina, VF. Reference: Muntoni 28 I. Patina, VF.
Estimate: 125.00 EUR. Price realized: 110 EUR (approx. 132 U.S. Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 170 EUR (approx. 213 U.S. Dollars
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. 1557. Ancona mint. 9,46 g. Testone. 1557. Ancona mint.
Rev.: St. Peter crowned with papal tiara enthroned, right hand raisedin Rev.: St. Peter crowned with papal tiara enthroned, right hand raisedin
blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS 1557 blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS 1557 AN
ANC {mintmark} ONA in exurge. {mintmark} CO in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 28 I. Beautiful dark patina, good VF. Reference: Muntoni 29. XF example with fine toning.
Price: 250,00. Estimate: 250 EUR. Price realized: 600 EUR (approx. 805 U.S. Dollars

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. 1557. Ancona mint. 29 mm 8,37 g. Testone. 1557. Ancona mint. 29 mm 8,37 g.
blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS ANC blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS ANC
{mintmark} ONA in exurge, 1557 below. {mintmark} ONA in exurge. Date is divided by saint at bottom, 1557.
Reference:Muntoni 31. VF. Reference: Muntoni 32. VF.
Estimate: EUR 125. Price realized: 150 EUR (approx. 193 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 160 EUR (approx. 192 U.S.
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. 1558. Ancona mint. Testone. Ancona mint. 30 mm
blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS AN blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS AN
{mintmark} CO in exurge. Date is divided by throne, 1558. {mintmark} CO in exurge.
Testone 1558, Ancona. Muntoni 33. Sehr schn Reference: Berman 1045, Muntoni 35ff. Scarce, fine patina, XF. The
undated Testone of Ancona are substantially rarer than the dated pieces.
Estimate EUR 800.


Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Ancona mint. Testone. Ancona mint.
blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS AN blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS AN
{mintmark} CO in exurge. {mintmark} CO in exurge.
Reference: Berman 1045; CNI 36; Muntoni 37. VF. Reference: Berman 1045; CNI 36; Muntoni 37. VF.
Estimate: 250 EUR. Price realized: 200 EUR (approx. 259 U.S. Dollars Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 850 DEM (approx. 386 U.S. Dollars
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Ancona mint. 9,34 g. Testone. Ancona mint. 31 mm 9.10 g.
blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS AN blessing, holding key in left hand. S PETRVS APOSTOLVS ANC
{mintmark} CO in exurge. {mintmark} ONA in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 39. Patina, good VF. Reference: Berman 1045; CNI XIV, 35. F/VF.
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 100 EUR (approx. 125 U.S. Dollars Estimate CHF 100. Price realized: 140 CHF (approx. 117 U.S. Dollars as

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Testone. Rome mint. Giulio. Rome mint.
Rev.: St. Peter crowned with papal tiara enthroned, right hand raisedin Rev.: ALMA ROM Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with sword and
blessing, holding key in left hand. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mint- book, looking down at book.. Mintmark in field right at feet.
mark} MA in exurge.
Reference: Berman 1040 var.; CNI -; Muntoni -, like. 15-19 (only with
Good VF. ROM instead of ROMA). F.
Estimate: 80 EUR. Estimation DM 200.

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Rev.: ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with sword and Rev.: ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with sword and
book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field right at feet. book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field right at feet.
Reference: Berman 1040; CNI 92; Muntoni 15. VF. Reference: Munt. 17
Estimation DM 200. Starting Price EUR 30. Price realized: 50 EUR (approx. 73 U.S. Dollars

Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Giulio. Rome mint. 28 mm 2,85 g. Giulio. Rome mint. 28 mm 2,85 g.
Rev.: ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with sword and Rev.: ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with sword and
book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field right at feet. book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field right at feet.
Reference: Muntoni 17. VF. Reference: Muntoni 17. Strong VF.
Estimate: EUR 100. Estimate: EUR 50. Price realized: 50 EUR (approx. 64 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Rev.: ANCONA S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with Rev.: ANCONA S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with
sword and book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field left at feet. sword and book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field left at feet.
Reference: (Berman 1046), good very fine Reference: Berman 1046; CNI 72; Muntoni 40. VF.
Estimate 80-100. Price realized: 120 GBP (approx. 236 U.S. Dollars as Estimation DM 200. Price realized: 160 DEM (approx. 73 U.S. Dollars
Paul IV., 1555-1559. Paul IV., 1555-1559.
Rev.: ANCONA S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with Rev.: ANCONA S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Paul standing frontal, with
sword and book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field left at feet. sword and book, looking down at book. Mintmark in field left at feet.
Reference: Berman 1046; CNI 72; Muntoni 40. VF/F. Reference: Berman 1046; CNI 102; Muntoni 43. VF.
Estimation DM 150. Price realized: 120 DEM (approx. 54 U.S. Dollars Estimation DM 200. Price realized: 220 DEM (approx. 100 U.S. Dollars
SEDE VACANTE - 1559

Testone 1559. Rome. mint. Testone 1559. Rome. mint.
Obv.: SEDE VACANTE 1559 Arms topped with crossed keys and tiara. Obv.: SEDE VACANTE 1559 Arms topped with crossed keys and tiara.
Rev.: St. Peter enthroned, right hand raised in blessing, left hand holding Rev.: St. Peter enthroned, right hand raised in blessing, left hand holding
key. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. key. APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge.
VF. Reference: Muntoni 2/3. Sehr schn

Testone 1559. Rome. mint. Testone 1559. Rome. mint. 31 mm 9,41 g.
Reference: Muntoni 2. Attractive example with beautiful toning, VF/XF. Reference: M 2. B 1058. VF.
Estimate: 200.00 EUR. Price realized: 360 EUR (approx. 432 U.S. Estimate CHF 250. Price realized: 375 CHF (approx. 277 U.S. Dollars as
Dollars as of the auction date) of the auction date)
Testone 1559. Rome. mint. Testone 1559. Rome. mint. 9.47 g.
Reference: Muntoni 2. VF. Reference: Muntoni I pg. 206, 3; Serafini pg. 285, 5; Berman 1058.
Good VF, toned, double struck.
Estimate: 350,00 EUR. Price realized: 725 EUR (approx. 832 U.S.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate $200. Price realized: 300 USD.

Giulio. 1559. Rome. mint. 27 mm 2,94 g. Giulio. 1559. Rome. mint. 27 mm 2,94 g.
Rev.: S PAVLVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark in lower right field. Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Mintmark in lwoer right field. St.
Nimbate St. Paul stands with sword and book, looking down at book. Peter stands frontal, with key and book, looking down at book.
Reference: Muntoni 4. Very scarce, VF. Reference: Muntoni 5 var. VF.
Estimate: EUR 300. Price realized: 400 EUR (approx. 514 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 150 EUR. Price realized: 140 EUR (approx. 215 U.S. Dollars
Pius IV - 26 Dec. 1559 to 9 Dec. 1565
Pope Pius IV (March 31, 1499 December 9, 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici,
was Pope from 1559 to 1565. He is generally believed to be the first pope to have
died leaving in pectore cardinals unpublished.
Giovanni Angelo Medici was born of humble parentage in Milan, unrelated to the
Medicis of Florence. His early career connects itself in some measure with the rise of
his elder brother, Gian Giacomo Medici, from the position of a mere bravo to that of
Marchese di Marignano.
After studying at Bologna and acquiring a reputation as a jurist, he went in 1527 to

Rome, and as the favourite of Pope Paul III was rapidly promoted to the governor-
ship of several towns, the archbishopric of Ragusa, the vice-legateship of Bologna,
and in April 1549, to the cardinalate. On the death of Pope Paul IV, he was elected
Pope Pius IV on December 25, 1559, and installed on January 6, 1560. His first pub-
lic acts of importance were to grant a general pardon to the participators in the riot
which had closed the previous pontificate, and to bring to trial the nephews of his
predecessor, of whom Cardinal Carlo Carafa was strangled, and Duke Giovanni Carafa of Paliano, with his nearest
connections, beheaded. The process, however, was a clear farce, and Pius V renegated its acts.
On January 18, 1562 the council of Trent, which had been suspended by Pope Julius III, was opened for the third
time. Great skill and caution were necessary to effect a settlement of the questions before it, inasmuch as the three
principal nations taking part in it, though at issue with regard to their own special demands, were prepared to unite
their forces against the demands of Rome. Pius IV, however, aided by Moroni and Charles Borromeo, proved himself
equal to the emergency, and by judicious management and concession brought the council to a termination satis-
factory to the disputants and favourable to the pontifical authority. Its definitions and decrees were confirmed by a
papal bull dated January 26, 1564; and, though they were received with certain limitations by France and Spain, the
famous Creed of Pius IV, or Tridentine Creed, remained the authoritative expression of the Catholic faith. The more
marked manifestations of stringency during his pontificate appear to have been prompted rather than spontaneous,
his personal character inclining him to moderation and ease.
Thus, a warning, issued in 1564, summoning Jeanne d'Albret, the Queen of Navarre, before the Inquisition on a
charge of Calvinism, was withdrawn by him in deference to the indignant protest of Charles IX of France. In the same
year he published a bull granting the use of the cup to the laity of Austria and Bohemia. One of his strongest pas-
sions appears to have been that of building, which somewhat strained his resources in contributing to the adornment
of Rome (including the new Porta Pia and Via Pia, named after him, and the northern extension (Addizione) of the
rione of Borgo), and in carrying on the work of restoration, erection, and fortification in various parts of the ecclesiasti-
cal states.
On the other hands, others bemoaned the austere Roman culture during this papacy; Giorgio Vasari in 1567 spoke of
a time when the grandeurs of this place reduced by stinginess of living, dullness of dress, and simplicity in so many
things; Rome is fallen into much misery, and if it is true that Christ loved poverty and the City wishes to follow in his
steps she will quickly become beggarly...".
A conspiracy against Pius IV, headed by the Catholic fanatic Benedetto Accolti (a son of a cardinal ousted by Pius III),
was discovered and crushed in 1565.
Pius IV, like many of his predecessors and successors, was a nepotist. Among the relatives he favoured, the main
figure is that of Carlo Borromeo. Under his reign Michelangelo re-built the basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli (in the
Diocletian's Baths) and the eponymous Villa Pia, now known as Casina Pio IV and headquarters of the Pontifical
Academy of Sciences, was designed by Pirro Ligorio in the Vatican Gardens.
He died on December 9, 1565, and was buried in Santa Maria degli Angeli. His successor was Pius V.
Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Obv.: PIVS IIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: PIVS IIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. St. Peter Rev.: APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. Nimbate
facing on throne wearing papal tiara, right hand raised in blessing, key in St. Peter facing on throne, right hand raised in blessing, key in left hand.
left hand.
Reference: Muntoni 1. Patina, XF.
Reference: (Berm.1064; CNI.82), attractive tone, nearly extremely fine
Estimate 250-300. Price realized: 220 GBP (approx. 365 U.S. Dollars as as of the auction date)

Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Rev.: APOSTOLVS S PETRVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. Nimbate Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. St. Peter
St. Peter facing on throne, right hand raised in blessing, key in left hand. facing on throne wearing papal tiara, right hand raised in blessing, key in
left hand.
Reference: CNI 25; Muntoni 5. VF.
Estimation DM 250. Price realized: 200 DEM (approx. 91 U.S. Dollars as
of the auction date) Estimate: 150 EUR.
Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. St. Peter Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS RO {mintmark} MA in exurge. St. Peter
facing on throne wearing papal tiara, right hand raised in blessing, key in facing on throne wearing papal tiara, right hand raised in blessing, key in
left hand. left hand.
Reference: Muntoni 9. Slight weakness in strike, VF. Reference: Muntoni 13. Fine Patina, some rim damage, VF/XF.
Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 60 EUR (approx. 92 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 145 EUR (approx. 174 U.S. Dollars

Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Testone. Rome. mint. 31 mm 9,23 g. Testone. 1563. Ancona mint.
Rev.: TV AVTEM IDEM IPSE ES/ROMA in exurge. Jesus among the wise Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS /AN{mintmark}CO in exurge. Nimbate St.
men in the temple. Peter entrhoned frontal, looking to right, right hand raised in blessing, left
hand with key. Sasint divides date 15 63.
Reference: Muntoni 16, CNI 2. Very scarce. VF.
Reference: Muntoni 46. Beautiful patina. VF/XF.
Estimate: EUR 900.
Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Testone. Ancona mint. Testone. Macerata mint. 9,30 g.
Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS /ANCONA in exurge. Nimbate St. Peter Rev.: S PETRVS APOSTOLVS /MACER in exurge. Nimbate St. Peter
entrhoned frontal, looking to right, right hand raised in blessing, left hand entrhoned frontal, looking to right, right hand raised in blessing, left hand
with key. Mintmark in field lower right. with key. Mintmark in beginning of legend at left.
Reference: Muntoni 53. Fine Patina, VF + Reference: Muntoni 76 var. Patina, VF.
Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 200 EUR (approx. 240 U.S. Dollars Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 180 EUR (approx. 226 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Bianco. Bologna mint. 4,92 g.
Obv.: PIVS IIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left with

banner.
Reference: Berman 1076; Munt. 70. VF.,
Estimation CHF 200. Price realized: 350 CHF (approx. 266 U.S.
Pius IV., 1559-1565. Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Rev.: SANT PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, Rev.: A ROMA S PETRVS Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding key
holding key and book, looking down at book. Mintmark at bottom right in and book, looking down at book. Mintmark at bottom right in field.
field.
Reference: Muntoni:23. VF.
Estimation DM 200. Price realized: 160 DEM (approx. 73 U.S. Dollars as the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Pius IV., 1559-1565.
Giulio. Rome mint.
Obv.: PIVS IIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
and papal tiara.
Rev.: ALMA ROMA S PETRVS Nimbate St. Peter stands frontal, holding
key and book, looking down at book. Mintmark at bottom right in field.
Pius V - 7 Jan. 1566 to 1 May 1572
Pope Saint Pius V, O.P. (January 17, 1504 May 1, 1572), born
Antonio Ghislieri, from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri, was Pope from
1566 to 1572 and is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. Involved
early on in the Inquisition, he resisted the influence of Protestantism
throughout his papacy.
He was born as Antonio Ghislieri at Bosco in the Duchy of Milan (now

Bosco Marengo in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont), Italy. At the
age of fourteen he entered the Dominican Order, taking the name
Michele, passing from the monastery of Voghera to that of Vigevano,
and thence to Bologna. Having been ordained priest at Genoa in 1528,
he was sent by his order to Pavia, where he lectured for sixteen years.
He soon gave evidence of the opinions which found a more practical
expression in his pontificate, by advancing at Parma thirty propositions
in support of the papal chair and against the heresies of the time. As
president of more than one Dominican monastery during a time of
great moral laxity in the Catholic Church, he stood against the trend of
the times by insisting on strict discipline, and, in accordance with his
own wish to discharge the office of inquisitor, received an appointment
to that post at Como. His reformist zeal provoking resentment, he was
compelled in 1550 to return to Rome, where, after having been
employed in several inquisitorial missions, he was elected to the com-
missariat of the Holy Office. Pope Paul IV (155559), who while still
Cardinal Carafa had shown him special favor, conferred upon him the
bishopric of Sutri and Nepi, the cardinalate with the title of
Alessandrino, and the honor unique in one not of pontifical rank of
the supreme inquisitorship. Under Pope Pius IV (155965) he became
bishop of Mondovi in Piedmont, but his opposition to that pontiff procured his dismissal from the palace and the abridgment
of his authority as inquisitor.
Before Michele Ghislieri could return to his episcopate, Pope Pius IV died, and on January 7, 1566, he was elected to the
papal chair as Pope Pius V with duly attendant prodigies, his coronation taking place on his birthday, ten days later. The
prudence of Comniendone saved him at the commencement of his pontificate from trouble with Germany, as in the general
diet of the empire at Augsburg, March 26, 1566.
Fully alive to the necessity of restoring discipline and morality at Rome to ensure success without, he at once proceeded to
reduce the cost of the papal court after the manner of the Dominican Order to which he belonged, compel residence among
the clergy, regulate inns, expel prostitutes, and assert the importance of the ceremonial in general and the liturgy of the
Mass in particular. In his wider policy, which was characterized throughout by an effective stringency, the maintenance and
increase of the efficacy of the Inquisition and the enforcement of the canons and decrees of the Council of Trent had prece-
dence over other considerations. Accordingly, in order to implement a decision of that council, he standardized the Holy
Mass by promulgating the 1570 edition of the Roman Missal. Pope Pius V made this Missal mandatory throughout the Latin
rite of the Catholic Church, except where a Mass liturgy dating from before 1370 was in use. This form of the Mass
remained essentially unchanged for 400 years until the modern revision of the Roman Missal in 1969/1970, after which it
has become widely known as the Traditional Latin Mass; nowadays this rite, when considering the modifications made in
1960-1962 by Pope John XXIII, is known as the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.
Today, Traditional Roman Catholics use either the 1962 Missal or Missals prior to changes made by Pope Pius XII in 1955
(see the General Roman Calendar as in 1954).
St Pius V recognized attacks on papal supremacy in the Catholic Church and was desirous of limiting their advancement. In
France, where his influence was stronger, he took several measures to oppose the Protestant Huguenots. He directed the
dismissal of Cardinal Odet de Coligny and seven bishops, nullified the royal edict tolerating the extra-mural services of the
Reformers, introduced the Roman catechism, restored papal discipline, and strenuously opposed all compromise with the
Huguenot nobility.
In the list of more important bulls issued by him the famous bull "In Coena Domini" (1568) takes a leading place; but
amongst others throwing light on Pope Pius V's character and policy there may be mentioned his prohibition of quaestuary
(February 1567 and January 1570); the condemnation of Michael Baius, the heretical Professor of Leuven (1567); the
reform of the breviary (July 1568); the denunciation of the "dirum nefas" (August 1568); the banishment of the Jews from
the ecclesiastical dominions except Rome and Ancona (1569); the injunction of the use of the reformed missal (July 1570);
the confirmation of the privileges of the Society of Crusaders for the protection of the Inquisition (October 1570); the dog-
matic certainty of the miraculous conception (November 1570); the suppression of the Fratres Humiliati for profligacy
(February 1571); the approbation of the new office of the Blessed Virgin (March 1571); the enforcement of the daily recita-
tion of the canonical hours (September 1571); and the purchase of assistance against the Turks by offers of plenary pardon
(March 1572). His response to the so-called reforms of Queen Elizabeth I of England (15581603) included support of the
imprrisoned Mary, Queen of Scots (154267) and her supporters in their attempts to take over England "ex turpissima
muliebris libidinis servitute". An important event in the history of Elizabethan England was the publication of a bull, Regnans
in Excelsis, dated April 27, 1570, that declared Elizabeth I a heretic and released her subjects from their allegiance to her.
This transformed the status of persecuted English Roman Catholics from religious dissidents to potential enemies of the
state.
Saint Pius V persistently and successfully attempted to form a general league against the Turks, as the result of which the
Battle of Lepanto (October 7, 1571) was won by the combined fleet under Colonna. It is attested in his canonization that he
miracously knew when the battle was over, himself being in Rome at the time. Three national synods were held during his
pontificate at Naples under Cardinal Alfonso Caraffa (whose family had, after inquiry, been reinstated by Pius V), at Milan
under Saint Charles Borromeo, and at Machim.
After his election to the papacy, Pius V continued to wear white, the color of his Dominican habit. Every Pontiff since St Pius
V has followed his example of wearing white clothing. Prior to Pope Pius V, Popes, like Cardinals, wore red. This is why
some papal accessories, such as the papal shoes, camauro, mozzetta, and cappello romano, are red.
Pius V died on May 1, 1572. He was succeeded by Pope Gregory XIII (157285). In 1696, the process of Pius's canonisa-
tion was started through the efforts of the Master of the Order of Preachers, Antonin Cloche. He also immediately commis-
sioned a representative tomb from the sculptor Pierre Le Gros the Younger to be erected in the Sistine Chapel of the
Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore. The pope's body was placed in it in 1698. St Pius V was beatified by Pope Clement X in
the year 1672, and was later canonized by Pope Clement XI (170021) on May 24, 1712.
Since the reform of the Roman Calendar in 1969, St Pius V's feast day was moved to April 30, the day before his death on
May 1. Traditional Roman Catholics continue to commemorate Saint Pius V's feast day on May 5, deemed a III class feast
(see the General Roman Calendar of 1962) or a Double feast.
Portrait of Pius V by Pierre Le GrosThe front of his tomb has a lid of gilded bronze which shows a likeness of the dead
pope. Most of the time this is left open to allow the veneration of the saint's remains.
Pope St Pius V is also a Patron Saint of the Maltese Islands. He helped financially in the construction of the city of Valletta.
Pius V 1566-1572. Pius V 1566-1572.
Testone. Ancona mint. Testone. Ancona mint. 9.48 g.
Obv.: PIVS V PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: PIVS V PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: APOSTOLVS S PETRVS /AN {mintmark} CO in exurge. St Rev.: APOSTOLVS S PETRVS /AN {mintmark} CO in exurge. St
Peter enthroned frontal, right hand raised in blessing, key in left hand, Peter enthroned frontal, right hand raised in blessing, key in left hand,
looking slightly to right. looking slightly to right.
Reference: Muntoni 34. Nice patina, VF/XF. Reference: (CNI 12; M 34 var; B 1105). Pleasing dark even tone and
about extremely fine.
Estimate: 300 EUR.
Estimate: 500. Price realized: 400 GBP (approx. 760 U.S. Dollars as

Pius V 1566-1572. Pius V 1566-1572.
Bianco. Bologna mint. 4,85 g. Bianco. Bologna mint. 4,85 g.
Obv.: PIVS IIIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right. Obv.: PIVS IIIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left with ban- Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left with ban-
ner. ner.
Reference:Berman 1116; Munt. 49. Splendid! Reference: (CNI 10; M 49; B 1116). Some striking weaknesses but
beautifully toned, nearly extremely fine and rare.
Estimation CHF 200. Price realized: 425 CHF (approx. 323 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimate: 200. Price realized: 560 GBP (approx. 1,064 U.S. Dollars as
PAPAL COINS
Pius V 1566-1572.
Bianco. Bologna mint. 4,85 g.
Obv.: PIVS IIIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: BONONIA MATER STUDIORVM Lion standing left with ban-

ner.
PAPAL COINS
Pius V 1566-1572.
Grosso. Rome mint.
Obv.: PIVS V PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys

and papal tiara.
Rev.: S PETRUS APOSTOLUS RO {mintmark} MA below. 3/4-

length nimbate St. Peter standing frontal, holding book and key, looking
to right.
Reference: Muntoni 19. Sehr schn
Gregory XIII - 13 May 1572 to 10 April 1585
Pope Gregory XIII (January 7, 1502 April 10, 1585), born Ugo
Boncompagni, was Pope from 1572 to 1585.
He was born in the city of Bologna, where he studied law and gradu-
ated in 1530. Afterwards, he taught jurisprudence for some years; his
students included notable figures such as Alexander Farnese,
Reginald Pole and Charles Borromeo.
At the age of thirty-six he was summoned to Rome by Pope Paul III

(15341549), under whom he held successive appointments as first
judge of the capital, abbreviator, and vice-chancellor of the
Campagna; by Pope Paul IV (15551559) he was attached as datar-
ius to the suite of Cardinal Carafa; and by Pope Pius IV (15591565)
he was created cardinal priest and sent to the council of Trent.
He also served as a legate to Philip II of Spain (15561598), being

sent by the Pope to investigate the Cardinal of Toledo. It was here
that he formed a lasting and close relationship with the Spanish King,
which was to become a very important during his foreign policy as
Pope.
Upon the death of Pope Pius V (15661572), the conclave chose

Cardinal Boncompagni, who assumed the name of Gregory XIII, in homage to the great reforming Pope, Gregory I (590604), sur-
named the Great. It was a very brief conclave, lasting less than 24 hours, presumed by many historians to have been due to the
influence and backing of the Spanish King. His character seemed to be perfect for the needs of the church at the time. Unlike
some of his predecessors, Gregory XIII was to lead a faultless personal life, becoming a model for his simplicity of life.
Additionally, his legal brilliance and management abilities meant that he was able to respond and deal with the major problems
quickly and decisively, although not always successfully.
Once in the chair of Saint Peter, Gregory XIII's rather worldly concerns became secondary and he dedicated himself to reform of
the Catholic Church. He committed himself to putting into practice the recommendations of the Council of Trent. He allowed no
exceptions for cardinals to the rule that bishops must take up residence in their sees, and designated a committee to update the
Index of Forbidden Books. A new and greatly improved edition of the Corpus juris canonici was also due to his concerned patron-
age. In a time of considerable centralisation of power, Gregory XIII abolished the Cardinals Consistories, replacing them with
Colleges, and appointing specific tasks for these colleges to work on. He was renowned for having a fierce independence; with
the few confidants noting there were interventions that were not always welcomed nor advice sought for. The power of the papacy
increased under him, whereas the influence and power of the Cardinals substantially decreased.
A central part of the strategy of Gregory XIII's reform was to apply the recommendations of Trent. He was a liberal patron of the
recently formed Society of Jesus throughout Europe, for which he founded many new colleges. The Roman College, of the
Jesuits, grew substantially under his patronage, and became the most important centre of learning in Europe for a time, a
University of the Nations. It is now named the Pontifical Gregorian University. Pope Gregory XIII also founded numerous seminar-
ies for training priests, beginning with the German College at Rome, and put them in the charge of the Jesuits. In 1575 he gave
official status to the Congregation of the Oratory, a community of priests without vows, dedicated to prayer and preaching (found-
ed by Saint Filippo Neri).
Gregory XIII is best known for his reformation of the calendar, producing the Gregorian calendar with the aid of Jesuit
priest/astronomer Christopher Clavius. The reason for the reform is that the average length of the year in the Julian Calendar was
too long, and the date of the actual Vernal Equinox had slowly slipped to March 10, whereas the computus (calculation) of the
Easter date of Easter still followed the traditional date of March 21.
This was rectified by following the observations of Clavius and Johannes Kepler, and the calendar was changed when Pope
Gregory XIII decreed that the day after October 4, 1582 would be October 15, 1582. He issued the papal bull Inter gravissimas to
promulgate the new calendar on February 24, 1582. On October 15, 1582, this calendar replaced the Julian calendar, in use since
45 BC, and has become universally used today.
The switchover was bitterly opposed by much of the populace, who feared it was an attempt by landlords to cheat them out of a
week and a half's rent. However, the Catholic countries of Spain, Portugal, Poland, and Italy complied. France, some states of the
Dutch Republic and various Catholic states in Germany and Switzerland (both countries were religiously split) followed suit within
a year or two, and Hungary followed in 1587.
Because of the Pope's decree, the reform of the Julian calendar came to be known as the Gregorian calendar. However, the rest
of Europe did not follow suit for more than a century. Denmark, the remaining states of the Dutch Republic, and the Protestant
states of the Holy Roman Empire and Switzerland adopted the Gregorian reform in 1700-1701. By this time, the calendar trailed
the seasons by 11 days. Great Britain (and its American colonies) finally followed suit in 1752, and Wednesday, September 2,
1752 was immediately followed by Thursday, September 14, 1752; they were joined by the last Protestant holdout, Sweden, on
March 1, 1753.
The Gregorian Calendar was not accepted in eastern Christendom for several hundred years, and then only as the civil calendar.
The Gregorian Calendar was instituted in Russia by the communists in 1917, and the last Eastern Orthodox country to accept the
calendar was Greece in 1923.
While some Eastern Orthodox national churches have accepted the Gregorian Calendar dates for "fixed" feasts (feasts that occur
on the same date every year), the dates of all movable feasts (such as Easter) are still calculated in the Eastern Orthodox
Churches by reference to the Julian Calendar.
Though he expressed the conventional fears of the danger from the Turks, Gregory XIII's attentions were more consistently
directed to the dangers from the Protestants.
He encouraged the plans of Phillip II to dethrone Elizabeth I of England (15581603) thus succeeded in developing an atmos-
phere of subversion and imminent danger among English Protestants, who looked on any Roman Catholic as a potential traitor.
In 1578, to further the plans of exiled English and Irish catholics such as Nicholas Sanders William Cardinal Allen and James
Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald, Gregory outfitted adventurer Thomas Stukeley with a ship and an army of 800 men to land in Ireland to
aid in the hoped for overthrow of Elizabeth's rule through the Catholic leader and former leader of the first Desmond rebellion,
Fitzmaurice. To his dismay Stukeley joined his forces with those of King Sebastian of Portugal against Emperor Abdul Malik of
Morocco instead. Another papal expedition sailed to Ireland in 1579 with a mere 50 soldiers under the command of Fitzmaurice,
accompanied by Sanders as papal legate. The resulting Second Desmond Rebellion was equally unsuccessful. Gregory's great-
est success came in his patronage of colleges and seminaries which he founded on the Continent for the Irish and English,
among others. Pope Gregory XIII had no connection with the plot of Henry, Duke of Guise, and his brother, Charles, Duke of
Mayenne, to assassinate Elizabeth I in 1582, and most probably knew nothing about it beforehand.
An embarrassing moment for the Papacy was the Massacre of Huguenots in France, although it is commonly held that the Pope
was ignorant of the nature of the plot at the time, having been told the Huguenots had tried to take over the government but
failed. He celebrated the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacres in 1572 with a Te Deum, three frescoes depicting the events in the
Sala Regia of the Vatican Palace commended to painter Giorgio Vasari and a commemorative medal, with his portrait and on the
obverse a chastising angel, sword in hand and the legend UGONOTTORUM STRAGES ("Slaughter of the Huguenots ")
In Rome Gregory XIII built the magnificent Gregorian chapel in the Basilica of St. Peter, and extended the Quirinal Palace in
1580. He also turned the Baths of Diocletian into a granary in 1575.
He appointed his illegitimate son Giacomo, born to his mistress at Bologna before his papacy, castellan of St. Angelo and gon-
falonier of the Church; Venice, anxious to please, enrolled him among its nobles. Philip II of Spain appointed him general in his
army. Gregory also helped his son to become a powerful feudatary through the acquisition of the Duchy of Sora, on the border
between the Papal States and te Kingdom of Naples.
In order to raise funds for these and similar objects, he confiscated a large proportion of the houses and properties throughout the
states of the Church a measure which enriched his treasury, indeed, for a time, but by alienating the great body of the nobility
and gentry, revived old factions, created new ones, and ultimately plunged his temporal dominions into a state bordering upon
anarchy. Such was the position of matters at the time of Gregory XIII's death, which took place on April 10, 1585.
Gregory XIII was succeeded by Pope Sixtus V (15851590).
The oldest Papal tiara still in existence dates from the reign of Gregory XIII.
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XIII., 1572-1585.
Scudo doro. Anno VII (1577/1578) Rome mint. 3,27 g.
Obv.: GREG XIII PONT M A VIICoat of arms surmounted by crossed

Rev.: Bust of Christ with halo left. Legend begins with mintmark. BEARE
SOLEO AMICO MEOS
Reference: Fb. 85; Muntoni 5 b. GOLD. Very rare, good XF.

Gregory XIII., 1572-1585. Gregory XIII., 1572-1585.
Scudo doro. Ancona mint. 3,30 g. Scudo doro. Ancona mint. 3,26 g.
Obv.: GREGORIV XIII P M AX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: GREGO XIII PONT M Bust of pope right; ANCO beneath bust.
Rev.: DAT. ACCI PIT. REDDIT Personification of Charity frontal, with
Rev.: CHARITAS EX DEVS ANCO Personification of Charity frontal, 3 children.
with 3 children.
Reference: Berman 1208; CNI 131; Friedberg 311; Muntoni 182.
Reference: Fb. 312; Muntoni 181. GOLD. Extremely rare. VF/XF. Extremely rare. XF.
Estimate: 4000 EUR. Price realized: 6,500 EUR (approx. 9,963 U.S. Estimation CHF 8000. Price realized: 11,500 CHF (approx. 8,729 U.S.
Scudo doro. Bologna mint. 3,31 g. Testone. Rome mint.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M {mintmark} Coat of arms surmount-
crossed keys and papal tiara. ed by crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: Floreate cross, flanked by coats of arms at bottom. Small 4-petal Rev.: Nativity scence with holy family, barn with cows field right, star of
rosette at bottom. DOCET BONONIA bethlehem above. ROMA flanked by triskeles in exurge.
Reference: Fb. 351; Muntoni 355. GOLD. Very rare. XF. Reference: Muntoni 6. Very rare, good VF.
Estimate: 2000 EUR. Price realized: 3,600 EUR (approx. 5,518 U.S. Estimate: 500 EUR. Price realized: 1,400 EUR (approx. 2,146 U.S.

Testone. Rome mint. Testone. 1575 Rome mint. 31 mm 9,28 g.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M Bust of pope right. Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M Bust of pope right.
Rev.: ETTIBIDABO CLAVES, Christ on right handing key to St Peter, Rev.: IVSTI INRABVNT PER EAM Holy Door with date on it
who is kneeling and holding book at left . ROMA in exurge. (AN/.D./15/75); flanked by RO MA ; monogram-like mintmark in
exurge.
Reference: (Muntoni 22). Very fine, scarce.
Reference: Muntoni 29 var. Scarce, VF.
Estimation: 60. Price realized: 120 GBP (approx. 171 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date) Estimate: EUR 150. Price realized: 150 EUR (approx. 223 U.S. Dollars as
Testone. 1575 Rome mint. 9,62 g. Testone. 1575 Rome mint. 31 mm 9,49 g.
Rev.: IVSTI INRABVNT PER EAM Holy Door with date on it Rev.: IVSTI INRABVNT PER EAM Holy Door with date on it (A N /
(AN/.D./15/75); flanked by RO MA ; shield mintmark in exurge. DNI / M D / LXX / V); flanked by RO MA ; shield mintmark in exurge.
Reference: (CNI 26; M 29 var; B 1151). Some minor striking weakness, Reference: CNI 49. Muntoni 33. Berman 1151. About VF.
but with a good portrait and even toning, about extremely fine and rare.
Estimate: 400. of the auction date)

Testone. 1575 Rome mint. 31 mm 9,37 g. Testone. Rome mint. 34 mm 9,14 g.
Rev.: IVSTI INRABVNT PER EAM Holy Door with date on it Rev.: NON APPARENTIVM EST FIDES Fides (Faith) seated frontal,
(AN/.15/75); flanked by RO MA ; shield mintmark in exurge. looking to right, holding cup in right hand and cross in left hand. ROMA
in exurge.
Reference: M 33 var. I. B 1151. XF.
Reference: CNI 360. Muntoni 39 var. Berman 1156. Rare. Rim fracture at
Estimate CHF 250. Price realized: 320 CHF (approx. 237 U.S. Dollars as 4:00 oclock. VF.
Testone. Rome mint. 9,55 g. Testone. Rome mint. 30 mm 8,89 g.
Rev.: FIDES NON DEFICIET Nimbate St. Peter seated facing slightly to Rev.: FIDES NON DEFICIET Nimbate St. Peter seated facing slightly to
right, holding keys and open book, and looking down at book; below, right, holding keys and open book, and looking down at book; below,
shield. shield.
Reference: Berman 1158. CNI XVI, p. 38, 295. Muntoni 44. Toned. Good Reference: M 44 var. B 1158. Rare, VF+
very fine.
Estimate CHF 150. Price realized: 180 CHF (approx. 133 U.S. Dollars as
Estimate: CHF 300.00. Price realized: 500 CHF (approx. 333 U.S. Dollars of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XIII., 1572-1585.
Testone. Anno XIII (1584/1585) Rome mint.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M A XIII Bust of pope left. Mintmark

below bust.
Rev.: SIC DECET IMPLERE Baptism of Christ; holy spirit above.

ROMA in exurge.
Reference: Muntoni 63 b. Fast sehr schn
Testone. Rome mint. 29 mm 8,91 g. Testone. Rome mint. 9,64 g.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M Bust of pope right in paneled cloak; Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M Bust of pope right in paneled cloak;
panel with figure of St. Peter, aegis fibula on cloak. panel with figure of St. Peter, aegis fibula on cloak.
Rev.: SIGNA INFIDELIBUS / ROMA and Boncompagni coat-of-arms Rev.: SIGNA INFIDELIBUS / ROMA in exurge. Radiate nimbate Moses
in exurge. Radiate nimbate Moses kneeling before the Lord, holding staff kneeling before the Lord, holding staff changing into serpent.
changing into serpent.
Reference: CNI XVI pg. 41, 317; Muntoni II pg. 33, 68; Berman 1168
Reference: M 68. B 1168. Minor corrosion. VF. var. (exergual legend). Toned good VF.
Estimate CHF 180. Price realized: 180 CHF (approx. 133 U.S. Dollars as Estimate $1000. Price realized: 1,250 USD.

Testone. Rome mint. 32 mm 8,42 g. Testone. 1582, Ancona mint. 9,55 g.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M - AX Bust of pope left. Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONTI M Bust of pope right. Date 1582 below
bust.
Rev.: VENITEADME OM[NESETE] GOREFICIAMVOS Jesus on
right, standing left, preaching to the people. ROMA below scene. Rev.: NOLI ME TANGERE On left side, Nimbate risen Christ stands
frontal, looking slightly at figure on right, his right hand raised in bless-
Reference: CNI 208. Muntoni 73. Berman 1172. Of the greatest rarity, ing, left hand holding spear; at right nimbate Mary Magdalene knweeling.
somewhat famous example. VVF. In exurge, shield divides AN - CO.
Estimate: EUR 1500. Reference: Berman 1213; Munt. 200 a. XF.
Testone. 1582, Ancona mint. Testone. 1582, Ancona mint.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONTI M Bust of pope right. Date 1582 Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONTI M Bust of pope right. Date 1582
below bust. below bust.
Rev.: NOLI ME TANGERE On left side, Nimbate risen Christ stands Rev.: NOLI ME TANGERE On left side, Nimbate risen Christ stands
frontal, looking slightly at figure on right, his right hand raised in bless- frontal, looking slightly at figure on right, his right hand raised in bless-
ing, left hand holding spear; at right nimbate Mary Magdalene knweeling. ing, left hand holding spear; at right nimbate Mary Magdalene knweeling.
In exurge, shield divides AN - CO. In exurge, shield divides AN - CO.
Reference: Muntoni 200 a. Rare, F-VF. Reference:Muntoni 200 a. F/VF.
Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 100 EUR (approx. 153 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 150 EUR (approx. 191 U.S. Dollars as

Testone. Ancona mint. 9,23 g. Testone. Ancona mint.
Obv.: GREGORI XIII P MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII PONT M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
and papal tiara. keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: NVNCVAM SITLET Jesus and the Samaritan woman beside the Rev.: S PETRVS ANCONA St. Peter stands, looking to right, holding
well; in exurge *ANCON* on ribbon. keys in right hand.
Reference: CNI 190 var.; Muntoni 204 var.; Berman 1214. SPL. Very rare Reference: Muntoni 206 ff. Nice Patina. VF.
in this condition.
Estimate: CHF 1650 / euro 1056. Price realized: 1,850 CHF (approx. of the auction date)
1,506 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Testone. Ancona mint. 31 mm 9,43 g. Testone. Ancona mint. 29 mm 9,46 g.
Obv.: GREGOR XIII P M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and Obv.: GREGORIVS. XIII. PONT. M., ANCONA below bust.
papal tiara.
Rev.: SVSPICE . ET. VALEBIS. Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
Rev.: APOSTOLVS S PETRVS Nimbate St. Peter enthroned frontal, right keys and papal tiara.
hand raised in blessing, left hand holding keys. In exurge, mintmark sep-
arates AN - CO. Reference: CNI 140. Muntoni 244. Serafini 559. Berman 1220. XF.
Reference: M 230. B 1218. Nice patina. XF. Estimate: EUR 500. Price realized: 500 EUR (approx. 614 U.S. Dollars as

Testone. Ancona mint. 30 mm 9,44 g. Testone. Ancona mint. 30 mm 9,44 g.
Obv.: GREGORIVS. XIII. PONT. M., ANCONA below bust. Obv.: GREGORIVS. X.III. PONT. M., AN.CO below bust.
Rev.: SVSPICE . ET. VALEBIS. Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Rev.: SVSPICE . ET. VALEBIS. Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
Reference: M 250 var. B 1220. XF. Reference: Muntoni 262. SVF.
Estimate CHF 400. Price realized: 550 CHF (approx. 407 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 325 EUR (approx. 498 U.S. Dollars as
Testone. Avignon mint. 30 mm 9,38 g. Testone. Macerata mint. 9,55 g.
Obv.: +GREGORIVS XIII: PONTI: MAX: 1575 Bust of opoe left. Obv.: GREGORIS XIII P M MACE Bust of pope right.
Rev.: + CARO : CAR : D : BOVRBON : LEGA : AVENIO in the field Rev.: SVSPICE . ET. VALEBIS. Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
shield with the three fleur-de-lis, sopped by cardinals hat with ribbons. keys and papal tiara.
Reference: Muntoni 339. Serafini 866. Berman 1294. Very rare. VF+ Reference: Berman 1279; Munt. 425. XF.
Estimate: EUR 900. Price realized: 1,000 EUR (approx. 1,228 U.S. Estimation CHF 400. Price realized: 1,600 CHF (approx. 1,215 U.S.

Gregorio. Bologna mint. Quattrino. Macerata mint.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XIII P MA Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: GREGO XIII P M Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys and
keys and papal tiara. papal tiara.
Rev.: St. Petronius seated frontal, looking at church model held in right Rev.: Figure (St. Julius?) stands frontal, banner in right hand, downturned
hand, crozier in left hand. DE BONONIA S PETRONIVS Saint flanked sword in left hand. S IVLIA MACERA
by coats of arms at his feet.
Reference: Muntoni 364. Rare, VF +
Estimate: 150 EUR. Price realized: 450 EUR (approx. 690 U.S. Dollars as the auction date)
Billon 6 blancs. Avignon mint. 4,04 g. Billon 6 blancs. Avignon mint.
Obv.: Letter G with papal tiara above. GREGORIVS XIII PONTIF MAX Obv.: Letter G with papal tiara above. GREGORIVS XIII PONTIF MAX
Rev.: Cross with fleur-de-lis ends. Legend around refers to Charles, cardi- Rev.: Cross with fleur-de-lis ends. Legend around refers to Charles, cardi-
nal de Bourbon, legate, and Georges dArmagnac. nal de Bourbon, legate, and Georges dArmagnac.
Reference: B., 946; Munt., 341; Berman, 1295; P.A., 4313. F - VF Reference: Muntoni 341, PdA 4313. Extremely rare. F.
Estimate: EUR 75. Price realized: 60 EUR (approx. 72 U.S. Dollars as of Estimate: 300 EUR. Price realized: 410 EUR (approx. 594 U.S. Dollars as
the auction date) of the auction date)
Sixtus V - 24 April 1585 to 27 Augt 1590
Pope Sixtus V (December 13, 1521 August 27, 1590), born Felice Peretti di Montalto, was
Pope from 1585 to 1590.
Felice Peretti was born at Grottammare, in the Marche, son of Piergentile di Giacomo, nick-
named "Peretto", and Marianna da Frontillo. He took the surname "Peretti" in 1551 and was
more generally known as "di Montalto". He was reared in poverty. His father was a gardener
and it is said of Felice that, when a boy, he was a swineherd.
According to Andrija Zmajevic's chronicle, his father originated from the Bay of Kotor (mod-
ern-day Montenegro) and was born in Bjelske Kruevice, a village near Bijela, into the iic
family, possibly called Slavjan. The theory that he comes from the Svilanovic family is
unfounded. As a child, he served in a Catholic monastery in Kotor, where he converted from
Serbian Orthodoxy to Roman Catholicism and was subsequently taken to Italy by an Italian
friar. He settled in Ancona, where he married and had Felice Peretti (Srecko Peric in modern
Serbo-Croat). Not much else is recorded about Peretti's father, but when Felice eventually
became Pope Sixtus V, he rebuilt the church of Saint Jerome in Rome (finished in 1589), to
be used specifically for the people who spoke the Illyrian language. He also established a
college of eleven Slavonic clerics in his papal bull Sapientiam Sanctorum of August 1, 1589.
This was later transformed into the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome.
At an early age he entered a Franciscan monastery at Montalto delle Marche and was known as Felice di Montalto. He soon gave
evidence of rare ability as a preacher and a dialectician. About 1552 he was noticed by Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi (150064),
protector of his order, Ghislieri (later Pope Pius V) and Caraffa (later Pope Paul IV), and from that time his advancement was
assured. He was sent to Venice as inquisitor general, but was so severe and carried matters with such a high hand that he
became embroiled in quarrels. The government asked for his recall in 1560.
After a brief term as procurator of his order, he was attached to the Spanish legation headed by Ugo Boncampagni (later Pope
Gregory XIII) in 1565, which was sent to investigate a charge of heresy levelled against Archbishop Bartolome Carranza of Toledo.
The violent dislike he conceived for Boncampagni exerted a marked influence upon his subsequent actions. He hurried back to
Rome upon the accession of Pius V (156672), who made him apostolic vicar of his order, and, later (1570), cardinal.
During the pontificate of his political enemy Gregory XIII (157285) the Cardinal Montalto, as he was generally called, lived in
enforced retirement, occupied with the care of his property, the Villa Montalto, erected by Domenico Fontana close to his beloved
church on the Esquiline Hill, overlooking the Baths of Diocletian. The first phase (157680) was enlarged after Peretti became
pope and could clear buildings to open four new streets in 15851586. The villa contained two residences, the Palazzo Sistino or
"di Termini" ("of the Baths") and the casino, called the Palazzetto Montalto e Felice. Displaced Romans were furious. The decision
to build the central pontifical railroad station (begun in 1869) in the area of the Villa marked the beginning of its destruction.
The Cardinal Montalto's other concern was with his studies, one of the fruits of which was an edition of the works of Ambrose; not
neglecting, however, to follow the course of affairs, but carefully avoiding every occasion of offence. This discreetness contributed
not a little to Sixtus V's election to the papacy on April 24, 1585; but the story of his having feigned decrepitude in the conclave, in
order to win votes, is a pure invention. One of the things that commended his candidacy to certain Cardinals was his physical
vigour, which seemed to promise a long pontificate.
The terrible condition in which Pope Gregory XIII had left the ecclesiastical states called for prompt and stern measures. Against
the prevailing lawlessness Sixtus V proceeded with an almost ferocious severity, which only extreme necessity could justify.
Thousands of brigands were brought to justice: within a short time the country was again quiet and safe. Next Sixtus V set to work
to repair the finances. By the sale of offices, the establishment of new "Monti" and by levying new taxes, he accumulated a vast
surplus, which he stored up against certain specified emergencies, such as a crusade or the defence of the Holy See. Sixtus V
prided himself upon his hoard, but the method by which it had been amassed was financially unsound: some of the taxes proved
ruinous, and the withdrawal of so much money from circulation could not fail to cause distress.
Immense sums, however, were spent upon public works, in carrying through the comprehensive planning that had come to fruition
during his retirement, bringing water to the waterless hills in the Acqua Felice that commemorates his baptismal name, laying out
new arteries in Rome, which connected the great basilicas, even setting his engineer-architect Domenico Fontana to replan the
Colisseum as a silk-spinning factory housing its workers. The Pope set no limit to his plans; and what he achieved in his short pon-
tificate, carried through always at top speed, is almost incredible; the completion of the dome of St. Peter's; the loggia of Sixtus in
the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano; the chapel of the Praesepe in Santa Maria Maggiore; additions or repairs to the Quirinal,
Lateran and Vatican palaces; the erection of four obelisks, including that in St Peter's Square; the opening of six streets; the
restoration of the aqueduct of Septimius Severus ("Acqua Felice"); the integration of the Leonine City in Rome as XIV rione
(Borgo); besides numerous roads and bridges, an attempt to drain the Pontine Marshes, and the encouragement of agriculture and
manufacture.
But Sixtus V had no appreciation of antiquities, which were employed as raw material to serve his urbanistic and Christianising
programs: Trajan's Column and the Column of Marcus Aurelius (at the time misidentified as the Column of Antoninus Pius) were
made to serve as pedestals for the statues of SS Peter and Paul; the Minerva of the Capitol was converted into an emblem of
Christian Rome; the Septizonium of Septimius Severus was demolished for its building materials.
The subsequent administrative system of the Church owed much to Sixtus V. He limited the College of Cardinals to seventy; and
doubled the number of the congregations, and enlarged their functions, assigning to them the principal role in the transaction of
business (1588). He regarded the Jesuits with disfavour and suspicion. He meditated radical changes in their constitution, but
death prevented the execution of his purpose. In 1589 was begun a revision of the Vulgate, the so-called Editio Sixtina.
In his larger political relations, however, Sixtus V showed himself visionary and vacillating. He entertained fantastic ambitions, such
as the annihilation of the Turks, the conquest of Egypt, the transporting of the Holy Sepulchre to Italy, and the accession of his
nephew to the throne of France. The situation in which he found himself was embarrassing: he could not countenance the designs
of heretical princes, and yet he mistrusted Philip II of Spain (155698) and viewed with apprehension any extension of his power.
Sixtus V agreed to renew the excommunication of Queen Elizabeth I of England (15581603), and to grant a large subsidy to the
Armada of King Philip II, but, knowing the slowness of Spain, would give nothing till the expedition should actually land in England.
In this way he was saved his million crowns, and spared the reproach of having taken futile proceedings against what Roman
Catholics viewed as the heretic Queen. This excommunication which Catholics of the day considered richly deserved, and there is
extant a proclamation to justify it, which was to have been published in England if the invasion had been successful. It was signed
by Cardinal Allen, and is entitled "An Admonition to the Nobility and Laity of England". It was intended to comprise all that could be
said against Queen Elizabeth I, and the indictment is therefore fuller and more forcible than any other put forward by the religious
exiles, who were generally very reticent in their complaints. Allen also carefully consigned his publication to the fire, and we only
know of it through one of Elizabeth's ubiquitous spies, who had previously stolen a copy.
Sixtus V excommunicated Henry of Navarre (future Henry IV of France), and contributed to the Catholic League, but he chafed
under his forced alliance with Philip II, and looked for escape. The victories of Henry and the prospect of his conversion to
Catholicism raised Sixtus V's hopes, and in corresponding degree determined Philip II to tighten his grip upon his wavering ally.
The Pope's negotiations with Henry's representative evoked a bitter and menacing protest and a categorical demand for the per-
formance of promises. Sixtus V took refuge in evasion, and temporized until death relieved him of the necessity of coming to a
decision (August 27, 1590).
On his death bed his subjects loathed Sixtus V, but history has recognized him as one of the great figures of the Counter
Reformation. On the negative he could be impulsive, obstinate, severe, and autocratic. On the positive he was open to large ideas
and threw himself into his undertakings with a lot of energy as well as determination. This often led to success. His reign saw great
enterprises and large achievements.
The changes wrought by Sixtus V on the streetscape of Rome were documented in the film, "Rome: Impact of an Idea", featuring
Edmund N. Bacon and based on sections of his book Design of Cities.
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Piastra. 1588. Rome mint. 42 mm 31,38 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V [PONT] MAX ANN IIII Bust of pope right in circle.
1588 under bust in legend.
Rev.: IN TE SIGNVM NOSTRE REDENPTIONIS Kneeling and nim-

bate St. Francis receiving stigmata. The Crucifiction on cliff left; cliffs in field
right.
Reference: CNI 122. Muntoni 6 var I. Serafini 3. Spaziani Testa 4 (R6).

Davenport 8328. Berman 1312. Rare. Scratches on reverse. VF.
Estimate: CHF 5000. Price realized: 5,500 CHF (approx. 4,365 U.S. Dollars as
Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Piastra. 1588, Year 4, by Guglielmo Troncco . Rome mint. Piastra. 1589, Year 5, by Guglielmo Troncco . Rome mint. 41 mm
29.69 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope left. Date 1588 below
bust divided by makers mark. Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN V Bust of pope left. Date 1589 below
bust divided by makers mark.
Rev.: IN - TE SITIO St. Francis recieving stigmata. Tree in field right,
city in left. ROMAE in exurge. Rev.: IN - TE SITIO St. Francis recieving stigmata. Tree in field right,
city in left. ROMAE in exurge.
Reference: (CNI 126; Muntoni 7). Very fine, rare.
Reference: Berman 1313; CNI 177; Dav. 8329; Muntoni 7a. Very rare.
Estimation: 1000. Price realized: 1,250 GBP (approx. 1,777 U.S. Dollars Abouto XF.

Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Piastra. 1588, Year 4, by Guglielmo Troncco . Rome mint. Piastra. 1588, Year 4, by Guglielmo Troncco . Rome mint. 29,38 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope left. Date 1588 below Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope left. Date 1588 below
bust divided by makers mark. bust divided by makers mark.
Rev.: IN - TE SITIO St. Francis recieving stigmata. Tree in field right, Rev.: IN - TE SITIO St. Francis recieving stigmata. Tree in field right,
city in left. ROMAE in exurge. city in left. ROMAE in exurge.
Reference: Dav. 8329; Muntoni 7 var. Very rare, Attractive Patina, light Reference: Dav. 8329; Muntoni 7 light var. Rare, VF.
traces of work, VF.
Estimate: 2.000 EUR. Price realized: 2,400 EUR (approx. 3,221 U.S.
Estimate: 1,000.00 EUR. Price realized: 2,500 EUR (approx. 3,001 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Piastra. 1588. Ancona mint. 43 mm 31,24 g.
Obv.: SIXTVSVPONTOPTM Bust of pope left. Date 1588 below bust fol-
lowed by makers mark.
Rev.: ANCON / DORICA / CIVITAS / FIDEI / Star, Fleur-De-Lis and rider rid-
ing left . All in wreath.
Reference: CNI 55 var. Spaziani Testa 10. Muntoni 69 var.I. Berman 1346 var.
Davenport 8333.
Extremely rare, VF+
Estimate: EUR 20000. Price realized: 25,000 EUR (approx. 33,311 U.S.

Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Piastra. 1588 - Anno IV. Ancona mint. 42 mm 31,59 g. Testone. Anno I. Rome mint. 31 mm 9,35 g.
Obv.: SYXTVS. V. PONTIFEX OPT. MAX. Bust of pope left. A IIII below Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX A I {makers mark} Coat of arms flanked
bust. by cherubs; surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: SVB . TVVM . PRSIDIV. CONFVGIMVS, in exurge ANCONA/ * Rev.: Fidelity stands frontal, holding papal tiara in extended right hand,
Blessed Virgin, nimbate and veiled, holding Christ child, seated to right cross in left hand. NVNQVVAM DEFICIET In exurge: ROMA
over Church of St. Loretto, with bell tower on left.
Reference: M 13. B 1318. VF.
Reference: CNI 42. Muntoni 75. ST 9 (R6). Serafini 148. Davenport 8332.
Berman 1348 Of utmost rarity. XF. Estimate CHF 150. Price realized: 150 CHF (approx. 111 U.S. Dollars as
Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Anno I. Rome mint. 31 mm 9,35 g. Testone. Rome mint.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX A I {makers mark} Coat of arms flanked Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX Bust of pope left.
by cherubs; surmounted by crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: NVNQVAM DEFICIET Fidelity stands frontal, holding papal tiara
Rev.: Fidelity stands frontal, holding papal tiara in extended right hand, in extended right hand, cross in left hand.
cross in left hand. NVNQVAM DEFICIET In exurge: ROMA
Reference: (Muntoni 16). Fine, scarce.
Reference: Muntoni 13. Rim tear, VF.
Estimation: 40. Price realized: 70 GBP (approx. 100 U.S. Dollars as of
Estimate: 75 EUR. Price realized: 210 EUR (approx. 322 U.S. Dollars as the auction date)

Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Rome mint. (1587/1588) 30 mm 9,38 g. Testone. Rome mint. (1588/1589)
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN III Bust of pope right. GT below bust. Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope right. GT below bust.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA St. Peter standing, looking to left, hold- Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter standing, looking to
ing keys and book. left, holding keys and book.
Reference: Muntoni 32b, CNI 151. VF. Reference: Berman 1325; CNI 142; Muntoni 38. Sehr schn
Estimate: EUR 300. Price realized: 340 EUR (approx. 505 U.S. Dollars as Estimate: 125 EUR. Price realized: 400 EUR (approx. 441 U.S. Dollars
Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Rome mint. (1588/1589) 31 mm 9,51 g. Testone. Rome mint. (1588/1589) 31 mm 9,51 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope right. GT below bust. Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX AN IIII Bust of pope right. GT below bust.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter standing, looking to Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter standing, looking to
left, holding keys and book. left, holding keys and book.
Reference: M 38. B 1325. Splendid patina, XF. Reference: Muntoni 38 var. Nice patina, VF.
Estimate CHF 650. Price realized: 1,700 CHF (approx. 1,257 U.S. Dollars Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 370 EUR (approx. 444 U.S. Dollars

Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Rome mint. 1588. Testone. Rome mint. 1588.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX A IIII Bust of pope left. Obv.: SIXTVS V PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
and papal tiara.
Rev.: S PETRVS ALM ROMA Nimbate St. Peter seated to left, holding
keys and book. In exurge makers mark divides date 15-88. Rev.: S PETRVS ALM ROMA Nimbate St. Peter seated to left, holding
keys and book. In exurge makers mark divides date 15-88.
Reference: Berman 1327/1329; CNI -; Muntoni 46. VF/F.
Reference: Muntoni 47. Flan damage ar rim, VF.
as of the auction date) Estimate: 100.00 EUR. Price realized: 160 EUR (approx. 192 U.S. Dollars
Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Ancona mint. 1585. Testone. Ancona mint. 1585. 9.34 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PON M 1585 Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT M 1585 Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
Rev.: NOLI ME TANGERE Nimbate Mary Magdalene in field right Rev.: NOLI ME TANGERE Nimbate Mary Magdalene in field right
kneels to left before nimbate risen Christ, with his right hand raised, left kneels to left before nimbate risen Christ, with his right hand raised, left
hand holding downturned spear. In exurge coat of arms crowned by car- hand holding downturned spear. In exurge coat of arms crowned by car-
dinals hat divides AN-CO. dinals hat divides AN-CO.
Reference: Berman 1349; CNI 6; Muntoni 76. VF/F. Reference: (CNI 5; M 76 var; B 1349). Small scratch in the reverse field
but a decent very fine and rare.
as of the auction date) Estimate: 250.

Sixtus V., 1585-1590. Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Testone. Bologna mint. 32 mm 9.08 g. Testone. Bologna mint. 33 mm 10,08 g.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX Bust of pope right. Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: HINC FIDES ET FORTITVDO Felsina seated to left on shields, Rev.: HINC FIDES ET FORTITVDO Felsina seated to left on shields,
one foot on helmet, holding book and banner. In exurge: BONONIA (not one foot on helmet, holding book and banner. In exurge: BONONIA
toally visible here).
Reference: M 96. B 1260. VF.
Reference: CNI 12. Muntoni 96. Berman 1360. VF.
Estimate: EUR 300. Price realized: 450 EUR (approx. 668 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Billon 6 blancs. 1587. Avignon. mint. 3,69 g.
Obv.: S topped with papal tiara. SIXTVS V PONTIF MAX 1587.
Rev.: Cross with fleur-de-lis ends. KA DE BOURBON CARD LEGA AVEN

(referring to Charles, cardinal de Bourbon, legate.
Reference: B., 950; Munt., 88a; Berman, 1390; P.A., 4323. VF
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Obv.: S topped with papal tiara. Date below S. SIXTVS V PONTIF MAX
Rev.: Cross with fleur-de-lis ends. KA DE BOURBON CARD LEGA AVEN

(referring to Charles, cardinal de Bourbon, legate.
Reference: B., 950; Munt., 88a; Berman, 1390; P.A., 4323. Irregular flan. F - VF
Estimate: EUR 75.
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Obv.: S topped with papal tiara. SIXTVS V PONTIF MAX 1587.
Rev.: Cross with fleur-de-lis ends. KA DE BOURBON CARD LEGA AVEN (refer-
ring to Charles, cardinal de Bourbon, legate.
Reference: B., -; Munt., 103; Berman, 1392; P.A., -. Extremely rare. VF.
auction date)
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
Sesino. 1587. Bologna mint.
Obv.: SIXTVS V PONT MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: Coat of arms DOCET BONONIA
Reference: Ber#1366 F+ slightly porous, Scarce
US$ 40.00.
PAPAL COINS
Sixtus V., 1585-1590.
AE Counterfeit of the Baiocchella. Bologna mint. 19 mm 1,09 g.
Obv.: Bust of pope left. SIXTVS [...}
Rev.: Veiled figure stands frontal.
Reference: CNI 12 var. MIR 316. Rare, VF.
Rara. BB
auction date)
Sede Vacante, 1590
PAPAL COINS
Sede Vacante, 1590.
Quattrino. Montalto mint.
Obv.: Papal tiara over crossed keys. SEDE VACANTE
Rev.: MON/TAL/TO in ribbon circle.
No.: 3676
o. J., . Tiara ber gekreuzten Schlsseln. Rv. Mnzstttenname. 0,50 g. Munt. 17.
Sehr schn.
Estimation: CHF 180. Price realized: 145 CHF (approx. 117 U.S. Dollars as of the
auction date)
Urban VII - 15 Sept 1590 to 27 Sept 1590

Pope Urban VII (August 4, 1521 September 27, 1590), born Giovanni
Battista Castagna, was Pope for thirteen days in September 1590. He was of
Genoese origin, although born in Rome. He was chosen successor of Pope
Sixtus V (158590) on September 15, 1590, but died of malaria (September
27, 1590) before consecration, making his either the shortest or second
shortest papal reign in history, depending on whether Pope-elect Stephen is
considered a real Pope (he has not been so considered by the Catholic
Church since 1961).
He had previously served as governor of Bologna and as archbishop of

Rossano, and was for many years nuncio to Spain; his election to the papacy
was largely backed by the Spanish faction.
Urban VII's short passage in office gave rise to the world's first known public
smoking ban, as he threatened to excommunicate anyone who "took tobacco
in the porchway of or inside a church, whether it be by chewing it, smoking it with a pipe or sniffing it in
powdered form through the nose".
PAPAL COINS
Urban VII (15-27 September 1590)
AE Sesino. Bologna mint. 18 mm 1,03 g.
Obv.: VRBANVS VII PON MAX Bust of pope right.
Rev.: Coat of arms, DOCET BONONIA
Reference: Munt. 3. Serafini 8. Berman 1410. Rare. About VF.
Gregory XIV - 5 Dec 1590 to 15 /16 Oct 1591
Pope Gregory XIV (February 11, 1535 October 16, 1591), born Niccol Sfondrati, was Pope from
December 5, 1590 to October 16, 1591.
He was born at Somma Lombardo (now in the province of Varese, then part of the Duchy of Milan), in the
highest stratum of Milanese society, but was known for his modest lifestyle and stringent piety. His mother,
a Visconti, died in childbirth. His widower father Francesco, a senator of the ancient comune of Milan, was
created cardinal by Pope Paul III (1534 1549), in 1544.
Niccol studied at Perugia and Padua, was ordained as a priest, and swiftly appointed Bishop of Cremona,
in 1560, in time to participate in the sessions of the Council of Trent from 1561 1563. Pope Gregory XIII
(157285) made him a Cardinal-Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere on December 12, 1583. He was a
close follower of Carlo Borromeo, and when cardinal, he was an intimate friend and a great admirer of
Philip Neri, an Italian priest who died in 1595 and was canonized in 1622.
The conclave after the death of Pope Urban VII (September 27, 1590) was a protracted one. At the outset, Olivares presented a list
of the seven cardinals who would be acceptable to his master Philip II of Spain (1556 1598). Not until December 5, 1590, after
two months of deadlock, was Sfondrati elected, one of Philip II's seven. Cardinal Montalto, who came to his cell to inform him that
the Sacred College had agreed on his election, found him kneeling in prayer. When on the next day he was elected Pope Gregory
XIV he burst into tears and said to the cardinals: "God forgive you! What have you done?" In his bull Cogit nos, (March 21, 1591),
he forbade, under pain of excommunication, all bets concerning the election of a Pope, the duration of a pontificate, or the creation
of new cardinals.
Gregory XIV's brief pontificate was marked by vigorous intervention in favor of the Catholic party in the French Wars of Religion.
Instigated by the king of Spain and the duke of Mayenne, he excommunicated Henry IV of France (1589 1610) on March 1,
1591, reiterating the declaration of Pope Sixtus V (1585) that as a heretic Henry of Navarre was excluded from the succession to
the throne of France, and declaring him to be deprived of his dominions. Gregory XIV also levied an army for the invasion of
France and dispatched his nephew Ercole Sfondrati to France at its head and sent a monthly subsidy of 15,000 scudi to Paris, to
reinforce the Catholic League. Thus was abandoned the recent papal policy of trying to maintain a balance between Spain and
France, coming down solidly on the side of Spanish interests, in part because Gregory XIV was elected due to the influence of the
Spanish cardinals. Gregory XIV created five Cardinals, among whom was his nephew Paolo Emilio Sfondrati, his Secretary of
State. He attempted to convince Philip Neri, a long-time friend, to accept the post of Cardinal, but Neri refused, saying that there
were many more deserving of the honour than him.
In a decree dated 18 April 1591, Gregory XIV ordered reparations to be made by Catholics in the Philippines to the natives, who
had been forced into slavery by Europeans, and commanded under pain of excommunication that all native slaves in the islands
should be set free (though African slaves were apparently still permitted). The biographers mention as a curious personal trait of
Pope Gregory XIV: a nervous tendency to laughter which occasionally became irresistible, and which manifested itself even at his
coronation. Gregory, who was in poor health even before his election to the papacy, was succeeded by Innocent IX after he died
due to a large gallstone.
PAPAL COINS
Gregory XIV., 1590-1591.
Doppia. Bologna mint. 6,60 g.
Obv.: GREGORIVS XVVVV PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed

k eys and papal tiara.
Rev.: Floreate cross, flanked by shields at lower end. DOCET BONONIA
Reference: Fb. 355; Muntoni 3. GOLD. Extremely rare. VF/XF.
Estimate: 7500 EUR. Price realized: 13,000 EUR (approx. 19,926 U.S. Dollars as
Innocent IX - 29 Oct 1591 to 30 Dec 1591
Pope Innocent IX (July 20, 1519 December 30, 1591), born Giovanni Antonio
Facchinetti, was Pope from October 29, 1591 through his death on December 30 of
the same year. Prior to his short papacy, he had been a Canon Lawyer, diplomat,
and chief administrator during the reign of Pope Gregory XIV (1590-1591).
Facchinetti was born in Crodo, in the diocese of Novara, northern Italy. He was a
lawyer, a graduate in 1544 of the University of Bologna, which was pre-eminent in
jurisprudence, and became secretary to Cardinal Nicol Ardinghelli before entering
the service of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, brother of the Duke of Parma and
nephew of Pope Paul III (1534-1549), one of the great patrons of the time. The
Cardinal, who was archbishop of Avignon, sent Facchinetti there as his ecclesiastical
representative and subsequently recalled him to the management of his affairs at
Parma, where he was acting governor of the city, from 1556 to 1558. In 1560,
Facchinetti was named Bishop of Nicastro, in Calabria, and in 1562 was present at
the Council of Trent. Pope Pius V (1566-1572) sent him as papal nuncio to Venice in
1566 to further the papal alliance with Spain and Venice against the Turks, which
ultimately resulted in the victory of Lepanto in 1571. Relinquishing his see to pursue
his career in Rome, he was named titular Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem in 1572.
During the reign of the sickly Gregory XIV, who suffered from bouts of malaria, the
burden of the papal administration rested on his shoulders. Even before Gregory XIV
breathed his last, Spanish and anti-Spanish factions were electioneering for the next
Pope. Philip II of Spain's (1556-1598) high-handed interference at the previous conclave was not forgotten: he had barred all but
seven cardinals. This time the Spanish party in the College of Cardinals did not go so far, but they still controlled a majority, and
after a quick conclave they raised Facchinetti to the papal chair as Pope Innocent IX. Mindful of the origin of his success, Innocent
IX supported, during his two months' pontificate, the cause of Philip II and the Catholic League against Henry IV of France (1589-
1610) in the civil Wars of Religion (1562-1598), where a papal army was in the field. Death, however, did not permit the realization
of Innocent IX's schemes.
His great-nephew Cardinal Giovanni Antonio Facchinetti de Nuce, juniore, was one of two Cardinals appointed during the weeks of
Innocent IX's pontificate. A later member of the Cardinalate was his great-grand-nephew Cesare Facchinetti (made a Cardinal in
1643).
PAPAL COINS
Innocent IX., 1591
Bronze medal 1591. 31 mm.
Obv.: INOCENT IX PONT MAX Bust of pope right. ANNO I below bust.
Rev.: INNOCENTIO IX PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys

and papal tiara.
Reference: Spink 828 XF.
Starting Price EUR 30. Price realized: 70 EUR (approx. 102 U.S. Dollars as of
the auction date)
Clement VIII - 30 Jan 1592 to 3 March 1605
Pope Clement VIII (February 24, 1536 March 3, 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini,
was Pope from January 30, 1592 to March 3, 1605.
Born at Fano to a distinguished Florentine family, he studied law under his father, an
able jurist; his ecclesiastical career was as a lawyer: consistorial advocate, auditor of
the Rota and the Datary.
He was made a cardinal 1584 and sent him as legate in Poland. He placed himself
under the direction of the reformer Philip Neri, who for thirty years was his confessor.
Aldobrandini won the gratitude of the Habsburgs by his successful diplomatic efforts in
Poland to obtain the release of the imprisoned Archduke Maximilian, the defeated
claimant to the Polish throne.
After the death of Pope Innocent IX (1591), another stormy conclave ensued, where a
determined minority of Italian Cardinals were unwilling to be dictated to by Philip II of
Spain. Cardinal Aldobrandini's election on January 30, 1592, was received as a por-
tent of more balanced and liberal Papal policy in European affairs. He took the non-
politicized name Clement VIII. He proved to be an able Pope, with an unlimited capac-
ity for work and a lawyer's eye for detail, and a wise statesman, the general object of whose policy was to free the Papacy from
its dependence upon Spain.
In 1597, he established the Congregatio de Auxiliis which was to settle the theological controversy between the Dominican Order
and the Jesuits concerning the respective role of efficacious grace and free will. Although the debate tended toward a condemna-
tion of Molinism's insistence on free will to the detriment of efficacious grace, the important influence of the Jesuit Order
among other considerations which, beside important political and theological power in Europe, had also various missions
abroad (Jesuit Reducciones in South America, missions in China, etc.), led the Pope to abstain from an official condemnation of
the Jesuits. In 1611 and again in 1625 a decree prohibited any discussion of the matter, although it was often unformally avoided
by the publication of commentaries of Thomas Aquinas.
During the jubilee of 1600, three million pilgrims visited the holy places. The Synod of Brest was held 1595 in Lithuania, by which
a great part of the Ruthenian clergy and people were reunited to Rome.
Clement VIII presided at the conferences to determine the questions of grace and free will, controverted between the Jesuits and
Dominicans, were commenced under him, but he abstained from pronouncing a decision.
On February 17, 1600, Giordano Bruno, a strong believer of free will, was burned alive due to Clement VIII's approval of a guilty
verdict against Bruno.
Clement VIII canonized Hyacinth (17 April 1594) and Raymond of Peafort (1601).
The most remarkable event of Clement VIII's reign was the reconciliation to the Church of Henry IV of France (15891610), after
long negotiations, carried on with great dexterity through Cardinal Arnaud d'Ossat, that resolved the complicated situation in
France. Henry embraced Catholicism on July 25, 1593. After a pause to assess Henry IV's sincerity, Clement VIII braved Spanish
displeasure, and in the autumn of 1595 he solemnly absolved Henry IV, thus putting an end to the thirty years' religious war in
France and winning a powerful ally.
Henry IV's friendship was of essential importance to the Papacy two years later, when Alfonso II, Duke of Ferrara, died childless
(October 27, 1597), and the Pope resolved to attach the stronghold of the Este family to the states of the Church. Though Spain
and the Empire encouraged Alfonso II's illegitimate cousin, Cesare d'Este, to withstand the Pope, they were deterred from giving
him any material aid by Henry IV's threats, and a papal army entered Ferrara almost unopposed.
Clement VIII was as merciless as Pope Sixtus V (158590) in crushing brigandage in central Italy and in punishing the lawless-
ness of the Roman nobility. He did not even spare the youthful parricide Beatrice Cenci, who was to become a popular heroine
adapted in literature by Stendhal, Giorgio Moravia, and Percy Bysshe Shelley. In 1600 Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in
the Campo de' Fiori. The year before, the miller Menocchio, who had created a cosmology all by himself, holding that all life
evolved like rotten cheese, was also put to the stake.
Clement VIII was also openly anti-semitic, making the usual link of Jews and usury:
All the world suffers from the usury of the Jews, their monopolies and deceit. They have brought many unfortunate people into a
state of poverty, especially the farmers, working class people and the very poor. Then as now Jews have to be reminded intermit-
tently anew that they were enjoying rights in any country since they left Palestine and the Arabian desert, and subsequently their
ethical and moral doctrines as well as their deeds rightly deserve to be exposed to criticism in whatever country they happen to
live.
Clement VIII's approach towards the Jews had more specific targets. In Cum saepe accidere (February 28, 1592) he forbid the
long-established Jewish community of the papal enclave of Avignon to sell new goods, putting them at a disadvantage and foster-
ing the clich of the Jew as a dealer in secondhand goods. With Caeca et obdurata (February 25, 1593) he confirmed the bull of
Pope Paul III (153449) that established a ghetto for the ancient community of Jews in Rome, and reiterated the ban on Jews,
who had otherwise been formally expelled from the Papal States by Pope Pius V (156672) (in Hebraeorum gens, February 26,
1569) dwelling outside of the ghettos of Rome, Ancona, and Avignon, thus ensuring that they remained city-dwellers. Beyond
Papal reach, east of Poland, by contrast, farming communities of Jews remained a familiar feature of the landscape. With Cum
Haebraeorum malitia a few days later (February 28) he even forbade the reading of the Talmud [1]. It is alleged that Clement VIII's
reference to the "blind (Latin: caeca) obstinacy" of the Jews gave rise to the religious slur "kike", though many etymologies dispute
this.
Clement VIII was afflicted by gout, and was forced to spend much of his later life immobilized in bed. He died in March of 1605,
leaving a reputation for prudence, munificence, and capacity for business. His reign is especially distinguished by the number and
beauty of his medals, and especially tarnished by his role in the brutal execution of Giordano Bruno, one of the great minds of his
time. Clement was buried in St. Peter's Basilica, and later Pope Paul V (160521) had a mausoleum built for him in the Borghese
Chapel of Santa Maria Maggiore, where the remains were transferred in 1646.
Clement VIII founded the Collegio Clementino for the education of the sons of the richer classes, and augmented the number of
national colleges in Rome by opening the Collegio Scozzese for the training of missionaries to Scotland.

Clement VIII., 1592-1605.. Clement VIII., 1592-1605..
Doppia. Bologna mint. 6,62 g. Piastra. 1599. Avignon mint. 31,31 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX 1599 Bust of pope left.
Rev.: OCTAVIVS CARD D AQVAVIVA LEGA AVENIO around
Rev.: Floreate cross, flanked by shields at lower end. DOCET coat of arms topped with cardinals hat.
BONONIA
Reference: Dav. 8336; Muntoni 90. Extremely rare, small scratch-
Reference: Fb. 357; Muntoni 119. GOLD. Extremely rare. es and rim damage. Overall VF.
Plugged hole. Some rim damage. VF.
Estimate: 5,000,00 EUR. Price realized: 9,500 EUR (approx.
Estimate: 2000 EUR. Price realized: 1,900 EUR (approx. 2,912 10,899 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Piastra. 1599. Avignon mint. 44 mm 31,71 g. Piastra. 1598. Carpentrasso mint. 42 mm 31,34 g.
Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX 1599 Bust of pope left. G (mint- Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right. BM (mintmas-
masters initial) beneath bust. ters initials)/1598 beneath bust.
Rev.: OCTAVIVS CARD D AQVAVIVA LEGA AVENIO around coat Rev.: OCT CAR D AQVAVIVA LEG around coat of arms topped
of arms topped with cardinals hat. with cardinals hat. CAR-PEN below arms.
Reference: Muntoni 93. Spaziani Testa 17. Berman 1500. Poey dAvant Reference: Muntoni 128. Spaziani Testa 21 (R7). Serafini Vol.IV
4350. Davenport 8338. Extremely rare, small rim fracture, VF+ 415/a301. Cinagli 17. Scilla 16. Berman 1523. Davenport 8339. Very
rare, some corrosion traces. VF.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimate: CHF 20000. Price realized: 26,500 CHF (approx. 21,033 U.S.

Piastra. 1599. Carpentrasso mint. 45 mm 31,67 g. 1/2-Piastra. 1599. Avignon mint.
Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX Bust of pope right. BM (mint- Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX 1599 Bust of pope left. G (mint-
masters initials)/1599 beneath bust. masters initial) beneath bust.
Rev.: OCT CAR D AQVAVIVA LEG AVE around coat of arms Rev.: OCTAVIVS CARD D AQVAVIVA LEGA AVENIO around coat
topped with cardinals hat. CAR-PEN below arms. of arms topped with cardinals hat.
Reference: Spaziani-Testa 22. Muntoni 130. Berman 1523. Reference: Muntoni 97. Extremely rare. F/VF.
Very rare. VF+ Estimation: EUR 600. Price realized: 1,100 EUR (approx. 963 U.S.
Estimate: EUR 12000. Price realized: 16,000 EUR (approx. 23,742
Testone. Anno IX/1600. Rome mint. Testone. Anno IX/1600. Rome mint.
Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX A IX Coat of arms surmounted Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MA A IX Coat of arms surmounted by
by crossed keys and papal tiara. crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: Holy door. AN IVBILEI M DC ABSOLVTO Shield divides Rev.: IVSTI INTRABVNT PEREAM Holy door, with date AN/M/DC
RO-MA below. on it. Shield divides RO-MA below.
Reference: Muntoni 11. VF. Reference: Muntoni 19 VF.
Estimate: 125.00 EUR. Price realized: 140 EUR (approx. 168 U.S. Estimate: 125.00 EUR. Price realized: 210 EUR (approx. 252 U.S.

Obv.: CLE VIII PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: CLE VIII PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
and papal tiara. (The O in PON looks doubled) and papal tiara.
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter in boat, one hand raised, one hand on tiller. Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter in boat, one hand raised, one hand on tiller.
Winds blowing from right and left. ROMA under boat. Rim legend: Winds blowing from right and left. ROMA under boat, mintmasters
NON PREVALEBVNT mark beneath in legend. Rim legend: NON PREVALEBVNT
Reference: Berman 1445; CNI 212; Muntoni 25. VF. Reference: Muntoni 25 var. Rare, VF.
Estimation DM 450. Price realized: 850 DEM (approx. 386 U.S. Estimate: 200.00 EUR. Price realized: 165 EUR (approx. 198 U.S.
Testone. Rome mint. Testone. 1592. Rome mint. 9,21 g
Obv.: CLE VIII PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: CLE VIII PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys
Rev.: Nimbate St. Peter in boat, one hand raised, one hand on tiller. Rev.: S PETRVS ALMA ROMA Nimbate St. Peter seated to left,
Winds blowing from right and left. ROMA under boat. Rim legend: holding book and keys.
NON PREVALEBVNT
Reference: Muntoni 32. Patina, good VF.
Reference: Muntoni 29. Rare. Slight double striking. VF.
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 230 EUR (approx. 289 U.S.
Estimate: 100 EUR. Price realized: 120 EUR (approx. 184 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)

Testone. Rome mint. 33 mm 9,27 g. Testone. Rome mint. 9,28 g.
Obv.: CLE VIII PON MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed keys Obv.: CLEME VIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed
Rev.: S PETRVS SANTI MVNVS Nimbate St. Peter seated to left, Reverse: S PETVS S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Peter with keys and St.
holding book and keys. In exurge, RO-MA divided by mintmaster Paul with downturned sword standing, looking at each other.
mark.
Reference: Muntoni 48. Patina, VF.
Reference: Muntoni 45, CNI 250. VF.
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 250 EUR (approx. 314 U.S.
Estimate: EUR 180. Price realized: 130 EUR (approx. 193 U.S. Dollars as of the auction date)
Testone. Rome mint. 9,34 g. Testone. 1598. Ferrara mint. 31 mm 9,46 g.
Obv.: CLEM VIII PONT MAX Coat of arms surmounted by crossed Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX Pope facing left with hands in
keys and papal tiara. prayer before crucifix.
Reverse: S PETRVS S PAVLVS Nimbate St. Peter with keys and St. Rev.: ANNO DNI 1598 St. Peter with keys and book and St. Paul
Paul with downturned sword standing, looking at each other. with sword stand with coat of arms between them.
Reference: Muntoni 49. Patina, good VF. Reference: Muntoni 156. Beautiful patina, VF.
Estimation: 125,00. Price realized: 240 EUR (approx. 301 U.S. Estimate CHF 200. Price realized: 600 CHF (approx. 471 U.S. Dollars

Testone. 1598. Ferrara mint. 35 mm 9,36 g. Testone. Anno IX/1600. Rome mint.
Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX Pope facing left with hands in Obv.: CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX A X Coat of arms surmounted by
prayer before crucifix. crossed keys and papal tiara.
Rev.: ANNO DNI 1598 St. Peter with keys and book and St. Paul Rev.: Holy door with cross on it. AN IVBILEI M DC ABSOLVTO
with sword stand with coat of arms between them. Mintmasters mark divides RO-MA below.
Reference: CNI 1. Muntoni 156. Berman 1485. VF. Reference: (Muntoni -; CNI 134). Clipped, otherwise good fine,
scarce.
Dollars as of the auction date) Estimation: 40. Price realized: 40 GBP (approx. 57 U.S. Dollars as
Carlino. Avignon mint. 18 mm 1,28 g. Dozzina. 1593. Avignon mint.
Obv.: Pope enthroned frontal, wearing papal tiara, holding patriarchal Obv.: Shield with crossed keys with papal tiara above, flanked by letter
cross staff. CLEMENS VIII PPO M A on each side. CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX
Rev.: Footed long cross, crossed k eys in each angle. Legend around. Rev.: Footed cross center, in angles: Rosette, lion, rosette, lion. SIL
SABELIVS [...] AVEN 1593
Reference: M 115 B 1521. Extremely rare, VF.
Estimate CHF 400. Price realized: 320 CHF (approx. 237 U.S. Dollars
as of the auction date) Estimate: 200.00 EUR. Price realized: 420 EUR (approx. 504 U.S.
PAPAL COINS
Clement VIII., 1592-1605..
Dozzina. 1593. Avignon mint. 1,85g.
Obv.: Shield with crossed keys with papal tiara above, flanked by letter A on
each side. CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX
Rev.: Footed cross center, in angles: Rosette, lion, rosette, lion. SIL SABE-
LIVS VIC[...] LEG AVE 1593
Reference: B., 954; Munt., 107; Berman, 1514; P.A., 4334. Extremely Rare. F.
the auction date)
Dozzina. 1599. Avignon mint. Dozzina. 1599. Avignon mint. 24 mm 2,28 g.
Obv.: Shield with crossed keys with papal tiara above, flanked by Obv.: Shield with crossed keys with papal tiara above, flanked by
letter A on each side. CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX letter A on each side. CLEMENS VIII PONT MAX 1601
Rev.: Footed cross center, in angles: Lion, footed cross, lion, foot- Rev.: Footed cross center, in angles: crowned eagle. + CARO :
ed cross. Legend around, with trace of date 1599 visible. EPVS : ANCONI PROL AVEN*
Reference: Muntoni 111. Reference: Muntoni 133a. Serafini 298a. Berman 1518. Rare.
about VF.
PAPAL COINS
Clement VIII., 1592-1605..
AE Patard. Avignon mint.
Obv.: Crossed k eys. Legend around.
Rev.: Cross in quadralobe. Legend around.
Reference: Ber#1522, VF.
US$ 55.00 .

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PAPAL

He was born in Segni, Lazio, the son of one Anastasius.

AR 1/8 Siliqua. Rome mint. 0.26 g.

Rev.: Elongated monogram of Pope Vitalian.

Estimate $3000 Sold For $4750

AR 1/8 Siliqua- 30 Nummi. Rome mint. 0.26 g.

AR 1/8 Siliqua- 30 Nummi. Rome mint. 0.26 g.

Obv.: Crowned and beardless facing bust, wearing chlamys.

Rev.: Full monogram of Rome, S in upper left field.

Reference: OHara/Vecchi, 21(this coin); SB 1308A; Berman 6 (Pope Stephen II or III).

Estimate $4000 Sold For $4500

Gregory II was an alleged collateral ancestor to the Roman Savelli

AR 1/8 Siliqua . 0.26 g. Struck circa 717-731.

Rev.: G R E O around central cross.

Estimate $1000 Sold For $1200

AR 1/8 Siliqua . Rome mint. 0.13 g.

Rev.: Rm monogram; Z (Zacharias) in upper left field.

Estimate $2000 Sold For $2000

A mark of such newly settled conditions in the Duchy of

AR Denaro. Struck circa 781-795. 1.27 g.

Obv.: HADRIANVS P^P>, bust of Hadrian facing; in field, I-B

Estimate $10000 Sold For $18000

His feast day, formerly, was June 12.

Lead Imitative Denaro. Struck circa 796-800. 5.42 g.

Obv.: SCS PETRVS, bust of St. Peter three-quarter facing

Rev.: DN / LEONI / PAPE in three lines.

Estimate $500 Sold For $425

Papal dependence on the Holy Roman Emperor loosened through the

Denaro 827-840. Rome mint. Ag 1,25 g.

Obv.: +SCS PETRVS around PP GRE II

Rev.: LVDOVVICVS IMP MP around PIVS monogram

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,33 g.

Obv.: SCS PETRVS around SER P

Rev.: +HLOTHARIVS MP around PIVS monogram

PAPAL COINS PAPAL COINS

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 22 mm 1,09g. Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 0,86g.

Reference: M 2. B 26. MEC 1044. VF. Very rare. VF+

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,44g.

Obv.: Legend around monogram of the Pope.

Rev.: Legend around Imperial monogram.

Reference: Muntoni 2. Very rare. VF.

Nicholas I - 24 April 858 to 13 November 867

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,18 g.

Obv.: SCS PETRVS around ADR monogram.

Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS MP around ROMA monogram

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 22 mm 1,53 g.

Obv.: SCS PETRVS around ADR monogram.

Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS MP around ROMA monogram

Reference: M 1. B 32. MEC 48. XF.

Denaro. Rome mint. Ag 1,44 g.

Obv.: SCS PETRVS around ADR monogram.

Rev.: +LVDOVVICVS MP around ROMA monogram

Reference: Muntoni 1. Rare. VF.

Adrian died in 872 after 5 years as pope.

Lead Bulla (34mm, 30.61 gm).

Obv.: *HADRIANI around cross.

Reference; Serifini I pg. 12, 5. VF, lacquered, dig on obverse. ($500)

Estimate $500. Price realized: 500 USD.

Pope John VIII is not otherwise connected with this legend.

Obv.: DnIBONPAPE MItred bust facing, looking slightly to left.