History of coins in Italy

Overview

Italy has a long history of different coinage types, which spans thousands of years. Italy has been influential at a coinage point of view: the medieval Florentine florin, one of the most used coinage types in European history and one of the most important coins in Western history, was struck in Florence in the 13th century, while the Venetian sequin, minted from 1284 to 1797, was the most prestigious gold coin in circulation in the commercial centers of the Mediterranean Sea. Despite the fact that the first Italian coinage systems were used in the Magna Graecia and Etruscan civilization, the Romans introduced a widespread currency throughout Italy. Unlike most modern coins, Roman coins had intrinsic value. The early modern Italian coins were very similar in style to French francs, especially in decimals, since it was ruled by the country in the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy. They corresponded to a value of 0.29 grams of gold or 4.5 grams of silver. Since Italy has been for centuries divided into many historic states, they all had different coinage systems, but when the country became unified in 1861, the Italian lira came into place, and was used until 2002. The term originates from libra, the largest unit of the Carolingian monetary system used in Western Europe and elsewhere from the 8th to the 20th century. In 1999, the euro became Italy's unit of account and the lira became a national subunit of the euro at a rate of 1 euro = 1,936.27 lire, before being replaced as cash in 2002.

Antiquity

Despite the fact that the first Italian coinage systems were used in the Magna Graecia and Etruscan civilization, the Romans introduced a widespread currency throughout Italy. Unlike most modern coins, Roman coins had intrinsic value. Greek coinage of Italy and Sicily originated from local Italiotes and Siceliotes who formed numerous city-states in Magna Graecia. These Hellenistic communities descended from Greek migrants. Southern Italy was so thoroughly hellenized that it was known as the Magna Graecia. Each of the polities struck their own coinage. Taras (now called Taranto) was among the most active of all Magna Graecia, which minted mainly in silver but often also in gold. By the second century BC some of these Greek coinages evolved under Roman rule, and can be classified as the first Roman provincial currencies. The brief period of Etruscan coinage, with the predominance of marks of value, seems to be an amalgam that reconciles two very different monetary systems: the 'primitive' bronze-weighing and aes grave economy of central Italy with that of struck silver and gold issues of southern Italian Greek type not familiar in Etruria.

The family of Social War coinage includes all the coins issued by the Italic allies of the Marsic confederation, Marsi, Peligni, Piceni, Vestini, Samnites, Frentani, Marrucini, and Lucani, during the Social War (91–88 BC) against Rome. Inspired by the Roman denarius, their circulation (and perhaps their release) continued even after the conflict ended, contemporary and promiscuously with their republican models.

Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction during the Republic, in the third century BC, through Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denomination, and composition. A persistent feature was the inflationary debasement and replacement of coins over the centuries. Notable examples of this followed the reforms of Diocletian. This trend continued with Byzantine currency. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the solidus continued to circulate for some time among the Franks; his name was kept and transformed into "sol" in French, then "sou". The peoples settled in the Empire, Burgundians, Ostrogoths and Visigoths, also issued coins imitating the Roman system, including the solidus. Roman currency names survive today in many countries via the Carolingian monetary system, such as the Arabic dinar (from the denarius coin), the British pound, the peso (both translations of the Roman libra, a unit of weight), and Portuguese dinheiro (from the denarius coin). The manufacture of coins in the Roman culture, dating from about the 4th century BC, significantly influenced later development of coin minting in Europe. The origin of the word "mint" is ascribed to the manufacture of silver coin at Rome in 269 BC near the temple of Juno Moneta. This goddess became the personification of money, and her name was applied both to money and to its place of manufacture. Roman mints were spread widely across the Empire, and were sometimes used for propaganda purposes. The populace often learned of a new Roman Emperor when coins appeared with the new emperor's portrait. While they contained precious metals, the value of a coin was higher than its precious metal content, so they were not bullion. Estimates of their value range from 1.6 to 2.85 times their metal content, thought to equal the purchasing power of 10 modern British Pound Sterling (US$15) at the beginning of the Roman Empire to around 18 Pound Sterling (US$29) by its end (comparing bread, wine and meat prices) and, over the same period, around one to three days' pay for a Legionnaire.

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Italy has been influential at a coinage point of view: the medieval Florentine florin, one of the most used coinage types in European history and one of the most important coins in Western history, was struck in Florence in the 13th century, while the Venetian sequin, minted from 1284 to 1797, was the most prestigious gold coin in circulation in the commercial centers of the Mediterranean Sea.

Lombard coinage

The Lombard coinage refers to the autonomous productions of coins by the Lombards. It constitutes part of the coinage produced by Germanic peoples occupying the former territory of the Roman Empire during the Migration Period. All known Lombard coinage was produced after their settlement of Italy. The coinage originates from two distinct areas, in Langobardia Major between the last decades of the sixth century and 774, and in Langobardia Minor, in the duchy of Benevento, between approximately 680 and the end of the 9th century. Only five hoards have been found which contain non-pseudo-imperial coinage of the Lombards. Of these, only two have been published in any detail.

A hoard found at Ossi, Sardinia was described by Vincenzo Dessì in 1908. A hoard found at Ilanz, Grisons was described by Fritz Jecklin in 1906, and was further studied by Bernareggi in 1977.

Florentine florin

The Florentine florin (Italian: Fiorino fiorentino) was struck from 1252 to 1523 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard. It had 54 grains (3.499 grams, 0.113 troy ounce) of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a purchasing power difficult to estimate (and variable) but ranging according to social grouping and perspective from approximately 140 to 1,000 modern US dollars. The name of the coin comes from the Giglio bottonato (it), the floral emblem of the city, which is represented at the head of the coin.

The fiorino d'oro (gold florin) was used in the Republic of Florence and was the first European gold coin struck in sufficient quantities since the 7th century to play a significant commercial role. The florin was recognised across large parts of Europe. The territorial usage of the lira and the florin often overlapped, where the lira was used for smaller transactions (wages, food purchases), the florin was for larger transactions such as those used in dowries, international trade or for tax-related matters. The Florentine florin is of the most used coinage types in European history and one of the most important coins in Western history. The first minting of the florin occurred in 1252, at the time the value of the florin was equal to the lira, but by 1500 the florin had appreciated, seven lire amounted to one florin. The design of the original Florentine florins was the distinctive fleur-de-lis badge of the city on one side and on the other a standing and facing figure of St. John the Baptist wearing a cilice. The Dutch guilder is symbolized as Fl. or ƒ, which means florijn (florin). The Hungarian forint is named after the florin.

Venetian sequin

The sequin (Venetian and Italian: zecchino [dzekˈkiːno]) is a gold coin minted by the Republic of Venice from the 13th century onwards. The design of the Venetian sequin remained unchanged for over 500 years, from its introduction in 1284 to the fall of the Republic of Venice in 1797, making it the most prestigious gold coin in circulation in the commercial centers of the Mediterranean Sea. No other coin design has ever been produced over such a long historical period.

The reverse bears a motto in Latin hexameter: Sit tibi, Christe, datus // quem tū regis, iste ducātus ("Christ, let this duchy that you rule be given to you"). On the obverse there is Mark the Evangelist, patron saint of Venice, who is depicted with a beard and halo, is facing to the right and is wrapped in a large cloak while holding the Gospel with his left hand. With his right hand the saint offers a banner to the Doge of Venice who is kneeling to the left and holding the staff with both hands. The Doge wears a rich fur-trimmed cloak and the ducal cap, under the flag facing to the right the vertical writing "dux", around it "s·m·venet" and the name of the Doge. The quality of the minting is superior to all contemporary coins and this shows that the artists of the Venice Mint had already reached a high level of taste and refinement of design at the time. Initially called "ducat" (ducato), for the ruling Doge of Venice who was prominently depicted on it, it was called the zecchino, after the Zecca (mint) of Venice, since 1543 when Venice began minting a silver coin also called a ducat.

Venetian grosso

The Venetian grosso (plural grossi) is a silver coin first introduced in the Republic of Venice in 1193 under doge Enrico Dandolo. It originally weighed 2.18 grams, was composed of 98.5% pure silver, and was valued at 26 denarii. Its name is from the same root as groschen and the English groat, all deriving ultimately from the denaro grosso ("large penny"). Its value was allowed to float relative to other Venetian coins until it was pegged to 4 soldini in 1332, incidentally the year the soldino was introduced. In 1332, 1 grosso was the equivalent of 4 soldini, or 48 denarii. The earliest surviving account of Enrico Dandolo's introduction of the Venetian grosso associates it with the outfitting of the Fourth Crusade in 1202 and tradition makes the need to pay for the ships which transported the crusaders the cause of the grosso's introduction. Even though coinage of the grosso might have begun a few years earlier, the influx of silver used to pay for the crusaders' ships led to its first large scale mintage. The coin had 2.2 grams of 98.5% fine silver, the purest medieval metallurgy could make. It was initially called a ducatus argenti since Venice was a duchy, but is more widely known as a grosso or matapano, a Muslim term referring to the seated figure on its reverse.

Venetian lira

The Venetian lira (plural lire) was the distinct currency of the Republic of Venice until 1848, when it was replaced by the Italian lira. It originated from the Carolingian monetary system used in much of Western Europe since the 8th century CE, with the lira subdivided into 20 soldi, each of 12 denari. From its initial value of 305.94 g fine silver, the Venetian lira had depreciated so much in value over its 1,000-year lifetime that this original unit was referred to from 1200 CE as the lira piccola (small lira) in comparison to larger units of the same name. The denaro or piccolo worth 1⁄240th a lira was the only coin produced between 800–1200 CE. Initially weighing 1.7 g fine silver, it depreciated over the centuries until it contained only 0.08 g fine silver by 1200 CE. The various currency systems of Italy became of less importance to European trade after the Age of Discovery in the 16th century; nonetheless Venice continued to issue new coins. The scudo d'argento of 30.1 g fine silver was introduced in 1578 for 7 lire, rising to 12.4 lire by 1739. The tollero of 23.4 g fine silver was issued in 1797 for 10 lire. The Venetian lira piccola was supplanted in the 19th century by the Italian lira of the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1806 and the Lombardy-Venetian lira of the Austrian Empire. The Italian lira was reintroduced by the Republic of San Marco in 1848 at par with the French franc, which finally replaced all previous currencies as well as the lira piccola, with the latter valued at 0.5116 Italian lira.

Genoese lira

The Genoese lira (Italian: Lira genovese) was the currency of the Republic of Genoa until 1797. The mint in the Republic of Genoa began its production around 1138, with coins introduced in line with similar versions issued in the rest of Europe, as follows:

The silver denaro in 1138, containing 1.06 grams of 1⁄3 fine silver (or 84.8 g fine silver in a lira); The silver grosso in 1172 worth 4 denari, of 1.4 g of 23⁄24 fine silver (or 80.5 g fine silver in a lira); The gold Genovino d'oro in 1252, at about the same time as the Florentine florin; of 3.5 g fine gold, and worth 1⁄2 lira (each lira worth either 7 g fine gold or 70 g fine silver); The testone or 1-lira coin before 1500, containing about 13 g of 23⁄24 fine silver (or 12.5g fine). It was the highest-valued Italian coin unit in the end of the 15th century. Genoese currency became important in the 16th century during the Golden age of Genoese banking, with the Spanish Empire funnelling its massive wealth from Spanish America through the Bank of Saint George. With the decline in the fortunes of the Genoese banks and the Spanish Empire in the 17th century, however, the Genoese lira also depreciated substantially. The silver scudo's value increased to 6.5 lire in 1646, 7.4 lire in 1671, and 8.74 lire just before the Austrian occupation of Genoa in 1746.

Papal States florin

The Byzantine monetary system is followed in the papal coinage until the reign of Pope Leo III, after which the system of the Frankish Empire obtains. Pope John XXII adopted the Florentine system, and coined gold florins, but the weight of this coin varied from 22 to 30 carats (4.4 to 6 g), until Pope 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 (écu) that remained the monetary unit of the Pontifical States.

Papal States Giulio

The Giulio was a papal coin with a value of 2 grossi. The name came from Pope Julius II (r. 1503–13) who had increased it in weight and intrinsic in 1504. By order of 20 July 1504 the Pope established: "Reformetur stampae monetariae pro ducatis, carlenis, bononiensis etc. Cogitetur de cunio monetae si posset reduci Urbs ad monetam papalem exclusa forensi etc.". The carleni (or carlini) were then reformed and changed their name to giuli, so as to distinguish them from the previous ones. They contained an abundant 4 grams of silver. Their value thus became one third higher than the pontifical carlino. A few years later, in 1508, the silver content had already fallen below 4 grams. In 1535 there was a further reduction to 3.65 grams. The first minting of Julius II bore the papal arms on the obverse and the saints Peter and Paul on the reverse. In 1540 Paul III coined the coins with 3.85 grams of fine which took the name of paoli. The name of giulio was also used by other papal mints and some Italian ones. The papal giulio of Bologna was forged in Masserano by a Fieschi before 1597. This coin weighed only 3.4 grams. The last coin minted with this name was the silver giulio struck by Pius VII in 1817; it weighed 2,642 g and had a title of 917/1000. It was still worth 2 grossi or 10 baiocchi. The names of paolo and giulio were in use in Rome, even when these coins were no longer in circulation, to indicate the 20 baiocchi coin.

Papal States Paolo

The Paolo or Paulo was a pontifical coin; this name was given to the giulio by 2 grossi when in 1540 Pope Paul III (hence its name) made it increase its silver content to 3.85 g. The first minting of Paul III bore the papal arms on the obverse and St. Paul on the reverse. At the time of the arrival of the French Revolutionaries, a paolo was valued on the Milanese market with the value of 14 soldi. In Rome in the nineteenth century it was the popular name of the 10 baiocchi coin. The names of paolo and giulio remained in use in Rome until the pontificate of Pius IX, even when these coins were no longer in circulation, to indicate the 10 baiocchi coin. The same name took coins from other Italian states. In the Grand Duchy of Tuscany circulated the paolo of 8 crazie.