Philippe IV, 1311

Duplessy 212; Friedberg 258, PCGS graded MS-63

The agnel d’or (“golden lamb”), first struck in 1311 as a replacement for the mantelet d’or, was the final gold coin introduced by Philip IV. While the new coin features a similar cross-with-fleurs-de-lis type as its predecessor, the obverse moves away from the royal typology of Philip IV’s earlier reign and instead depicts the agnus Dei (“Lamb of God”), the well recognized symbol of Jesus Christ in Christian theology. The agnus Dei had previously appeared along with with similar legends and a cross reverse on gold bezants thought to have been struck in the Crusader county of Tripoli under Bohemond VI (1252-1275). The apparent relationship between Philip IV’s agnel d’or and the bezant of Tripoli—a Crusader state that fell to the Mamluks in 1289—may perhaps be connected to the king’s support for the new Crusade that was preached in 1312. Philip IV “took the cross” himself in the following year. A hunting accident that claimed his life in 1314 prevented him from fulfilling his Crusader’s vow.

26 January 1311. + AGn DI QVI TOLL PECA MVDI MISERERE nOB, paschal lamb standing left with banner, head right; Ph’ REX below. Reverse: + XPC VInCIT XPC REGNAT XPC IMPERAT, cross feuillue and fleuronnée within double quadrilobe with lis in the spandrels.

Ex Maison Palombo (13 December 2014), 318